Photo: Tim Cook - 2102 in store - March 2002

This locomotive was built by Hibberd in 1938 for Shell Mex and BP Ltd. in 1938, and as No. 13 was sent to the oil storage depot at Hamble on the east side of Southampton Water. Duties included work on the mile long branch to Netley, where the Shell / BP system connected to the Southern Railway's Southampton and Portsmouth line. In September 1950 the loco was transferred to the Shell Mex depot at Purfleet, Essex, where it remained until February 1952. It then went to the Shell Mex depot at Trafford Park in Lancashire.

In 1957 Shell Mex No. 13 was sold to dealers Cox and Danks, and was purchased from them by Broom and Wade Ltd. It worked at their Bellfield Works, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Previous printed stockbooks have stated that the loco worked at Broom and Wade's Desborough Works also in High Wycombe. However, these works were located on the Cressex Industrial Estate, on top of the southern hill side of the Wycombe valley, and there was no railway infrastructure on that site. The Desborough Works was opened in 1964 and by that time the Hibberd, down in the valley at the Bellfield Works, had stopped being regularly used.  Foundry materials were then being delivered by road. Some reports state that rail traffic ceased completely at the plant by March 1976, though it is understood that No. 2102 had not worked since before 1970. After several years' storage the engine donated to the Society by CompAir Broomwade Ltd., arriving at Quainton on 19 August 1978.

Perhaps the most interesting feature of the locomotive is the 'Howard type' frames, built up of rolled steel channels and other standard sections. This design was developed by J. & F. Howard Ltd. of Bedford, a company that had built internal combustion locomotives during the 1920s. There are two preserved examples of Howard's locomotives that have this form of framing. One is called Hotto and was built in 1930, works number 965, and is at the Ribble Steam Railway, Preston. The other is the 1926 vintage Brittania, works No. 957 at the Bluebell Railway.

No. 2102 is fitted with a six-cylinder Paxman Ricardo diesel engine developing approximately 75 hp, driving a three speed gearbox through a dry friction clutch. When the loco arrived at Quainton, its engine was seized due to more than two years of disuse. However, the engine and its ancillaries were in reasonable condition considering its age. The external appearance of 2102 is a mixture of pure Hibberd, especially the cab as Howards did not usually supply locomotives with enclosed cabs. The design of the radiator, fore and aft ballast weights, and the location of the sandboxes on the front running plate are Howard features. Similarly, the roller chain power transmission from the gearbox to the front axle and the roller chain between sprockets on the front and rear axles are identical to earlier Howard products. Another Howard feature is the hand crank starting facility from a point on the left hand side just in front of the leading axle. To start with the hand crank needs two people, one to turn the handle and another to operate the engine decompression lever.

In the cab is a Wisconsin air cooled petrol donkey engine driving a small air compressor for charging the air start bottles, also in the cab. It is believed this method of starting was installed by Broom and Wade and replaced an electric system.

During its career in oil depots our locomotive was fitted with flame proof lighting for cab and headlights but there are no signs of a flame trap on the exhaust or crankcase explosion doors. The oval buffer faces have been covered with rubber belting, it is not clear whether this was for noise suppression at Broom and Wade, or safety its life at various oil depots. On top of the engine compartment there is a bracket for a warning bell. There is no air operated horn or whistle.

Compair News Articles

This little locomotive has appeared a number of times in the Compair internal newsletters; we are indebted to Peter Tozer to highlighting these to us. We intend to include some extracts here in due course.

Compair News July 1974

Reference:
The Broom and Wade - Quainton News No. 36 - Autumn 1978
Private Correspondence - July 2013
Compair News - July 1974