GNoSR V/F Class 4-4-0
The first Ready-to-Run locomotive project to be undertaken by Thanet Loco Works is the Great North of Scotland Railway V/F Class and South Eastern & Chatham Railway G Class locomotives. These are to be produced in strictly limited quantities, each model being assembled and finished by hand.
Class History
First we feel that an explanation is required as to how come these locomotives are being referred to as both GNoSR and SECR machines. For the benefit of those who may not already know here is that explanation -
The first batch of ten GNoSR Class V locomotives was placed with Neilsons in in November 1898 as the latter's order number E827 and with delivery of the first five examples starting in October 1899. At this time the GNoSR found itself suffering from a downturn in traffic, and therefore having no requirement for the remaining five machines nor having any means of paying for them.Thus the company recommended to Neilsons that the locomotives be offered for sale to other companies, and the newly-formed SE&CR Management committee soon purchased the machines for £3,300 apiece, allocating them the class of 'G', presumably following on from the SER's 'F' Class 4-4-0s.
This is how the same class of locomotive came to be found at opposite ends of the British Isles, and it is this fact that drew us to settle on the GNoSR V as our first Ready-to-Run locomotive. This locomotive class offers a staggering range of liveries, providing a further SECR 4-4-0 to match locomotives and rolling stock available from larger manufacturers whilst also offering an opening for the under-served Scottish modeller and another preserved locomotive available in RTR form.
Onwards with the history, though. A further four class Vs would be built by the GNoSR in 1909/10, and a further four, 1913-1915. The total class of nine locomotives were numbered as follows:
1899 Batch: 113-115, 25, 26
1909/10 Batch: 27, 29, 31, 36
1913-15 Batch: 28, 33, 35, 40
The Southern Sisters of these machines were, as previously mentioned, allocated the class of 'G' by the SECR and were numbered as 676-680 as they entered into service from January 1900.
Enter now the GNoSR Class F, close relations of the Vs. Indeed, the only difference between these two classes was the fact that the Vs were fitted with saturated boilers and the Fs with superheated boilers, the only major external difference being the longer smokebox fitted to the Fs and later to some saturated Vs under LNER ownership. The Fs were built in 1920 and 1921, with the eight machines being numbered 45-50, 52 and 54. These were also the only GNoSR locomotives to be named, being named as follows:
45 - George Davidson
46 - Benachie
47 - Sir David Stewart
48 - Andrew Bain
49 - Gordon Highlander
50 - Hatton Castle
52 - Glen Grant
54 - Southesk
All 21 of the GNoSR locomotives passed to the LNER in 1923, all being classed as D40, initially numbered by adding 6,800 to the existing GNoSR number. Under the later 1946 numbering scheme the locomotives became Nos. 2260-2272 (Former V Class) and Nos.2273-2280 (Former F Class). The SECR machines all passed to the Southern Railway in 1923, but withdrawals commenced in 1924 thus only Nos. 676-680 received SR numbers (A676-A680). The class had disappeared from the South by the end of 1927, leaving only the former GNoSR machines. Despite their early withdrawal, photographic evidence proves that at least one of the locomotives was painted into Maunsell's lined olive green livery and was also fitted with a Wainwright-pattern boiler at some stage, in place of the GNoSR original.
Back in Scotland, the fleet of 21 remained largely untouched besides the fitment of NBR-Pattern smokebox doors and other minor cosmetic changes,with the class remaining intact until 1947, some twenty years after they had disappeared from Kent. 18 locomotives passed to British Railways in 1948, 11 former Vs and all of the former Fs, with BR renumbering them by adding 60000 to their 1946 LNER numbers. The last locomotive of the class to be withdrawn was No.62277 Gordon Highlander in 1958. Upon withdrawal the locomotive was preserved by BR and remains extant to this day, painted in inauthentic pre-WW1 GNoSR Lined Green and restored to a semblance of her original physical condition with the number 49 reapplied to her cabside.
The first batch of ten GNoSR Class V locomotives was placed with Neilsons in in November 1898 as the latter's order number E827 and with delivery of the first five examples starting in October 1899. At this time the GNoSR found itself suffering from a downturn in traffic, and therefore having no requirement for the remaining five machines nor having any means of paying for them.Thus the company recommended to Neilsons that the locomotives be offered for sale to other companies, and the newly-formed SE&CR Management committee soon purchased the machines for £3,300 apiece, allocating them the class of 'G', presumably following on from the SER's 'F' Class 4-4-0s.
This is how the same class of locomotive came to be found at opposite ends of the British Isles, and it is this fact that drew us to settle on the GNoSR V as our first Ready-to-Run locomotive. This locomotive class offers a staggering range of liveries, providing a further SECR 4-4-0 to match locomotives and rolling stock available from larger manufacturers whilst also offering an opening for the under-served Scottish modeller and another preserved locomotive available in RTR form.
Onwards with the history, though. A further four class Vs would be built by the GNoSR in 1909/10, and a further four, 1913-1915. The total class of nine locomotives were numbered as follows:
1899 Batch: 113-115, 25, 26
1909/10 Batch: 27, 29, 31, 36
1913-15 Batch: 28, 33, 35, 40
The Southern Sisters of these machines were, as previously mentioned, allocated the class of 'G' by the SECR and were numbered as 676-680 as they entered into service from January 1900.
Enter now the GNoSR Class F, close relations of the Vs. Indeed, the only difference between these two classes was the fact that the Vs were fitted with saturated boilers and the Fs with superheated boilers, the only major external difference being the longer smokebox fitted to the Fs and later to some saturated Vs under LNER ownership. The Fs were built in 1920 and 1921, with the eight machines being numbered 45-50, 52 and 54. These were also the only GNoSR locomotives to be named, being named as follows:
45 - George Davidson
46 - Benachie
47 - Sir David Stewart
48 - Andrew Bain
49 - Gordon Highlander
50 - Hatton Castle
52 - Glen Grant
54 - Southesk
All 21 of the GNoSR locomotives passed to the LNER in 1923, all being classed as D40, initially numbered by adding 6,800 to the existing GNoSR number. Under the later 1946 numbering scheme the locomotives became Nos. 2260-2272 (Former V Class) and Nos.2273-2280 (Former F Class). The SECR machines all passed to the Southern Railway in 1923, but withdrawals commenced in 1924 thus only Nos. 676-680 received SR numbers (A676-A680). The class had disappeared from the South by the end of 1927, leaving only the former GNoSR machines. Despite their early withdrawal, photographic evidence proves that at least one of the locomotives was painted into Maunsell's lined olive green livery and was also fitted with a Wainwright-pattern boiler at some stage, in place of the GNoSR original.
Back in Scotland, the fleet of 21 remained largely untouched besides the fitment of NBR-Pattern smokebox doors and other minor cosmetic changes,with the class remaining intact until 1947, some twenty years after they had disappeared from Kent. 18 locomotives passed to British Railways in 1948, 11 former Vs and all of the former Fs, with BR renumbering them by adding 60000 to their 1946 LNER numbers. The last locomotive of the class to be withdrawn was No.62277 Gordon Highlander in 1958. Upon withdrawal the locomotive was preserved by BR and remains extant to this day, painted in inauthentic pre-WW1 GNoSR Lined Green and restored to a semblance of her original physical condition with the number 49 reapplied to her cabside.
The Models
All of the ready-to-run models will feature appropriate detail variations according to their requested number where the resources exist.