SECR P Class *Coming Soon*

Description

HISTORY OF THE SECR P

The eight member P class of small six-coupled tanks were built by Ashford Works between February 1909 and July 1910 and were designed for working light branch and push-pull services, replacing the underpowered steam railmotors that had been purchased in 1905 & 1906 for lightly loaded branch lines. They proved only slightly more successful than the railmotors but did become useful engines on other duties as shed pilots and carriage shunters.

Harry Wainwright had been impressed by the LBSCR A1x class Terriers, then being transferred from London suburban service to branchline use. Unfortunately in an effort to keep building costs down, several dimensions were scaled down (e.g. cylinder stroke and bore both reduced by 2 inches) and these economies resulted in a locomotive with only 73% of a Terrier’s tractive effort. All of the class were re-allocated to light shunting or shed pilots by 1913. N°27 and N°753 were shipped to France during World War I and spent a year and a half shunting at Boulogne from April 1915.

Maunsell had the original working pressure of 180 psi reduced to 160 as he considered it needlessly high for a shunter. The class carried SR passenger green but by 1936 any repaints were in black. All eight engines passed to BR in 1948 where they were unclassified in power rating and painted black eventually with N°1558 being the last SR locomotive to be renumbered in July 1953.

Towards the end Southern Railway days two of the class, N°178 and N°555, were located at Brighton, though were still considered to be Eastern Section stock.

Three of the class passed into preservation and are located on the Bluebell, engines N°27, N°178 & N°323, though N°31178 was first sold to Bowaters at Sittingbourne as their Pioneer II, whilst one other, N°1556, was sold to the “Pride of Sussex” flour mill at Robertsbridge but is now on the KESR. All these locos, 50% of the class total, have given useful service on service trains in the past and continue to provide special services such as footplate experience courses.