No. 85 is a Compound V Class 4-4-0 steam locomotive built in 1932 by Beyer Peacock & Co., Manchester, under works number 6733. It worked express passenger trains on the Dublin - Belfast line, the main line which links Ireland's two biggest cities. It is one of only two surviving operational main line compound locomotives in the British Isles.
About the GNRI V Class[]
The compound V Class locomotives brought much interest from the railway press when they were built. The first three-cylinder engines in the whole of Ireland, they weighed 103 tons 11 cwt including tender. For the time they were also unusual in having round-topped boilers and Stephenson's valve gear.
The V Class engines were ordered from Beyer Peacock (without tenders, which were built in Dundalk) and delivered at weekly intervals between April and May 1932. They carried the numbers 83-87 and were named after birds of prey: Eagle (83), Falcon (84), Merlin (85), Peregrine (86), and Kestrel (87). As built, No. 85 and its four siblings (all now scrapped) were unlined black, but the famous GNR(I) sky blue livery presently carried was applied from the mid 1930s.
The main dimensions of the LMS design (one of which, No. 1000, is preserved at York) included 6 ft 9in driving wheels, a 19in x 26in high-pressure cylinder and two 21in x 26in low-pressure cylinders. The working pressure was 220 psi with a tractive effort of 22,649 lb. However, the Great Northern design ultimately had 6 ft 7in driving wheels, a 17¼ in x 26in high-pressure cylinder, 19in x 26in low-pressure cylinders and 250 psi working pressure, which produced a tractive effort of 23,762 lb. Both designs had the coupling rods outside the connecting rods. The compounds - or 'Pounders' as they became known by crews - were built during the Depression and cost £5,847. That was £3,000 cheaper than the same railway's SG3 Class 4-4-0, built between 1920 and 1922.
Operational history[]
This locomotive survived the break up of the Great Northern Railway in 1958, ending her days on secondary duties in 1963 after diesel railcars had taken over express services.
"Merlin" spent part of 1958 in Dundalk works, eventually appearing with a Vs Class tender. With little work for the engine, the 26-year-old veteran was usually kept 'spare' around Dundalk, but did sometimes appear on the midday Dublin train and the evening return. Steam finished on CIÉ in 1963 and "Merlin" was inspected for possible purchase by the UTA. However, Vs Class No. 207 "Boyne" was eventually purchased and went north instead. The rejected "Merlin" moved to Dublin (Amiens Street) and then to the city's Inchicore Works for scrapping.
Preservation[]
Thankfully "Merlin" was saved from scrap. At the time the Witham Street Transport Museum in Belfast had plans to acquire the last of the compounds and in the end a purchase was agreed, with the locomotive (minus its tender) costing around £600. Buffers and drawgear were fitted to the cab end of the engine and the 4-4-0 was moved from Inchicore to Amiens Street in April 1965, then to Dundalk the following month. It remained there for more than a year before moving to Belfast's Adelaide shed. When Adelaide closed, No. 85 moved to the goods store in Lisburn and it wasn't until late 1969, four years after purchase, that "Merlin" finally arrived at the museum in Witham Street.
The compound was displayed inside the cramped museum for nearly eight years until negotiations between the late Lord Dunleath, the Railway Preservation Society of Ireland and the museum saw it on the move again - this time to the engine works inside the Harland & Wolff complex at Queen's Island in Belfast. An overhaul followed which included replacing areas of wasted boiler plate, fitting new stays, new tubes, superheater elements, and glands and the repair of a crack in the cylinder block. "Merlin" then moved to the RPSI's Whitehead Railway Museum headquarters where the boiler cladding was fitted and the engine paired with a former Vs Class 4,000 gallon tender. It ran with this for a couple of years before it was replaced with a smaller 3,100 gallon tender.
After a series of running-in trips in 1985 and 1986 "Merlin" was officially launched into traffic in 1986 by Lord Dunleath who himself drove the locomotive through a red tape, marking the start of a new career for the newest locomotive in the RPSI stable.
It was the start of a remarkable career. In 1987, it was part of the RPSI's major annual tour with No. 171 "Slieve Gullion" who hauled the train from Dublin to Galway and back, but "Merlin" travelled from Belfast to take the train back north. No. 85 was there to meet No. 171's arrival, and for just a short time, two GNR(I) lined blue locomotives were once again in steam at the old company's headquarters. Then came the 40th anniversary of the "Enterprise" in 1987. It was the same length train as in 1947 (seven bogie vehicles) but this time the compound at the front was "Merlin". The timings were the same as the original run.
But "Merlin", complete with 4,000 gallon tender, ran to Dublin with no problems - and arrived at the stop block with minutes to spare on the 2¼ hour schedule. It was another milestone in the comeback of a wonderful engine.
No. 85 came out of traffic in 2004 due to the expiry of its 'boiler certificate'. It was on display during the "Summer Steam" open days for a few years until 2009, when it was decided to explore the possibility of returning her to traffic.
After major work, No. 85 returned to main line passenger service early in 2014.
An appeal in 2021 helped fund the purchase of an authentic lubricator.
Gallery[]
