GWR 6000 Class

6000 King Class
6024 King Edward I at Didcot Railway Centre in June 1994
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
DesignerCharles Collett
BuilderGWR Swindon Works
Order numberLots 243, 267, 309
Build date1927–1928 (20), 1930 (10), 1936 (1)
Total produced31
Specifications
Configuration:
 • Whyte4-6-0
 • UIC2′C h4
Gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Leading dia.3 ft 0 in (0.914 m)
Driver dia.6 ft 6 in (1.981 m)
Minimum curve8 chains (530 ft; 160 m) normal,
7 chains (460 ft; 140 m) slow
Length68 ft 2 in (20.78 m) over buffers
Width8 ft 11+12 in (2.731 m)
Height13 ft 4+34 in (4.083 m)
Axle load22 long tons 10 cwt (50,400 lb or 22.9 t)
(25.2 short tons) full
Adhesive weight67 long tons 10 cwt (151,200 lb or 68.6 t)
(75.6 short tons) full
Loco weight89 long tons 0 cwt (199,400 lb or 90.4 t)
(99.7 short tons) full
Tender weight46 long tons 14 cwt (104,600 lb or 47.4 t)
(51.2 short tons) full
Total weight135 long tons 14 cwt (304,000 lb or 137.9 t)
(152.0 short tons)
Fuel typeCoal
Fuel capacity6 long tons 0 cwt (13,400 lb or 6.1 t)
(6.7 short tons)
Water cap.4,000 imp gal (18,000 L; 4,800 US gal)
BoilerGWR Standard No. 12[1]
Boiler pressure250 lbf/in2 (1.72 MPa)
CylindersFour: two inside, two outside
Cylinder size16+14 in × 28 in (413 mm × 711 mm)
Valve gearInside cylinders: Walschaerts
Outside cylinders: derived from inside cylinders via rocking bars
Performance figures
Tractive effort40,300 lbf (179.3 kN) original,
39,700 lbf (176.6 kN) after 1st overhaul
Career
Operators
Class6000 King-class
Power classGWR: Special
BR: 8P
Number in class30
Numbers6000–6029
Official nameKing-class
Axle load classGWR: Double Red
LocaleWestern Region
Withdrawn1936 (1), 1962 (30)
Preserved6000, 6023, 6024
DispositionThree preserved, remainder scrapped.

The Great Western Railway (GWR) 6000 Class or King Class is a class of 4-6-0 steam locomotives designed for express passenger work and introduced in 1927. They were the largest locomotives built by the GWR, apart from the unique Pacific (The Great Bear). The class was named after kings of the United Kingdom and of England, beginning with the then reigning monarch, King George V, and going back through history.[a] They handled the principal GWR expresses on the main line from London to the West of England and on the Chiltern line to Birmingham and Wolverhampton, until 1962 when the class was withdrawn.

  1. ^ Champ (2018), p. 321.


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