NER Class O, LNER/BR G5

Designed by Wilson Worsdell, the first of this class appeared in June 1894 with production continuing until December 1901 when all 110 of the class had been built at Darlington. They were uncomplicated engines with very little alteration being made to them in their life of over 50 years. The early engines were fitted with lever reverse, but later ones had a combined lever and screw to allow a quick reverse and a fine adjustment of the cutoff respectively. None were superheated, but some did undergo a change from Ramsbottom to Ross Pop safety valves. Some locomotives had the bunker top modified to provide increased coal capacity.

The class O engines were used on branch lines throughout the NER system. Taken over by the LNER the class became known as G5, and latterly relegated to slow passenger and branch trains. They remained numerically intact until several years after nationalisation, the advent of the diesel railcar caused the decline in the need for such locomotives and in December 1958 the last of the class was condemned.

During the 1939-45 war the LNER sent three to work on the GNSR section and also three to Stratford where they were fitted with air operated push pull equipment.

Unfortunately none were preserved after scrapping.

The body is etched in brass and includes a number of build options, such as alternative coal rails or coal cage, the boiler is supplied ready rolled. The chassis is designed to be compensated and is supplied with hornguides and bearings. It is designed on a twin beam system to overcome the problems inherent in an 0-4-4 due to weight balance and works very well. The fittings are a mixture of high quality whitemetal and lost wax castings. The kit comes with our own specially turned NER pattern sprung buffers, these can be exchanged for LNER Group Standard buffers if required.

You can download a pdf version (which requires Adobe Acrobat to be read) of the instructions for this kit by clicking here

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