| South Australian Railways 520 class | |
|---|---|
| A preserved example of the 520 class, the SteamRanger 520 Sir Malcolm Barclay Harvey in the Steamranger workshops, Mount Barker SA. | |
| Power type | steam |
| Designer | P. H. Harrison |
| Builder | South Australian Railways, Islington Workshops |
| Serial number | 81–92 |
| Build date | 1943–1947 |
| Total produced | 12 |
| Configuration | 4-8-4 |
| UIC classification | 2′D2′ 3'3 |
| Gauge | 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) |
| Driver diameter | 5 ft 6 in (1.676 m) |
| Length | 87 ft 4 in (26.62 m) |
| Axle load | 15 tons 16 cwt (35,400 lb or 16.1 t) |
| Weight on drivers | 62 tons 10 cwt (140,000 lb or 63.5 t) |
| Locomotive weight | 111 tons 8 cwt (249,500 lb or 113.2 t) |
| Locomotive & tender combined weight |
200 tons 13 cwt (449,500 lb or 203.9 t) |
| Fuel type | Coal |
| Fuel capacity | 9 tons 15 cwt (21,800 lb or 9.9 t) |
| Water capacity | 9,100 imp gal (41,000 l; 10,900 US gal) |
| Boiler pressure | 215 psi (1.48 MPa) |
| Firegrate area | 45 sq ft (4.2 m2) |
| Heating surface: Tubes |
2,163 sq ft (200.9 m2) |
| Heating surface: Firebox |
291 sq ft (27.0 m2) |
| Superheater area | 651 sq ft (60.5 m2) |
| Cylinders | Two, outside |
| Cylinder size | 20.5 × 28 in (521 × 711 mm) |
| Valve gear | Walschaerts |
| Tractive effort | 32,600 lbf (145 kN) |
| Career | South Australian Railways |
| Class | 520 |
| Number | 520–531 |
| Nicknames | Whispering Giants |
| Preserved | 520, 523 |
| Scrapped | 1961–1971 |
| Disposition | Two preserved, ten scrapped. |
The South Australian Railways 520 class is a class of 4-8-4 steam locomotives that were built at Islington Workshops, the first entering service in 1943 through to the last of this class in 1947. The South Australian Railways 520 class was built for fast passenger and mixed freight work.
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During the war years in the early 1940s, the South Australian Railways (SAR) had a desperate need for additional tractive power on increasingly growing troop and supply trains and with the combined need for quick acceleration and high speed running on the flat and general straight mainlines to the north to Port Pirie, as well as power "under the belt" for the long 19-mile (31 km), 1-in-45 (2.2%) graded slog up the Adelaide Hills to Melbourne, a new locomotive design was required by the SAR. With this in mind, the 520 class was commissioned, combining the better features of the earlier 500 and 620 class locomotives.
The class used the 4-8-4 "Northern" configuration of the modified 500B class, but was also designed for work on branch lines with light 60-lb/yard (29.7 kg/m) rail with a reduced tender load. The considerable weight of the locomotive was spread over eight axles, four driving and four pony leading and trailing trucks, yielding the necessary light axle loading for operation over the aforementioned territory. The 520s used this to the fullest, their normal mainline stamping grounds being on fast crack express services on the Pirie line, namely the East-West Express, but also serving upon many of the Tailem Bend mixed and radiating branchline trains. The only lines that they were restricted from running on were those laid with very light 40 lb or 50 lb rail.[1]
The class featured extravagant streamlining, in the style of the Pennsylvania Railroad's T1 in the United States. The original streamlining was more closely based on the T1, and class members 520-522 were fitted with such. Members 523-531 were built with a narrower front profile, attributed to by the "crown" of grill around the chimney front. The earlier streamlined model had a lower front, resulting in a squat chimney profile extended from an otherwise graceful, albeit useless, streamlined casing. During their service life, some of the class lost the cowling around their front buffer beam, a move which simplified maintenance.[2]
The 520 class locomotives were noted for their impressive displays of power and speed. They featured specially balanced driving wheels that while only 66 inches (1,676 mm) in diameter, were designed for 70-mile-per-hour (113 km/h) operation, and were also the first locomotives in Australia to feature Timken roller bearings on all axles.[2] Classleader 520 attained a speed of 78 miles per hour (126 km/h) between Red Hill and Port Pirie when it entered service on 10 November 1943.[1] Surviving test records show the locomotive was capable of developing an indicated horsepower output of 2,600 horsepower (1,940 kW) at 70 mph while hauling a 510-tonne (500-long-ton) load.[3]
A total of 12 locomotives were built at the SAR Islington Workshops between 1943 and 1947. They were progressively replaced in service from the early 1960s by diesel locomotives, and in particular the SAR 830 class, as repairs, namely to boilers, were required. It is interesting to note that the 520s were the first class in South Australia, and possibly Australia, to facilitate the use of completely welded boiler assemblies, an idea adopted by their designer Harrison after a trip to the United States of America. Locomotive numbers 520 and 523 survive, the former at Steamranger and the latter at the Port Dock Museum, now called the National Railway Museum. 520 was operational until the mid 1990s, when necessary repairs to the boiler, namely the removal of oil burning equipment, and a rusted tender frame, sidelined the engine. 523 had been used extensively as a tour engine, finally failing on its final farewell ARHS fantrip at Blackwood in the late 1960s.
The class earned themselves the name the "whispering giants". They were known as such, not for their soft exhaust - the 520s, while not as much as their larger 500B cousins, still shook the earth on their ascent into Mount Lofty Yard, due to their long boilers the class had the characteristic feature of requiring blower assistance while in yards to prevent blowback or drifting smoke into the cab, which was nearly entirely closed. Hence, when drifting or in stations or stationary, the class were known to quietly whisper.
| Class No. | Name | Entered Service | Career Milage | Status/Scrapped |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 520 | Sir Malcolm Barclay-Harvey | 10 November 1943 | still in use | active |
| 521 | Thomas Playford | 17 February 1944 | 611,913 | 7 March 1970 |
| 522 | Malcolm McIntosh | 19 April 1944 | 595,538 | 7 September 1970 |
| 523 | Essington Lewis | 1 August 1944 | 511,955 | static display |
| 524 | Sir Mellis Napier | 24 November 1944 | 554,566 | 21 August 1969 |
| 525 | Sir Willoughby Norrie | 22 February 1945 | 463,335 | 11 August 1961 |
| 526 | Dutchess Of Gloucester | 28 June 1945 | 508,170 | ? 1971 |
| 527 | C.B. Anderson | 20 December 1946 | 411,516 | 24 April 1963 |
| 528 | 9 June 1947 | 404,114 | 21 June 1963 | |
| 529 | 22 August 1947 | 412,605 | 18 January 1964 | |
| 530 | 1 November 1947 | 386,323 | 24 September 1963 | |
| 531 | 19 December 1947 | 380,145 | 13 August 1963 |
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