LNER's 8 wheeled experimental express engines - LNER P2

In today's video, we take a look at the P2s, Nigel Gresley's highland express engines with a few experimental features.

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[theblubbered]

Just a friendly note that there is actually also an 8th P2 under construction too.

- The 7th P2 project, 2007 Prince of Wales, costing £6M was launched in 2013 and has progressed as far as building the frames, tender, cladding, wheelsets and cylinder block, with the boiler and electronics on order. The build will recreate the original streamlining and feature rotary cam valve gear, but with many updates under the skin to try and improve the original design. This P2 is being built in Darlington.
- The 8th P2 Project, 2001 Cock o' the North, costing £5.5M+ and launched before the other project, has not progressed so far, having so far built the frames and designed many parts in CAD. They aim to build a faithful replica of 2001 in it's 1938 rebuilt form, with streamlining and Walchaerts valve gear. This P2 is being built in Doncaster.

Arguably having two companies rebuilding the same class of locomotive (while not publicly collaborating or acknowledging each other) is not particularly helpful, and the fact that you got confused between them is completely understandable. Anyway, still a great video ;)

[georgeoliver]

Edward Thomason rebuilt a lot of Gresley engines due to wartime shortages and wanting to make the engines more standardised and have longer maintenance intervals and be easier to work on. A lot of people don’t like Thompson engines but the truth is he was given the near impossible task of making extremely complicated and unique engines less complicated and standardised on a shoestring budget. The Thompson B1s which he designed from scratch where great engines comparable to the black 5

[DTChapman]

Greasly really was just a mad engineer with bear infinite amount of money. I would love to have been a fly on the wall when Greasly rocks in and goes, “What if we put the boiler from a ship, in a steam train?”

Or “What if we made a 2-8-2 express engine?

Or even, “What if we made an engine, with 6 cylinders?”

[profcraneporter]

Few extra notes

The P2s not only resulted in the A4s but also the Peppercorn A1s (as the P2s lead to the A2/2 which went onto the A2/3 then the Peppercorn A2 and A1)

The main reason for rebuilding the P2s seems to have been their low availability figures due to their crank axles failures (though this seems to have been an unknown flaw as to why it kept going wrong). Thane of Fife was the first rebuilt but it wasn't until a year later the other 5 were also, as they did test her to ensure that the A2/2s would perform better than the P2s, which arguably they were improvements if only incremental ones

[SmokyMtnSteam]

An interesting class for sure, I'm looking forward to the new build. Also "Wolf of Badenoch" has to be coolest name any locomotive has ever been given.

[andrewchapman]

I love it when someone attempts to bring back a steam locomotive that has been extinct for a long time. There are so many opportunities.

[MinimumGauge]

I never knew there was a version with smoke deflectors, and I’m in love with it. It’s got such a stroke presence

[andrewganley]

One of the most awesome locos ever built and a pox on Edward Thompsons rebuilds! as he did with the the pioneer A1 'Great Northern' looking forward to the new P2

[alanhindmarch]

The Photograph showing the New Build P2 wasn’t taken in Doncaster, but in Hope Town, Darlington, of 2007, Prince of Wales.

[Jtube]

The P2s look really nice!
I'd love to see a video on Blue Peter! Specifically their wheelspin incident.

[IndustrialParrot]

Have you heard of the Great Northern P-2 mountain types? They were used on trains like the Empire Builder and the Oriental Limited quite powerful locomotives very helpful for the grade outside of St. Paul Union Station

[fuzzyhead]

The P2 makes me wish Britain's railways had more mikado type locomotives. I find it strange (not in a bad way) that you guys didn't have more, but that might just be me being an American where we had 2-8-2's like popcorn at a theater. But I'm guessing 2-8-0's and 4-6-0's did the trick for y'all just fine. Can't argue with the Black 5 or 8F after all.

[usmale]

I think every locomotive shown is a real beauty in its' own right! Thank you for sharing!!

[DiamondIceNS]

In addition to the excellent information this channel provides, I enjoy how often I have to double-take at the background music you choose to use.

I guess the Excess Express theme from Paper Mario is appropriate this time given the subject matter, but the choice to go with the night theme is interesting.

[levelcrossing]

Excellent bit of information on these amazing engines there. Many thanks

[andypandy]

That photo of P2 Prince of Wales is taken at Hopetown Works, Darlington, NOT Doncaster.

[kimpatz]

The rare Mikado P2 of the UK.

Other rail operators outside of UK used them as heavy freight locomotives. The UK however put them on passenger express. The power and adhesion was certainly needed but they still didn't harness the full potential of the Mikado type by not switching to a Janney type, or other derivatives stronger than a chain link coupling, for coupling cars/trucks together. This problem also spelled the end for the garatts as their power could decouple them to their trains.

The x-8-x wheel arrangements is in between the x-6-x for speed and the x-10-x for heavy freight. The x-8-x has large enough driving wheels to go fast without compensating adhesion. It can carry a larger boiler owing to its longer frame. It can do both express pax and moderate freight without bogging down unlike the speed demons of the x-6-x. Some crazy contraptions based on the x-8-x platform is the widely debated T1. The 8 wheel formula also made the Big Boys balance of adhesion and speed. And the last 8 wheel platform to truly challenge electric locomotive was from the SNCF 4-8-4.

[Racist_Railfan_Productions]

When Cock O' The North had its front cut down to the wedge shape, you could really call it a circumcision

[lukechristmas]

I'm a big fan of the P2s and I think that they are perfectly designed locomotives! I find it hard to decide on which look I prefer better: Cock O' The North's look or the A4 like boiler. An A4 front and boiler on a 2-8-2 wheel base is just perfection!

[Evaunit]

Im a massive LNER fan so I can’t wait for the P2 to make its grand return