South African Class 3 4-8-2

The South African Class 3 4-8-2 of 1909 is a South African steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Natal Colony.

In 1909 the Natal Government Railways placed the world’s first true Mountain type locomotive in service when five Class B 4-8-2 tender locomotives were commissioned. Twenty-five more were placed in service in 1911. In 1912, when they were assimilated into the South African Railways, they were renumbered and classified as Class 3. The Mountain wheel arrangement went on to become the most numerous steam locomotive wheel configuration in use in South Africa.^[3][4][6]

Manufacturer

With increasing coal traffic in Natal, the demand arose for more powerful locomotives. The Class B of 1909, also known as the Hendrie D, was a heavy 4-8-2 locomotive designed by Natal Government Railways (NGR) Locomotive Superintendent D.A. Hendrie to handle coal traffic on the upper Natal mainline.^[4][6]

They were based on his Class B 4-8-0, in its modified form of 1906 as the Altered Class B 4-8-2, but this time making full use of the potential of the pony truck under the cab to carry additional weight by positioning the firebox to the rear of the driving wheels, which made an improved grate and ashpan possible. To accomplish this, the plate frame was equipped with a cast bridle at the rear to accommodate the improved firebox design. Five locomotives were built by the North British Locomotive Company (NBL) and delivered in 1909, numbered in the range from 330 to 334.^[4][6]

The first five locomotives were put to work between Estcourt and Charlestown on the Transvaal border. They proved to be highly successful in use on all kinds of traffic, which led to an order for another twenty-five locomotives from NBL in 1910. They were delivered in 1911 and numbered in the range from 345 to 369 on the NGR roster.^[3][4][5][6]

Characteristics

They were the world's first true Mountain type tender locomotives, having been designed and built with a 4-8-2 wheel arrangement with the firebox positioned to the rear of the driving wheels. Earlier Natal 4-8-2 locomotives were modified from a different original wheel arrangement.^[7]

Like the altered NGR Class B of 1906 that it was based on, these locomotives had plate frames, Walschaerts valve gear with "D" valves, Belpaire fireboxes and used saturated steam. The boilers that were used on these locomotives were, at the time, the largest in South Africa. Since they were built without superheaters, the bore of their slide valves were ¹⁄₂ inch (12.7 millimetres) larger than on the altered Class B of 1906 to compensate for the additional weight of the locomotive.^[4][6][7]

South African Railways

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 Cape Government Railways, 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][8]

In 1912 these thirty Class B locomotives were renumbered in the range from 1446 to 1475 and reclassified as Class 3 on the SAR.^[3][6]

Watson Standard boilers

In the 1930s many serving locomotives were reboilered with a standard boiler type designed by then Chief Mechanical Engineer A.G. Watson as part of his standardisation policy. Such Watson Standard reboilered locomotives were reclassified by adding an "R" suffix to their classification number.^[2][6]

When twenty-nine of the Class 3 locomotives, all except number 1457, were eventually reboilered with superheated Watson Standard no. 2 boilers, they were therefore reclassified to Class 3R. The most 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, but this was not always the case, as illustrated below. In the case of the Class 3R locomotive an even more obvious visual distinction is the absence of the Belpaire firebox hump between the cab and the boiler.^[2][7]

By the late 1960s, towards the end of their service lives, the Class 3 was distributed between the Orange Free State and the Cape Western systems. By this time they were all used on shunting and pickup service, mainly around Bloemfontein, Beaufort West, Touws River and Cape Town. By 1970 the entire Class was concentrated in the Cape Western region, where they were finally withdrawn from service in 1974.^[6]

Works numbers and renumbering

The Class 3 works numbers, years built, numbering and SAR classification are listed in the table.^[4]

Modifications illustrated

The main picture shows NGR Class B of 1909 number 332, later SAR Class 3R number 1448, as built with a Belpaire firebox. Both of the pictures below show Watson Standard reboilered Class 3R locomotives. The first displays the usual spotting feature of a Watson Standard reboilered locomotive, the rectangular regulator cover just to the rear of the chimney, while the second has a bolted on cover plate instead, flush with the boiler cladding.^[2]

• 

  Reboilered Class 3R with the rectangular regulator cover, circa 1970

• 

  Reboilered Class 3R no. 1464 without the rectangular regulator cover, at Paardeneiland on 26 June 1962

See also

• List of South African locomotive classes
• South African Class 3A 4-8-2
• South African Class 3B 4-8-2
• South African locomotive history
• Tender locomotive numbering and classification
• The 4-8-2 "Mountain"
• Watson Standard boilers

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: South African Class 3 (4-8-2)

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