| South African Class 14 4-8-2 & South African Class 14R 4-8-2 |
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| Class 14R 1701 at Millsite, Krugersdorp, Transvaal, 23 April 1979 | |
| Power type | Steam |
| Designer | South African Railways |
| Builder | Robert Stephenson and Company |
| Serial number | 3543-3562, 3605-3614, 3630-3644[1] |
| Model | Class 14 |
| Build date | 1913-1915 |
| Total produced | 45 |
| Configuration | 4-8-2 "Mountain" |
| Gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge |
| Leading wheel diameter |
28.5 in (724 mm) |
| Driver diameter | 48 in (1,220 mm) |
| Trailing wheel diameter |
33 in (838 mm) |
| Minimum curve | 300 ft (91 m) |
| Wheelbase | Total: 56 ft 11.75 in (17.367 m) Engine: 6 ft 2 in (1.880 m) pilot 12 ft 9 in (3.886 m) coupled 30 ft 7 in (9.322 m) total Tender: 4 ft 7 in (1.397 m) bogie 16 ft 9 in (5.105 m) total |
| Length | 65 ft 3.875 in (19.910 m) |
| Height | 12 ft 7.5 in (3.848 m) as built 12 ft 11.75 in (3.956 m) reboilered |
| Axle load | 16.15 long tons (16.4 t) on 2nd & 3rd drivers as built 16.5 long tons (16.8 t) on 2nd driver reboilered, copper firebox 15.8 long tons (16.1 t) on 2nd driver reboilered, steel firebox |
| Weight on drivers | 64.4 long tons (65.4 t) as built 62.65 long tons (63.7 t) reboilered, copper firebox 60.65 long tons (61.6 t) reboilered, steel firebox |
| Locomotive weight | 90.8 long tons (92.3 t) as built 90.2 long tons (91.6 t) reboilered |
| Tender weight | 48,864 lb (22.2 t) empty 52.35 long tons (53.2 t) w/o |
| Locomotive & tender combined weight |
179,400 lb (81.4 t) empty 143.15 long tons (145.4 t) w/o |
| Tender type | MR - MP, MP1, MR, MS, MT permitted on Class 14 & 14R, MT1, MT2, MX, MY, MY1 permitted on Class 14R only * 2 axle bogies * Wheels 34 in (864 mm) dia * Length 25 ft 9.75 in (7.868 m) |
| Fuel type | Coal |
| Fuel capacity | 10 long tons (10.2 t) |
| Water capacity | 4,600 imp gal (21,000 l) |
| Boiler | As built: 5 ft 7.5 in (1.715 m) int dia 19 ft (5.791 m) int length 7 ft 7 in (2.311 m) pitch Reboilered: 5 ft 7.5 in (1.715 m) int dia 19 ft 4 in (5.893 m) int length, steel firebox 19 ft 3.625 in (5.883 m) int length, copper firebox 8 ft 0.5 in (2.451 m) pitch |
| Boiler pressure | 190 psi (1,310 kPa) |
| Firegrate area | 37 sq ft (3.437 m2) |
| Heating surface: Tubes |
As built: 139 tubes 2.25 in (57.2 mm) ext dia 24 tubes 5.5 in (140 mm) ext dia 2,212 sq ft (205.502 m2) Reboilered: 87 tubes 2.5 in (63.5 mm) ext dia 30 tubes 5.5 in (140 mm) ext dia 1,933 sq ft (179.582 m2) |
| Heating surface: Firebox |
150 sq ft (13.935 m2) as built 142 sq ft (13.192 m2) reboilered |
| Heating surface: Total |
2,362 sq ft (219.437 m2) as built 2,075 sq ft (192.774 m2) reboilered |
| Superheater area | 540 sq ft (50.168 m2) as built 492 sq ft (45.708 m2) reboilered |
| Cylinders | Two |
| Cylinder size | 22 in (559 mm) bore 26 in (660 mm) stroke |
| Valve gear | Walschaerts |
| Tractive effort | 37,360 lbf (166.2 kN) at 75% boiler pressure[2] |
| Career | South African Railways |
| Class | Class 14, Class 14R |
| Number in class | 45 |
| Number | 1701-1745 |
| Delivered | 1913-1915 |
| First run | 1913 |
| Disposition | Retired |
Between 1913 and 1915 the South African Railways placed forty-five Class 14 steam locomotives with a 4-8-2 Mountain wheel arrangement in service.[3]
Contents |
The Class 14 locomotive was a development of the Class 12 and was similar enough to it that many components were interchangeable. It was ordered from Robert Stephenson and Company in 1913 and was delivered in three batches between 1913 and 1915, numbered 1701 to 1745.[3]
When the Class 14 was designed by D.A. Hendrie, then the Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the South African Railways (SAR), it was believed that small differences in wheel diameter had disproportionate effects on performance. The SAR already had the Class 3B Mountain with 45 inches (1,140 millimetres) drivers and the Class 12 Mountain with 51 inches (1,300 millimetres) drivers, but for the 300 feet (91 metres) radius curves and 1 in 30 gradients of the Natal main line the Class 14 with 48 inches (1,220 millimetres) drivers was evolved as intermediate locomotive.[4]
The Class 14 had Walschaerts valve gear and a Belpaire firebox and was superheated. Apart from the differences in their driver diameters, the Class 14 was a better locomotive with a more modern cylinder design, having straighter ports and a larger steam chest volume than the other two classes. It was the first Hendrie design with these features.[3][4]
During the 1930s many serving locomotives were reboilered with a standard boiler type designed by then CME A.G. Watson as part of his standardisation policy. Such Watson Standard reboilered locomotives were reclassified by adding an "R" suffix to their classification.[2][3]
All the Class 14 locomotives were eventually reboilered with Watson Standard no. 2 boilers and reclassified to Class 14R. In the process they were also equipped with Watson cabs, with their distinctive slanted fronts, compared to the conventional vertical fronts of their original cabs.[2][4]
An obvious visual difference between an original and a Watson Standard reboilered locomotive is usually a rectangular regulator cover just to the rear of the chimney on the reboilered locomotive. In the case of the Class 14 locomotives two even more obvious visual differences are the Watson cab and the absence of the Belpaire firebox hump between the cab and boiler on the reboilered locomotives.[2]
They were placed in service between Durban and Ladysmith in Natal. With the gradual electrification of the Natal main line they were eventually left to operate on the old main line via Botha’s Hill until that was also electrified. Most of them were then allocated to Empangeni in the north and Port Shepstone in the south, and in 1976 many were transferred to the Witwatersrand for shunting service. By 1983 they were all retired.[3][1]
With the collapse of railways during the civil war in Mozambique, Class 14R locomotives became the mainstay of locomotive power in Swaziland, until they were replaced by Class 15AR locomotives.[4]
Similarly, while Zimbabwe was rebuilding its Garratt fleet, Class 14R locomotives were hired for shunting in order to release Garratts for main line work.[4]
Thirteen Class 14R locomotives were eventually sold into industrial service:
The main picture shows the first built, 1701, at Millsite, Krugersdorp, Transvaal, on 23 April 1979.
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