Western Class Locomotives: A Tribute

Western Class locomotives were designed by and for the Western Region, but British Rail opted for electric transmission, leading to the end of the hydraulic era in 1967. This book features full-color photographs of all 74 locomotives and illustrates their versatility.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 96 pages
Publication date: 03 May 2022
Publisher: Key Publishing Ltd

Unusually for a large class of locomotives, all Western Class locomotives had the same prefix, which gave them a unique identity. Redesignated as Class 52 in the early 1970s, they were essentially designed by and for the Western Region, which saw hydraulic transmission as the way forward in replacing the 4-6-0 steam locomotives that Swindon had produced. However, the rest of British Rail went down the road of electric transmission as the mistakes of the wholesale lunge into dieselization came to fruition, and when BR opted for a standard policy, the Western Region was forced to comply. It was in 1967 that the death warrant for hydraulics was signed, though it would take more than a decade to finally end the hydraulic era. Illustrated with full-color photographs of all 74 of the Western Class locomotives, on a variety of workings that illustrate their versatility, this nostalgic volume gives a portrait of a much-loved, but short-lived, class of locomotive.

Unusually for a large class of locomotives, all Western Class locomotives had the same prefix, which gave them a unique identity. Redesignated as Class 52 in the early 1970s, they were essentially designed by and for the Western Region, which saw hydraulic transmission as the way forward in replacing the 4-6-0 steam locomotives that Swindon had produced. However, the rest of British Rail went down the road of electric transmission as the mistakes of the wholesale lunge into dieselization came to fruition, and when BR opted for a standard policy, the Western Region was forced to comply. It was in 1967 that the death warrant for hydraulics was signed, though it would take more than a decade to finally end the hydraulic era. Illustrated with full-color photographs of all 74 of the Western Class locomotives, on a variety of workings that illustrate their versatility, this nostalgic volume gives a portrait of a much-loved, but short-lived, class of locomotive.

Weight: 286g
Dimension: 170 x 242 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781913870034