#lner u1

[hazel-of-sodor]

The LNER Garratt?

A giant, unique LNER engine, whose only crime was being non-standard? This is what the discord server calls 'Hazel-Bait' (its literally been used to describe this exact engine.)

Both the longest and most powerful steam engine to ever run in Britain irl, she was a beautiful locomotive (I love garratts.)

But there is another reason to love this wonderful engine-the LMS Garratts.

See I don't hate or even dislike the LMS, I actually don't have any railways I dislike outside of those working for fascists or something like that. But the LMS is my least favorite of the big four, and as a certified LNER Fangirl, its honestly fun to play at caring about the rivalry (when in reality I would save any LMS engine in a heartbeat.)

Anyway the poor LMS Garratts deserve their own post (hint hint) but the basic idea is the LMS forced Beyer Peacock, the inventor of the garrat type, to use their standardized parts, and it crippled the poor things. They could still (usually) do the job they were built for, but not much else, when Garratts are famously well suited to many roles.

When the LNER and Gresley approached Beyer-Peacock to build the U1, they had the brilliant idea to let the company who had built practically every garratt in the world, design the engine.

The LNER garratt quickly proved why you let the experts do their jobs, and lacked the Achilles heel of her LMS counterparts. She was withdrawn in 1955 when LMS Jr. (BR) found her non-standard, but was quickly claimed by the North Western region for banking on the Marion Incline.

[burgerking-offical]

also here’s a FR 115 class and an LNER U1 class

[hazel-of-sodor]

Love your answer to my question, thanks! Can you tell us anything about the U1 now that they’re on Sodor? Their name, livery, etc?

So when she arrived in 1955 she was sent for rebuild/overhual, emeerging in 1956, she requested her old LNER number of 2395, and was given it, along with a coat of BR Apple Green. One of her old drivers had nicknamed her Typhoon, and at her request this became official. While intially assigned as Wellsworth Banker, she didn't work at Wellsworth long, as it was realized she was perfectly capable of hualing mainline frieghts at speed.

She was allocated to Tidmouth for a time, hualing heavy coal trains across the island. In the early 70s, the Arlesburgh Branchline reached Harwick, and she was reallocated to the Harwick sheds taking the coal delivered bt the Cronk and Harwick Railway to the rest of the North Western. Around this time she was repainted into BR Green, but it was not to last long. In 1972 the North Western Region and British Railways had their final great falling out, and the North Western became independant in all but technicality. As a result, the other railway required all North Western engines to be painted in non British Railway colors.

Typhoon was sent for overhual, and emerged in LNER Blue (as seen on this illustation of Thompson I3 HMS Ark Royal.

Following her overhual, she was sent to work the newly completed line to Mantauo from Vicarstown, where her size and power were needed on the winding mountainous route. She's mostly remained allocated to Vicarstown ever since, hauling the long trains of containers offloaded from the ships at Mantauo, occasionally doubleheading when partically large ships come in. She occasionally pulls the express when the allocated engine is unable to. Shes kept her LNER Blue livery, the only change being lettering swapping to NWR in the 80s. Shes proven somewhat of a night owl, prefering to run at night, but is genarlly agreeably to do whatever work is given to her.