Hornby: Railroad – BR 2–10–0 ‘92025’ Franco Crosti Boiler 9F Class
The BR Class 9F was born out of the need for British Railways requirement for
a heavy freight locomotive and was part of their standardisation plan. By
1954 the first 20 Class 9F locomotives had been introduced, however with coal
economies in mind it was decided as an experiment that the next 10 of the Class
to be built should be built using Franco-Crosti boilers.
Named after two Italian engineers who had worked for the Italian State railway
in the 1930s, the Franco-Crosti boiler was a modification of the more
conventional fire tube boiler, which was used on the majority of steam
locomotives. Different from the more common type of boiler, the heat that
remained in the exhaust gasses was used to preheat the water supply for the main
boiler by using a secondary heat exchange system.
The heat exchange system was in effect a secondary boiler. From there the
preheated water was fed at full boiler pressure into the main boiler. The
feedwater heater as it was known was not designed to produce steam but to raise
the temperature of the water allowing the heater to maximise the remaining
energy in the exhaust gasses more efficiently.
Specifics:
- Gauge: 00
- DCC Type: DCC Fitted
- Designer: British Railways
- Livery: BR Black
- Class: 9F
- Entered Service: 1955
- Purpose: Heavy Freight
- Wheel Configuration: 2–10–0
- Features: NEM Couplings
Hornby is a household name and is famous as the UK brand leader in the model railway hobby