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.jpg "What is a 'Crab' steam locomotive?")
What is a 'Crab' steam locomotive?
The name 'Crab' is a nickname given to a type of 2-6-0, mixed-traffic, steam locomotive built by the LMS between 1926 and 1932. In total 245 Crabs were produced at Horwich and Crewe works and were considered to be a successful design of locomotive being good all-round performers, especially in Scotland where they often hauled heavy mineral trains.
The Crab was designed by LMS' Chief Mechanical Engineer 'George Hughes' and tinkered with a little by his successor 'Henry Fowler' before production. Crabs were recognisable thanks to their slanting cylinders which was not an intended design, but necessary to fit the English loading gauge.
Crabs were advanced for their years, featuring technology such as long-travel valves and compensated brakes and provided successful traction for 40 years eventually being withdrawn between 1961 and 1967.
The origin of the Crab's unusual name is somewhat speculative, the most common theories relate to the pincer-like motion of the valve gear or the waddling sensation felt from the footplate said to resemble a crab's walk.
Crab's had a few official names through their lifespan including the 'LMS Hughes Crab' the 'Horwich Mogul' and a later design introduced in 1933 with a tapered boiler being known as an 'LMS Stanier Mogul'. Today, only three Crabs survive in preservation.
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