Locomotives in the class were capable of hauling trains of up to 1,000 tons at 30-35 mph, but were equally useful when hauling troop trains. Up to sixty supply trains a day were being handled by these two ports. The original ten locomotives proved to be extremely useful during the First World War, hauling heavy munitions and military supply trains from the marshalling yard at Three Bridges to Newhaven or Littlehampton harbours. The last two locomotives were fitted with Billinton's own 'top feed' system which provided a moderate increase in performance and so the remainder of the class was gradually fitted with the equipment as they passed through the workshops. The design was quickly judged to be successful and a further five were ordered, but due to the difficulties of obtaining materials during World War I they did not appear in traffic until late 1916. 339-341) with slightly larger smokeboxes were built between March and September 1914. Modifications were made to the suspension of the pony truck and to the smokebox layout before three further examples (nos. The first two examples, numbers 337 and 338, appeared in traffic in September and December 1913, and were thoroughly tested at Brighton motive power depot. The class was also fitted with steam sanding and steam carriage heating equipment enabling them to be used on passenger trains. The tenders were the largest of any LB&SCR locomotive with a capacity of 3940 gallons of water and 4 tons of coal.
The boilers were fed by hot water injectors, operated by a Weir pump, and surplus steam fed back to the tenders to preheat the water. They were fitted with Robinson style superheaters within a parallel boiler and two large inclined outside cylinders with Stephenson valve gear. They were the first 2-6-0 locomotives to run on the railway, and the first class to have a Belpaire firebox. The new 'K' class incorporated several innovations for the LB&SCR. Lawson Billinton therefore ordered from Brighton works five powerful mixed-traffic locomotives which could cope with both types of load. A larger and more powerful design was required for the heaviest freight trains, whilst there was also a continuing need for larger passenger locomotives, especially during the summer months. Marsh solved this problem for a few years, but traffic continued to grow and by 1913 these were occasionally being double-headed.
The rebuilding of Robert Billinton's C2 class with larger boilers by D.E. This issue became increasingly problematic after about 1910 as more and more suburban lines were electrified. However, those it did have had to be able to accelerate quickly from sidings and signals and maintain a good speed if they were not going to impede the intensive use of the lines for passenger traffic, particularly in the London suburbs. The entire class was eventually withdrawn in 1962 for 'bookkeeping' rather than 'operational' reasons.ĭue to the nature of its traffic, the LB&SCR had relatively limited need of heavy freight locomotives. The locomotives proved their usefulness once again during the Second World War, and continued to provide reliable service until the 1960s. However, after the formation of the Southern Railway in 1923 the remaining three locomotives on order were not completed and the seventeen members of the class led relatively quiet yet reliable lives over their traditional lines. Further examples were built after the war, and the class was used as a test bed for various items of specialised equipment. They appeared shortly before the First World War and the first ten examples of the class did prodigious work during that conflict on munitions, supply and troop trains. Billinton for the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) in 1913. London Brighton and South Coast Railway Class K were powerful 2-6-0 mixed traffic locomotives designed by L. London Brighton and South Coast Railway, Southern Railway, British Railways
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