G---R---O---A----N !!!!..........oops, wardrobe failure !!........Ah, that's better....Now then they were Bill Stanier's best overall product IMHO....You can trace their heritage back through the GWR 49xx Hall and initially Churchward's Saint Class....and the legendary Standard No1 Boiler...Notice how the exhaust is light grey ( The fire is at its' hottest = almost incandescent on full blast !!)....When the colour goes to black that's when the fireman has started to put the coal on = 9 swings of the shovel to one round of coaling...Listen to the exhaust beat = 4 even beats per one wheel revolution......Notice the safety valves just "Feathering" = those two firemen are on top of their game, max. pressure available against boiler demand...13 coaches average = 30 tons = about 400 tons on the drawbar !!.............Papasmurf, we've never met but you've obviously got the measure of me---that really struck a chord !!---Many thanks indeed...................My apologies for going "Off thread" but it comes within the main title ( I hope ).......I'm just setting the valves on one of my 5" gauge steam locos right now---
