LNER Route: Leicester to Marylebone

Rugby Central Station: gcrcs17b

Close up of image 'gcrcs17' showing the larger of the two rail cranes set up with jacks and timbers after re-righting the locomotive. The crane had a number of 'jacks' that were extended outwards on beams and supported by railway sleepers. The block was reeved four times which 'multiplies' the load carried although the pair of chains or 'brothers' as they were called would be the weakest link. The chains were then attached to the two lifting eyes in front of the smokebox by shackles. Two cranes were required because the weight and distribution of the locomotive would have been too great for one. Even then the two cranes would have had difficulty in lifting the locomotive clear of the ground. Therefore standard practice was to 'roll' the locomotive upright on to even ground and then jack the locomotive upwards to insert rails under the wheels. In extreme cases the locomotive might require cutting up if its location was either inaccessible or the damage was too great to move it back along the tracks back to the works.

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