Raven class B16
The North Eastern Railway Class S3 (LNER class B16) was a 4-6-0 steam locomotive designed by Sir Vincent Raven for mixed traffic work, introduced in 1920.
The class B16 Class was designed by Vincent Raven and was a culmination of the North Eastern Railway’s (NER) development of the 4-6-0 wheel arrangement. A total of 70 B16 locomotives were built between 1919 and 1924 at Darlington Works, 32 by the LNER. The locomotives featured a three-cylinder layout, superheated boilers, and piston valves, which allowed for a good balance between speed and adhesion with 5 foot 8 inch driving wheels.
The class B16s were designed to be versatile, capable of handling both express passenger and freight services. They were equipped with Stephenson valve gear and shared many components with other classes, such as the Class T3 (LNER Q7) 0-8-0s, to facilitate maintenance and standardisation.
The class B16 was primarily used for mixed traffic duties, including fast freights and express passenger trains. They were known for their reliability and performance on secondary main routes and even worked on the East Coast Main Line.
Over the years, some class B16 locomotives were rebuilt and modified to improve their performance. The original locomotives were designated as class B16/1, while those rebuilt by Gresley became class B16/2, and those rebuilt by Thompson were designated class B16/3.
In 1937, Gresley rebuilt No. 2364 with Walschaerts valve gear on the outside cylinders, and his conjugated valve gear on the central cylinder. To do this, the front bogie had to be moved forward 9 inches. This required a lengthening of the frames, so the opportunity was taken raise the running plate over the driving wheels and to fit a new cab. This was classified class B16/2, and six more B16s were rebuilt with Gresley’s conjugated gear.
In 1944, Thompson authorised further rebuilds, but with his favoured layout of having separate Walschaerts valve gear on all three cylinders. These rebuilds were known as class B16/3, and a total of seventeen class B16s were converted between 1944 and 1949.
Most of the class B16s passed into British Railways ownership after nationalisation in 1948, but all were scrapped by the end of 1964. No example was preserved.
