GWR King George V

From its beginnings in 1835, Britain's Great Western Railway followed its own course and made railway history.  Its style was bold and somewhat ostentatious which endeared it to many admirers throughout the world.  GWR's founder, chief engineer and acknowledged genius in residence was the famous engineer; Isambard Kingdom Brunel.  He designed the railway line that extended from London to Bristol and further west to Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance. 

The GWR operated over beautiful bridges and through magnificent tunnels on a spectacular broad seven-foot gauge track, which was exclusive to that line.  Towering express locomotives with eight foot drive wheels, designed by Daniel Gooch, provided motive power.  When the Great Western expanded into Devon and Cornwall, the most famous of its trains, the 'Cornish Rivera Express' came into being.  In 1845, the Great Western was forced to come into line with the rest of the United Kingdom rail gauge - and changed over to 4 foot 8 1/2 inch gauge as being its standard.  By 1882, all the other broad gauge lines in the United Kingdom had also reverted to this measure. 

In the early 1900's, the distinctive design of the Great Western locomotives was set by Locomotive Superintendent G. J. Churchward in his STAR and SAINT classes.  They all shared a 4-6-0 wheel arrangement with tapered boilers, distinctive copper-capped chimneys and polished-brass pop-valve shrouds.  Churchward's successor, C. B. Collett, retained these basic design icons when developing the now famous KING, CASTLE, MANOR, HALL and GRANGE classes. 

The Kings, originally called 'Super Castles', were the biggest and most powerful locomotives in England in their day.  They had four cylinders; the inside pair powered the leading axle, while the outside pair were connected to the center axle.  This configuration developed a tractive effort of 40,300 lbs. To gain favorable publicity for the British railway system, locomotive No. 6000 was sent to America in 1927, to attend the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Centennial Exposition.  Since it was a representative of Great Britain, it needed a name more befitting its position, and it was named 'KING GEORGE V'.  The name remained long after the exposition and as a result, all the 'Super Castles' were renamed after English kings.

A locomotive review on the King George by Geoff Spenceley 

is available in the reference section.  

Specifications

Scale / Gauge:  1/32, No. 1 Gauge (45 mm)

Total Weight:  6 kg

Dimensions:

Length: 664 mm (Engine 412 mm + Tender 239 mm)

Width: 90 mm

Height: 130 mm

Wheels:

Arrangement: 4-6-0, made of stainless steel, insulated both sides

Drivers: Dia. 62 mm, coil spring action

Pilot Truck: Dia. 26 mm

Minimum Radius:  2 meters

Engine:

Cylinders: 4 Cylinders, Bore 11 mm X Stroke 20 mm

Steam Port: 1.5 mm, Lap 1.4 mm

Valve Gear:  Walschaert's with screw reverser

Boiler Type:  "C" type, Water Capacity: 270 cc at 80% full

Pressure:  3.5 to 4.0 kg/cm2

Fittings:  1 x Safety Valve, Throttle Valve, Blower Valve, Water Gauge, Pressure Gauge, Whistle, Whistle Valve, By-Pass Valve, Water Check Valve

Feed Water Pump:  Axle Driven Pump mounted on the main driver

Pump Ram: 5 mm x Stroke 6 mm 

Lubricator Type:  Roscoe Displacement type located in the smoke box, Capacity 2.6 cc.

Tender:

Truck Wheels:  Dia. 39 mm, made of stainless steel

Fuel Tank:  Capacity 180 cc of methanol (at 80% full)

Water Tank:  Capacity 200 cc

Feed Water Pump:  Hand Operated Pump mounted in the Water Tank

Pump Ram: 10 x Stroke 16 mm

Alcohol Burner:  3 wick Tube Alcohol Burner

Electric Version 

One D.C. Motor

Rated Voltage: 12 V

Rated Ampere: 2 A

Speed: 5,200 rpm  

Transmission System: Spur Gears (Wheels free to rotate)

Gears Ratio: 1 to 16 (From motor to driving wheels)

Engine Speed: 37 meter / minute (average)

Drawbar Pull:  Approx 1 kg at tender

Lights:  2 in the front: 1.5 v x 100 m A

1 in the tender: 1.5 V x 10 m A