Oxford Rail OR76AR Adams 415 Maintenance Manual

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The Class 415 later to be reclassified as 0415, Adams Radial was designed by William Adams and introduced in 1882 for operation
on the London and South Western Railway ( LSWR) with the design being inspired by the early LSWR Class 46. T he Class 415 was
based on a 4-4-0 wheel configu ration but with a t railing bogie which was so fitted to s upport an enlarged co al bunker that was
required for the highly intensiv e suburban services suitable for the L SWR network. The te rm ‘Radial’ refers t o the location and
positionin g of the trailing b ogie and how it is located onto the ch assis, which in the case of the ‘415’ is in the middle.

The production of the ‘415’ locomoti ves commenced in 1882 with orders placed with four locomotive wor ks, which by the end of
production in 1885 numbered 71. The comp anies used were Robert Stephenson & Co. who built 28, Dübs & Co. w ere responsible
for 20, Neil son & Co. produced 11 and Beyer, Peacock and C ompany constructed 12. Under normal ci rcumstances these 71
locomotive s would have been b uilt at the LSWR’s own w orks at Nine Elms, h owever at the time of requirement the Ni ne Elms

locomotive works were working at full capacity an d therefore could not accept the order.

Even though all of the 71 were c onstructed to the s ame basic design, t hose locomotives t hat were built from 18 84 onwards had
slightly larger side water tanks and deeper fireboxes, the combination of which helped to increase the locomotive’s efficiency. All of
the Class were built featuring the Adams stove pipe chimney but when Dugald Drummond became Superintendent of the LSWR the
Class 415 locomotives were slightly modified with the addition of a lipped chimney. At the same time coal rails were added to the
bunker so as to try and increase th e locomotive’s capacity. None of the locomotives were ever equip ped with superheaters.

In service the locomotives found favour with the crews that drove them, however their time as the locomotive of choice for the London
suburban services was limited when first the Adams T1 0-4-4 started to replace them from such services. Eventually the introduction
of Drummond’s M7 linked to the electrification of the routes finally terminated the operation of the ‘415s’ on the London LSWR rails
and removing the ‘Radials’ to rural duties in 1885. However, in 1903 there was a use fo und for them on the severely cur ved Lyme
Regis branch where such locomotives as the Stroudley Terriers and Adams 02 had proved unsuccessful. Eventually three of the 415
Class had their trailing axles modified and consequently they were found to be most suitable for the demands of that line. Two of the
Class were a llocated to Exmouth Junction for the A xminster to Lyme Regis route while a third l ocomotive joined t hem as late as
1946 havin g been obtained from the East Kent Railw ay.

The First World War probably saved the bulk of the class from being scrapped, although by 1921 thirty eight of the Class had been
withdrawn. Sever al of the Adams Radials were us ed on the Highland Railway wh ile the locomotive that event ually found itself in
1946 working wit h the remaining two of the Clas s was in 1917 sold to the Min istry of Munitions and then l ater worked on Ridham
Docks close to Sittingbourne. The same locomotive, which was numbered 0488 was eventually purchased by Colonel Stephens for
use on the East Kent Railway in 1923 but having remained there and being used sporadically the locomotive was eventually sold and
joined the other two remaining Class 0415 locomotives.

With the Gro uping of 1923 and th e formation of the Southern Railway, only thirty Adams Radial s had survived and as already
mentioned eventually only thre e of the Class remai ned untouched by the Cutter’s Torch. These three surviving Adam s Radials
continued to work on the Lyme Regis branch after Nationalisation as there were no other suitable locomotives available. By 1958 all
three of the Class were beginning to show their age and in 1961 all had been withdrawn. After withdrawal numbers 30582, formerly
125 and 30584, fo rmerly 520 were scrapped while locomotive 30583, formerly 48 8 was obtained by the Bluebel l Railway where it
can be currently viewed in LSWR livery.

Class 415 Adams Radial Locomotive

Operation & Maintenance

Hints & Tips

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Locomotive will not run.

I

f your locomoti ve does not respond properly to the power

controller or runs poorly, please check the following points:

1. Ensure that the p ower controller is switched on and that
all electrical contacts are made correctly and are secure.

2. If a power connecting clip or power track is used, please
e

nsure that the connection to the track is correct.

3. Ensure that all track sections are fitted together correctly
a

nd that all ‘fishplates’ are tightly fitting to all other rails.

4

. The locomotive is sitting with all wheels on the track.

5

. Check that the power controller is set to operate in one

direction or the other and not in the centre ‘OFF’ position.

6. Ensure that all of the locomoti ves wheels and movi ng
parts are f ree from household dus t, fluff and dirt
accumulati on. Any build up sh ould be gently remov ed
using a pa ir of fine tweezers .

Track Cleaning.

During normal op erating conditions, the track on all model
railway l ayouts accumul ates dirt and dust on the ru nning
surface o f the rails wh ich can be tra nsfered to the
locomoti ve’s wheels and e lectrical pick ups.

Should a b uild up of dirt be allowed to accumula te, it can
cause a lo comotive to lose tr action and ultimate ly cause
power loss to the locomotive’s mot or.

It is theref ore essential to kee p the track and loc omotives
w

heels abso lutely clean to ens ure smooth running a nd
reliability by using a track c leaning rubber whic h can be
p

urchased fro m any good model sho p.

Locomotive body maintenance.

Oxford Rail locomotive bodies are spray painted overall with
printed decals and many separately fitted components.

Do not use any solvent type agents to clean the locomotive’s
body or to remove any marks or greasy stains, as this will
damage the locomotive’s body decoration.

The locomotive body can be kept clean if needed by gently
buffing using a dry, soft, lint free cloth.

Television Suppression.

Oxford Rail locomotives should not interfere with your
television or radio when in operation. Should interference
occur, it may be due to the close proximity of your layout to
receivers or ariels and their ‘downlines’. In this case, the
layout will need to be moved further away to rectify this issue.

Important Safety Notes.

Please read these operation and maintenance in structions
prior to operating your locomotive.

This locomotive is not suitable for children under 14 years. It
contains small parts which can present a chocking hazard and
some components have functional sharp points and edges.

Please handle this product with care.

This locomotive is intended for indoor use only.

This locomotive must not be connected to any other device
other than a recognised model railway transformer.

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Designed In the UK by Oxford Diecast Ltd, PO Box 62, Swansea SA1 4YA.

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BODY RETAINING SCREW

(UNDER BOGIE)

BOGIE SCREW

BODY RETAINING SCREW

BODY RETAINING SCREW

AXLE OIL POINTS

MOTION OIL POINTS

DCC SOCKET

Fitting Brake Rodding & Couplings

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1

1

3

Removal of Locomotive body & DCC Socket location

Running In Period & Locomotive Lubrication

Oxford Rail locomotives are carefully engineered scale models
and as such require a gentle running in period to be completed
prior to normal operating condi tions to achieve best results
and optimum performance from all wo rking parts.

Do not operate your locomotive on track which has been laid
directly on to carpet as the fibres from t he carpet or pet hairs
can foul the locomotives workin g parts such as the motor or
gears or wrap around axles.

The locomotive will require periodic routi ne maintenance.
After approximately 24 hours of ope ration the locomotive will
require s ome light lubri cation to main tain the locom otive in
top operating condition. DO NOT use household lubricants as
they can damage the locomotive . Ensure that you only use a
recommended light engineering oil such as 3 in 1. Ensure that
the oil is only applied to the moving parts as shown on the
diagram below using an opened p aperclip. DO NOT apply oil
to the motor itself.

Any excess oil that may come in to contact with the
locomotive body should be removed immediately as this could
damage the locomotives paint o r decals.

To apply lubricating oil, open a paper clip
as shown.

Oxford Rail locomotives are precision buil t using the highest
quality components. If treated wit h reasonable care and with
r

egular maintenance, the locomot ive will give many years of

g

ood service. Please ensure that you read the contents of this
operation and maintenence sheet to ensure the best possible
performanc e from your locomoti ve.

If your intension is to install a DCC decoder in to your
l

ocomotive, it is important to ensure that the locomotive

o

perates correctly as a DC locomoti ve prior to DCC

installation.

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4

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1

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