James

James is a red mixed-traffic tender engine who lives and works on the Island of Sodor, and is the North Western Railway's number 5 engine. He primarily works on the Main Line, pulling both passenger and goods trains.
==Biography==
James was designed by George Hughes and built by Horwich Works at some point between 1912 and 1913. He was designed as an experimental variation of the Class 28 locomotives, with a front pony truck installed at the front and 5'6" sized driving wheels instead of the class' usual 5'1" (added in an attempt to cure the "nose-diving" the class experienced when travelling at high speed), though unlike many other engines at the time, he was fitted with wooden brake blocks. The experiment did not entirely produce the results hoped for, and sometime after the Grouping, James was sold to the North Western Railway.
Shortly after he arrived on the Island of Sodor, James was severely damaged in a crash when his trucks pushed him down the line and his wooden brake blocks caught on fire. After being recovered from the wreck, James was sent to Crovan's Gate Works, where he was repaired, repainted red, and gained functional brakes. He gained his Fowler tender around this time.
In 2002,
== Personality ==
James is very proud of his splendid red paintwork. He dislikes pulling trucks (though not to the extent that Gordon does) and is quite narcissistic, vain and occasionally boastful, particularly towards those who appear old-fashioned, weak, slow or dirty. This has caused him to have somewhat of a rivalry with several engines and in some cases act out. In most cases, it takes scolding from others to make his penny drop, and even then it is too late to prevent trouble. However, on a number of occasions, he has found himself in need of help from those whom he has insulted and is, in the end, apologetic.
James was the last of the steam engines to retain a prejudice against diesels, insulting them the same way other visiting diesels would insult the steam engines on Sodor, with BoCo and Bear barely being spared from his opinionated point of view. James eventually got over his prejudice after stalling on a cold day and being rescued by the Works Diesel, at which point he had to admit that there was nothing wrong with diesels. This appears to be one of the few lessons that has stuck. Despite this, James can remain highly opinionated on someone's character, though he often feels remorse and guilt for his actions, often leading to his apologies coming out meekly.
Despite all of that, James has shown a caring side to him. He has a heart of gold and wants to help anyone in a time of need. He is normally hard-working and (like everyone else) wants to be responsible, reliable and really useful on the Fat Controller's railway. Although his vanity usually hides it, James is capable of realizing when he crosses the line, and quietly mourns for himself and others once it occurs after an accident of his causing.
== Technical Details ==
=== Basis ===
James is based on a Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) Class 28, a class of 0-6-0 mixed-traffic tender locomotive designed by George Hughes for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway and built by Horwich Works between 1909 and 1912. Many were rebuilds of Aspinall's Class 27, with the addition of a Belpaire firebox, a Schmidt/ "Top & Bottom"/"twin-plug" superheater and the extension of the footplate and front sandboxes. One Class 27, 52322, survives and is operational at the Ribble Steam Railway.
According to The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways, James is an experimental member of the Class 28s; he is fitted with a front pony truck (thus making him a 2-6-0 instead of an 0-6-0), 5'6" driving wheels instead of the class' original 5'1" ones and a Fowler tender. His front sandboxes also appear to be mounted underneath his footplate rather than joined to his leading splashers.
=== Livery ===
James is painted in scarlet red with black lining and yellow cab window frames. He has gold boiler bands and a brass dome. His number (5) is painted on his tender in yellow with a black outline. He has a white running board with red bufferbeams and valences.
When he first arrived on Sodor, James was painted black with red lining and boiler bands; his red livery was given to him to cheer him up after the accident on his first day.
== Appearances ==
=== Red Panda Express ===
* Welcome to Sodor 
* Discussing Failures 
* Mei Meets James
* Gordon Gets In Trouble 
* Party Preparations
* Thomas VS Gordon
* Broken Trust 
* Gordon Loses Control
* The Runaway
* Help Arrives
=== Movie ===
* Red Panda Express
Category:Steam locomotives
Category:Tender engines
Category:2-6-0
Category:North Western Railway
Category:The Main Line
Category:Awdry-created characters
Category:Male characters
Category:Standard gauge