South African Class 2 4-6-2

South African Class 2 4-6-2
ex NGR Class A 4-6-2 1905

NGR Class A no. 326, SAR Class 2 no. 763
Type and origin
Power type Steam
Designer Natal Government Railways
Builder North British Locomotive Company
Serial number 16192-16193 [1][2]
Model NGR Hendrie A
Build date 1904
Total produced 2
Specifications
Configuration 4-6-2 "Pacific"
Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge
Leading wheel
diameter		 28.5 in (724 mm)
Driver diameter 51 in (1,300 mm)
Trailing wheel
diameter		 30 in (762 mm)
Wheelbase Total: 51 ft 1.375 in (15.580 m)
Engine:
6 ft (1.829 m) bogie
9 ft 4 in (2.845 m) coupled
27 ft 10 in (8.484 m) total
Tender:
4 ft 6 in (1.372 m) bogie
15 ft 6 in (4.724 m) total
Length 58 ft 4 1⁄8 in (17.783 m)
Height 12 ft 6 in (3.810 m)
Frame Plate frame
Axle load 15 long tons (15.2 t) on 2nd driver
Weight on drivers 43.75 long tons (44.5 t)
Locomotive weight 66.3 long tons (67.4 t)
Tender weight 39,318 lb (17.8 t) empty
37.95 long tons (38.6 t) w/o
Locomotive and tender
combined weight		 104.25 long tons (105.9 t) w/o
Tender type SH
* 2 axle bogies
* 30 in (762 mm) wheels
* Length 22 ft 9.3125 in (6.942 m)
Fuel type Coal
Fuel capacity 6 long tons (6.1 t)
Water capacity 3,225 imp gal (14,660 l)
Boiler 5 ft 0.75 in (1.543 m) inside diameter
16 ft 4.75 in (4.997 m) inside length
7 ft 3 in (2.210 m) pitch
Boiler pressure 180 psi (1,240 kPa)
Firegrate area 28 sq ft (2.601 m2)
Heating surface:
– Tubes		 246 tubes 2 in (50.8 mm) diameter
2,112 sq ft (196.211 m2)
– Firebox 119 sq ft (11.055 m2)
– Total 2,231 sq ft (207.267 m2)
Cylinders Two
Cylinder size 19 in (483 mm) bore
24 in (610 mm) stroke
Valve gear Stephenson
Performance figures
Tractive effort 22,940 lbf (102 kN) at 75% pressure
Career
Operator(s) Natal Government Railways
South African Railways
Class NGR Class A
SAR Class 2 [1]
Number in class 2
Number(s) NGR 325-326
SAR 762-763 [1][3][4]
Nicknames Hendrie A
Delivered 1905
First run 1905
Withdrawn 1936

The South African Class 2 4-6-2 of 1905 is a South African steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Natal Colony.

In 1905 the Natal Government Railways placed two Class A steam locomotives with a 4-6-2 Pacific type wheel arrangement in service. In 1912, when these locomotives were assimilated into the South African Railways, they were renumbered and designated Class 2.[1][3][5]

Manufacturer

In 1904 orders were placed with the North British Locomotive Company (NBL) for two 4-6-2 Pacific type locomotives for the Natal Government Railways (NGR). They were designed by NGR Locomotive Superintendent D.A. Hendrie for passenger traffic on those sections of the mainline between Ladysmith and Charlestown that did not have very severe gradients. When they were delivered and placed in service early in 1905, they became the NGR Class A, numbered 325 and 326 and also known as the Class Hendrie A.[5]

Characteristics

They used saturated steam, had Stephenson valve gear and were built on plate frames. After these two engines, however, Hendrie adopted Walschaerts valve gear on all his future designs, for its greater accessibility.[1][5]

To accommodate the wide and deep firebox, Hendrie made use of a bridle casting along the same lines as that introduced on the Cape Government Railways (CGR) by H.M. Beatty in 1903 on what was later to become the Class 6Y. This method of widening the frames for the firebox continued long after Hendrie retired on pension in June 1922, and only the general adoption of bar frames for mainline locomotives from 1927 onwards rendered it no longer necessary.[1]

Service

The two locomotives ran their first trials in early 1905. They were placed in service between Ladysmith and Charlestown, as intended.[1][5]

The Union of South Africa was established on 31 May 1910, in terms of the South Africa Act, enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. One of the clauses in the Act required that the three Colonial Government railways, the CGR, the NGR and the Central South African Railways, also be united under one single administration to control and administer the railways, ports and harbours of the Union. While the South African Railways (SAR) came into existence in 1910, the actual classification and renumbering of all the rolling stock of the three constituent railways required careful planning and was only implemented with effect from 1 January 1912.[3][6]

In 1912 these two Pacifics were renumbered 762 and 763 and classified as Class 2 on the SAR.[3][5]

They were later transferred to the Witwatersrand for a short period, after which they worked on the Komatipoort-Waterval Boven section until they were withdrawn by 1936.[1][5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Holland, D.F. (1971). Steam Locomotives of the South African Railways, Volume 1: 1859-1910 (1st ed.). Newton Abbott, Devon: David & Charles. pp. 101–102. ISBN 978-0-7153-5382-0.
  2. ↑ North British Locomotive Company works list, compiled by Austrian locomotive historian Bernhard Schmeiser
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Classification of S.A.R. Engines with Renumbering Lists, issued by the Chief Mechanical Engineer’s Office, Pretoria, January 1912, pp. 7, 12, 15, 35 (Reprinted in April 1987 by SATS Museum, R.3125-6/9/11-1000)
  4. ↑ Holland, D.F. (1972). Steam Locomotives of the South African Railways, Volume 2: 1910-1955 (1st ed.). Newton Abbott, Devon: David & Charles. p. 137. ISBN 978-0-7153-5427-8.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Paxton, Leith; Bourne, David (1985). Locomotives of the South African Railways (1st ed.). Cape Town: Struik. pp. 35–36. ISBN 0869772112.
  6. ↑ The South African Railways - Historical Survey. Editor George Hart, Publisher Bill Hart, Sponsored by Dorbyl Ltd., Published c. 1978, p. 25.