For some reason the Metropolitan Vickers Co-Bo Class 28 locomotives have always held a fascination for me. Perhaps because it is one of the few BR 1955 modernization plan locomotive types which I have never seen operating. Maybe it is the unique look of both the front end. It could be the different bogies – one has three wheel sets and the other two.
Class 28 Numbering
The Class 28 locomotives were built by Metropolitan Vickers at the Bowesfield works Stockton on Tees in 1958. The 20 strong class numbered D5700-5719 and were initially allocated to the London Midland Region. Half were shedded at 17A Derby and the remainder at 14A Cricklewood in North London. Powered by an 8 cylinder Vee two-stroke engine, the horse power of 1200 put them in British Railways type 2 power classification. After elimination of steam locomotives in 1968, British Rail introduced a class numbering system for each type of the diesel loco fleet. The type 2 Metropolitan Vickers was allocated class 28. Following the introduction of TOPS in 1974, diesel fleets were re-numbered using the first two digits in the sequential number of each class member. However the class 28 were not around long enough to receive TOPS numbers.
Problems with the Co-Bo’s
The Co-Bo Class 28 locomotives were initially put to work in pairs on the overnight Condor Express freight trains from North London to Glasgow. Unfortunately the Crossley engine proved to be unreliable. Perhaps it was a troublesome fleet even during the design stage. It is thought they were initially designed as a normal Bo-Bo locomotives ie. bogies with two axles. The positioning of the internal equipment was probably too heavy for the 20 ton axle loading stipulated by BR. As a result, one bogie had a third axle added and the Co-Bo arrangement was created. It might also have been a cost saving just having one bogie with just two axles and the other with three. The wheel arrangement description remains an endearing reference. The Thomas the Tank Engine books applied a spoonerism treatment to this description and came up with BoCo for the diesel character.
The poor reliability of the engine meant by 1961 BR had had enough. They returned the whole fleet of locomotives to the manufacturer to sort out. At the same time, BR had engine troubles with the Mirrlees on class 31s resulting in a complete engine replacement. For some reason, BR persevered with the Crossley engine on the Co-Bo. The internal equipment layout together with lack of a suitable replacement engine was probably the reason.
The Co-Bos also had a big problem with the wraparound front windscreens. Sometimes these fell out completely whilst in service resulting in the Loco being failed by the crew. The wrap around windows had to be replaced with flat versions during the engine rectification work. Co-Bo’s were completely out of favor with British Railways. They were never to return to working the overnight Condor Express freight train.
Class 28 is Banished!
Not long returning to service, the whole fleet was banished to 12E Barrow-in-Furness depot. BR had shiny new allegedly cleaner and more reliable diesel locomotives and were sadly eliminating steam traction . They sent the fleet of Metro-Vics away from their old shed of Derby on the Midland Mainline to a less exposed part of the network. The Co-Bo class 28 locomotives were an embarassment and they wanted them out of the way. The Co-Bo eked out a less glamorous existence working local passenger and freight trains in Cumberland.
Scrapping the Co-Bo’s
The Crossley engine fitted to the Co-Bo’s and that of the Baby Deltics often emitted high levels of exhaust smoke. I have never heard the sound of a Co-Bo in real life and it is one of the reasons why I find them of interest. In December 1967, some 7 months before the end of steam traction, the first 6 of the class were withdrawn and stored. this included the doyen of the Class, D5700. In May of the following year, two more were withdrawn and the remaining twelve shortly afterwards. They were scrapped either at J. Williams. Of Shettleston near Glasgow or at Cashmore’s yard at Great Bridge in the Black Country.
Locomotive D5705
However, D5705 had a repreive! She was commandeered by British Railways research department at Derby to haul various test trains. It’s here that she was accompanied by Baby Deltic D5901. In the mid 1970s, she was replaced by the recently withdrawn Sulzer type 24081.
D5705 was hauled to Bristol and used for preheating carriages before going into service. After a short period it was moved to Danygraig sidings in South Wales where she sustained damaged from a fire in an adjacent grass bank. Fortunately in 1980, she was purchased privately for preservation. After storage at Swindon and Peak Rail it moved to the East Lancs Railway where restoration is at an advanced stage. You can find news on the restoration here.
Over the years I have made financial contributions to the restoration. I would love to see this sole survivor operating a passenger train for the first time in half a century. Video footage of Co-Bo’s operating is extremely rare. However the 1968 film Black Five made by the British Film Institute has a clip at the end of a Co-Bo dragging scrap steam locomotives at Carnforth shed. The soundtrack has the noise of the idling two-stroke Crossley engine. I hope that is not much longer before it is possible to hear the sounds of a Metropolitan Vickers type 2 again. For now, I can only show you pictures of my model railway showing a brace of Co-Bo class 28 locomotives – sadly something that will never be seen again on the big railway.
You might like to read my post about Baby Deltics here
This is great. I too share your enthusiasm for these beasts and cannot wait to ride behind D5705. In May I have a book being published on all of the Pilot Scheme Diesels, and any royalties I receive will be divided equally between the D5705 group at Bury and the Baby Deltic Project at Barrow Hill.
Oh yes I blogged about the Baby Deltics here http://railwayblogger.com/new-baby-deltic/ you might want to take a look. Let me know when the book is published so we can give you a shout out and thank you for your kind words about the blog.
HI!
BR did actually plan several re engineing schemes for these locos using 8 cylinder sulzer and a V8 EE engine by the mid 60s, however with Beeching’s axe in full swing at the time they were deemed surplus to requirements and the rest is history as they say 😉
Thank you Jim – I wasn’t aware of such a proposal. I hope the team restoring D5705 don’t have to seek an alternative engine! Hopefully the less stressful Heritage Railway will suit it.
Basically the problems with these locos was simply down to Metro-Vick, not keeping to the weight/power parameters for type 2s.
As built the 28s were Bo-Bos, however they grossly exceeded B.Rs specification, with B.R. refusing acceptance of them resulting in M-V re-engineered the locos, for example if an engine mounting had say 6, bolts securing it, that was reduced to say 3, or 4, thus causing undue vibration, resulting in pipes fracturing, even then the weight was still to high, resulting in the addition of a 6, wheel bogie.
I, knew a lot of Drivers from Barrow-i-F; Carlisle, Carnforth & Workington who’se only complaints about them was the Stones Vapour boiler, all referred to them as strong locos.
Well the Irish and the aussies were pretty disenchanted with their Crossley engined types. Only WAGR stuck with them; they seemed not to have a choice.
There were always several of the Co-Bo locos at Trafford Park shed in Manchester in the early 1960’s. I only ever saw them lined up inside the shed and never saw any of them running. Whether they were serviceable at this time I could not say. This shed was fairly close to the Crossley works in Stockport so I wonder if they were there for that reason. A strange fascinating loco.
At Derby we tried the Met Vic’s on various jobs, double headed London’s were tried first but were not a success, piloting our Yarmouth holiday jobs but the train engine crew were choked by the filthy exhaust so they were taken off those job’s so they ended up on our Manchester stopping train’s of which we had three,07.10. 1/32 and 7/10. ( Pre 1960 depiction of the 12 hour clock). Usually you set out with one and had to abandon it at Trafford Park and return with a steamer, hopefully a Compound which we should have had in the first place.Superb machine’s! See my picture of one in the table hole at X on 4 Shed.Icould tell a few more stories about these things if I had the time!!!***??
Geoff, it would be marvellous if at some stage you could find the time to share your experiences.
Always interesting to hear from those who experienced the different locomotives, steam as well. If we never hear from these who know, their potential contributions will be lost forever.
Search for “CIE A Class sound recording” on youtube and you will find a short extract from a film made in 1960 featuring A class which had the same engine as the Co-Bos.
Hi, You mention that D5705 sustained fire damage at Danygraig sidings in South Wales from a fire in an adjacent grass bank. I cannot comment on that fire, but I can say that it was involved in a serious grass fire which spread to it whilst on a siding near the rear of Bath Road depot just above The Feeder Canal. I was a fireman who attended that fire which I think was in 1976 or maybe 77 during the hot summer and I was on a crew from the then Brislington fire station which has now closed. The grass fire on the bank spread to the under frame of D5705 catching oil and grease alight. Once we had extinguished the fire I had a look around the loco which to my recollection was in a pretty ‘dank’ condition. My next encounter with D5705 was at Swindon and the year would have been 1985 or 86. I was with a group from the Swanage Railway who were looking at obtaining a Class 25 which was parked nearby adjacent to the Gloucester line. I had a look in the Metro Vic again and all I can recall was that it was even more unpleasant inside the cab and did not smell too good! I hoped then that someone might save it and on a visit to Peak Rail a few years later there it was. I do hope the ELR get it going one day, it would be lovely to see this survivor running.
I started as an apprentice fitter at Criclewood in 1960 The first job my fitter was given was to service the Metrovicks that had worked the CONDOR I remember even then they were neglected and never cleaned. Metrovicks were also employed on the Moorgate Harpenden rush hour services and were lively performers with 5 BR type compartment coaches but were superceeded by class 24’s I often had a cab ride home.on them. They were noisey although the Co bogie end gave a smoother ride. they were often paired with the bo bogies in the middle on the Condor because of the rougher riding on the Bo end
The generator has just been sent away to be rebuilt, and very soon a start will be made to reassemble the parts from the scrapped V12 crossley engine in the stripped out remains of the V8 block. Just to add a little detail to your account, BR did in fact purchase 20 EE CVT V12 engines for the co-bos, but at the last minute decided with the falling traffic and rationalization scheme to reduce the number of classes the co-bos were to go and the engines were used in class 30 to class 31 re-engining scheme instead. It’s a pity really because the Co-Bos were electrically very strong and and clever too, being able to punch way above there weight.
If you want to hear these engines, several of the WAGR X class family are preserved and operational. Look up “Hotham Valley Railway”. They had one operating last weekend, reported on Facebook. No doubt, recordings for DCC sound can be arranged.