Power type Steam Build date 1920–1929 | Configuration 0-6-2T | |
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Builder N2/1: Doncaster Works (10), North British Locomotive Company (50)N2/2: Beyer, Peacock and Company (12)N2/3: Doncaster Works (6), Yorkshire Engine Company (6)N2/4: Hawthorn Leslie and Company (20), Yorkshire Engine Company (3) Total produced 107 (N2/1: 60, N2/2: 12, N2/3: 12, N2/4: 23) | ||
The Great Northern Railway (GNR) Class N2 is an 0-6-2T side tank steam locomotive designed by Nigel Gresley and introduced in 1920. Further batches were built by the London and North Eastern Railway from 1925. They had superheaters and piston valves driven by Stephenson valve gear.
Contents
Some locomotives were fitted with condensing apparatus for working on the Metropolitan Railway Widened Lines between King's Cross and Moorgate.
In service
The N2s were designed for suburban passenger operations, and worked most of the duties out of King's Cross and Moorgate, often hauling one or two quad-art sets of articulated suburban coaches. These ran to places such as New Barnet and Gordon Hill on the Hertford loop. They also hauled some empty coaching stock trains between King's Cross and Ferme Park carriage sidings.
They were also a common sight in and around Glasgow and Edinburgh operating suburban services, mainly on what is today known as the North Clyde Line.
Sub-classes
British Railways numbers were: 69490-69596.
Preservation
One, No. 4744 (BR No. 69523) survived into preservation and now resides at the Great Central Railway. It is owned by the Gresley Society, and has appeared in both LNER Black and GNR Apple Green while in preservation. Restored in 2009, the engine is painted as GNR No. 1744, and is usually based at the GCR when not visiting other railways. The engine re-visited King's Cross on Tuesday 5 April 2016 for the unveiling of a statue of Sir Nigel Gresley, the engine in question was moved to and from Bounds Green behind a diesel.
Models
The N2 was the basis of the Hornby Dublo 0-6-2T tank engine, which ironically was offered in the liveries of all the 'Big Four' companies - despite being clearly one of the LNER N2s fitted with condensing gear for use on the London Underground. Mainline also produced models of the N2 in the 1980s, theirs depicting engines No. 4744 in LNER Black and No. 9522 in LNER Apple Green (9522 was the only N2 to wear this livery, which was applied in 1946).
Hornby currently owns the toolings for the N2, and released a model of engine 69563 as part of the R2981 London Olympics 1948 set including two British Railways (ex-LNER) 60-foot (18 m) teak coaches, 3rd class composite 1435 and 3rd Brake 24387. The set, while receiving a generally good review, was criticised for Hornby's use of a 'rather tired tooling', and that the real 69563 had been a Scottish engine which had not been fitted with the condensing gear - which the model had. The choice of rolling stock was also criticised as an N2 would not be used to haul mainline stock on suburban duties - most likely this was only seen if an N2 was on station pilot duties, and was removing such stock from King's Cross.
Hornby also produced models of the N2 up until 2005 using the original Mainline tooling in GNR Apple Green as locomotive No. 1763, among others. These models were painted in a slightly darker shade of green than that used on the Mainline model of 9522 in 1983.
Hornby produces the LNER number 4765 in black livery using existing tooling, as R3465.
In fiction
The Thomas & Friends character, Ryan, is based on a GNR N2.