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Technical Specification or 541 in service with the Southern Railway and British Railways
541 is a sole survivor from 20, the only one of Maunsell's final class, the Q Class to make it into preservation. This is of course thanks to Woodhams famous locomotive scrapyard in south Wales. 541 was bought for £3250 in 1973 and moved to Ashchurch in Gloucestershire. She was the 54th loco to leave Woodhams. The Southern Q fund, as they were then called, worked here for 4 years (mostly on the tender). The site had to be vacated in 1977 however, so the Maunsell Q Locomotive Preservation Society (still not exactly a snappy title eh?!) had to look around for alternative sites.
Bluebell Railway was an obvious choice due to its facilities and true Southern environment. The move was in 1978 and it was a short time before the Q group and the Maunsell Locomotive Society, as it now was merged, in order to pool their resources.
By July 1980 the boiler was back in place, by 1981 the cab was in place, and by 1983 all fitting were in place and she was steamed for the first time in 19 years!
From the outset, 541 was a success at the Bluebell. She is a fine looking engine, popular with enthusiasts and tourists alike. She is just the right power for the line with good economy returns as well. Its no surprise then that 541 consistently had the highest mileage ratings of all steamable locomotives, up until her "ticket" expired in 1993. She is likely to be in the workshops for a general overhaul and return to service sooner than most other locomotives for just some of these reasons
| Date built- | Dec '38/Jan 1939 | Weight of Loco- | 49 tons 10cwt |
| Length overall- | 53ft 9½inches | Weight with tender- | 90 tons exactly |
| Boiler pressure- | 200 psi | Coal capacity- | 5 tons |
| Water capacity- | 3500 gallons | Driving wheel diameter- | 5ft 1inch |
| Overall height- | 12ft 10 inches | Overall width- | 8ft 4 inches |
| No. of cylinders- | two | Valve gear- | Stephenson (inside) |
| Cyl diameter and stroke- | 19 × 26 inches | Tractive effort (at 85%pressure)- | 26,157 lbs |
Click here to access a side on drawing by Nicky Raithby of 541
Return to the start of 541 profile
Its pure coincidence I assure you but 541 is yet another Guildford
veteran, assigned to this shed when new in January 1939. She worked mainly on
pick up goods (the perceived role for this class) but also some passenger
workings on the north downs line of the former SECR (Reading to Redhill). The
war brought heavy volumes of goods work, not surprisingly in this area of
Britain at the time. She even had a near miss from an exploded bomb at
Betchworth in 1942, and although not directly hit, she was derailed by the line
damage created. The subsequent damage repairs can still be spotted on the
boiler and firebox.
The main problem for the Q was poor steaming. Bulleid fixed this in his usual way, with a wide bore Lemaitre chimney and multiple jet blastpipe. This did nothing for the locos looks (though in fairness this would not be relevant during war time) but it did work. 541 got hers in 1946. Bulleids own 0-6-0, the Q1 (a kind of eccentric upgrade of the Q) meant that many Q's were displaced. 541 was moved to Horsham. By 1947 however she was at Three Bridges for the London Bridge to Lewes passenger work, and the Oxted line work. This means of course that it is highly likely that 541 had run over Bluebell tracks whilst in Southern service, though there is no (known) direct evidence of this.
1948, and nationalisation mean that she was now 30541, though
still in her unlined black goods livery. 1953 took her to Bournemouth shed. She
spent ten years here, becoming associated with the Lymington and Swanage branch
lines of Hampshire and Dorset respectively. Busy summer months especially would
bring passenger work in this area. She even got a regular turn on the fondly
remembered Somerset and Dorset railway at Shillingstone, as the Shillingstone
shunter.
Repairs and overhauls were carried out at Eastleigh of course, being so near, and there were some late modifications from 1960 to 1962. Tender sanding boxes were fitted for tender first working, and partial AWS (Advance Warning System) gear. The nearby major port of Southampton gave 541 some idea large goods train workings, but the final couple of years were spent back where she began, at Guildford where she did the Chessington branch coal trains, and in the bad 1963 winter, snowplough work. After half a million miles 541 was withdrawn from Guildford shed in November 1964, and sold to Woodhams for scrap. She has 26 years service under her belt
Further information can be gained from info@maunsell.net
