Although overshadowed by the later and more famous steam locomotives that John G. Robinson would go on to design, the Great Central Railway Class 11B 4-4-0 Express Passenger engines were a successful class which totaled 40. Built from 1901 to 1903, in later rebuilt form as 11D, some 11Bs would last in service until 1950. Railwaymen continued to refer to the class as "11B" even after all were rebuilt to 11D. Being contemporary with and to some extent the 4-4-0 version of Robinson's much more numerous 0-6-0 goods class 9J, which were known as "Pom-Poms", the 11Bs acquired the nickname "Pom-Pom Bogies". The London & North Eastern Railway classified the 11Bs, along with their 11C and 11D rebuilds, as Class D9.
Service history[]
As intended the 11Bs displaced Pollitt's 11As on the London Extension services, with engines shedded at Leicester, Gorton and Neasden.
The 11Bs were partially displaced in their turn by the arrival of Robinson's "Atlantics", a process largely completed by the arrival of the "Director" 4-4-0s. 11Bs then found uses on the older parts of the Great Central Railway network, based especially in Sheffield and Annesley, with others scattered elsewhere.
By the Grouping, increasing numbers of the engines had been rebuilt with larger superheated boilers and piston valves becoming GCR Class 11D. The last conversion was completed in 1927.
Performance[]
The performance of these engines was very much overshadowed by later Robinson engines such as classes 8B, 11E, and 11F. Nevertheless, they must have been at least reasonably satisfactory from the start to merit the additional order of 10 in 1904. Hancox records them as reliable and capable of working nine bogie coaches. London Extension schedules from 1905, at which time the 11Bs were still working some of the best trains, needed average speeds of nearly 60 mph (97 km/h) and to keep these times much faster running must have been required. Even with relatively light loads this implies at the least a free-running locomotive. Their long lives (especially in later rebuilt form) suggest robust and trouble-free construction.
However effective they were, Robinson clearly identified a need for larger express passenger locomotives, with the 8B "Jersey Lilies" appearing in 1903, very soon after the 11Bs were delivered. There were also three distinct attempts to improve the 11Bs through rebuilding, creating 11C and eventually 11D
Accidents and incidents[]
On 23 December 1904, locomotive No. 1040 was hauling an express passenger train which was derailed at Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire due to excessive speed on a curve. Four people were killed.
Models[]
In 1904 Bassett-Lowke produced a Gauge 1 model of an 11B, complete with appropriate coaches, in association with a Great Central Railway marketing initiative. The engine represented was No. 1014 'Sir Alexander'.