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BR Standard Class 8
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== Preservation == [[File:The Duke of Gloucester at Townsend Fold.jpg|thumb|No 71000 Duke of Gloucester on the [[East Lancashire Railway]], 2007]] After withdrawal, the ''Duke'' was selected for inclusion in the [[National Railway Museum]], but it was later decided that only the cylinder arrangement was of interest.<ref name=Langston /> One of the outside cylinders was removed for display at the [[Science Museum (London)|Science Museum]], and the other was removed to restore balance in readiness for scrapping. The locomotive was purchased by [[Dai Woodham]], though it was initially sent to the wrong scrapyard. After being retrieved, the ''Duke'' spent seven years in [[Woodham Brothers]] scrapyard, before enthusiasts purchased the locomotive in 1974, forming the Duke of Gloucester Steam Locomotive Trust.{{r|Langston|p=65}}<ref name=":1" /> Restoration began in earnest on 24 April 1974. With many components missing, including the Caprotti valve gear, it took 13 years of effort on the part of enthusiasts, with assistance in the guise of sponsorships from industry, to return the locomotive to near as-built condition. One of the very few compromises made was replacing the previous steel cylinders with [[Ductile iron|spheroidal graphite iron]].{{r|Langston|p=65}} Two significant construction errors were discovered during restoration: * The chimney was too small compared with other locomotives of similar size, resulting in poor boiler draughting at times of high steam demand.<ref name="DoG, Problems">{{cite web |website=The Duke of Gloucester Locomotive Trust |year=2007 |url=https://www.dukeofgloucester.co.uk/ |title=Problems discovered with original features |access-date=30 August 2007}}</ref> * The firebed (grate) air inlet dampers had not been built to the drawings and were too small, resulting in poor air supply and inefficient combustion.<ref name="DoG, Problems" /> Those errors were corrected and the opportunity was taken to incorporate some other improvements, including the previously recommended [[Kylchap]] exhaust system, which finally unlocked the locomotive's true potential as a powerful express passenger locomotive.<ref name=Herring /> When the "Duke" was first allowed to haul a full load on the main line, it became immediately obvious that the boiler was producing steam at a more efficient rate and that the reborn "Duke" was unrecognisable from the failure experienced under British Railways ownership.<ref name="dukeofgloucester.co.uk"/> With the modifications, the "Duke" is now one of the most powerful steam locomotives ever to run on Britain's railways, past or present (the [[LMS Coronation Class]] Pacifics held that title under British Railways auspices - the three cylinder "Duke" never actually achieved the 3000 cylinder horse power figure that was recorded by the four cylinder [[LMS Coronation Class|Princess Coronation Class]]). Ironically, it is not only more powerful than the [[British Rail Class 40|English Electric Type 4]] diesel locomotives which replaced it directly in service, but also the type 4 and 5 diesel locomotives built to replace the earlier diesels.<ref name=Herring /> In the 1995 "Shap trials" (30 September to 3 October) 71000 broke the record for the fastest northbound ascent and achieved the highest Estimated Drawbar Horsepower (EDHP) figures during the event, its average over the Shap ascent was 2300 EDHP and peak 2803. The Duchess of Hamilton (46229) generated EDHP figures of 2150 and 2343 respectively. The A4, Sir Nigel Gresley (60007) suffered from poor coal and possible leaking tubes so only achieved an EDHP of 1671 (average) and 1812 (peak).<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=Railway Magazine |date=December 1995 |pages=19β22 |issue=1136 |volume=141 |editor-first=Nick |editor-last=Pigott |department=Practice & Performance |title=Shap Performance Trials: The Full Analysis |first=Peter W. B. |last=Semmens }}</ref> In preservation, the "Duke" had an impeccably reliable operational record. However, on 9 June 2007, the engine operated a railtour from {{stnlnk|Preston}} to [[Carlisle railway station|Carlisle]] returning via {{stnlnk|Settle}}, where, for operational reasons, the locomotive's start position was changed to {{stnlnk|Carnforth}}.<ref name=steam>{{cite magazine |last1=Hopkins |first1=Danny |last2=Streeter |first2=Tony |title=The Duke's Bad Day |magazine=Steam Railway Magazine |page=89 |year=2007 |issue=338}}</ref> A little over {{convert|30|mi|km}} into the journey, the locomotive was stopped at {{stnlnk|Penrith}} with leaking tubes in the firebox and removed from the train.<ref name=steam /> It was withdrawn for repairs and returned to service in January 2008.<ref name=steam /> Because the locomotive now bears little mechanical resemblance to that which operated under British Railways, it has also been used as a test bed, incorporating several other modifications and innovations.<ref name=Langston /> They are intended to investigate how much further the locomotive's performance can be enhanced, raising speculation about the capabilities of an entire batch of Standard class 8 "Pacifics" had history been different.<ref name=Herring /> As a result, ''Duke of Gloucester'' frequently hauled [[Railtour|railtours]] and other passenger-carrying services over the British mainline in preservation until it's boiler certificate expired in 2012.<ref>{{Cite news |date=14 February 2025 |title=Dule of Gloucester rises again |work=Heritage Railway Magazine |pages=66-70}}</ref> After undergoing heavy overhaul, {{As of|2025|April|lc=y}}, the locomotive was undergoing testing on the Severn Valley Railway.<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=29 February 2024 |title=71000 Trust signs agreement with Crewe |magazine=Steam Railway |pages=15 |issue=555}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=EXPRESS POINTS May 2025 |url=https://www.svrlive.com/epmay25 |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=svrlive |language=en}}</ref>
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