WAGR Msa class

WAGR Msa class

Works photo of Msa468, taken in 1930.

Works photo of Msa468, taken in 1930.
Type and origin
Power type Steam
Builder WAGR Midland Railway Workshops
Serial number 46–55
Build date 1930
Total produced 10
Specifications
Configuration 2-6-0+0-6-2 (Garratt)
UIC classification (1′C)(C1′) h4t
Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Driver diameter 39 in (991 mm)
Weight on drivers 60 tonnes (59 long tons; 66 short tons)
Locomotive weight 74 tonnes (73 long tons; 82 short tons)
Boiler pressure 160 lbf/in2 (1.10 MPa)
Firegrate area 27 sq ft (2.5 m2)
Heating surface:
– Total		 1,088 sq ft (101.1 m2)
Superheater area 180 sq ft (17 m2)
Cylinders Four (Garratt)
Cylinder size 13.25 in × 20 in (337 mm × 508 mm)
Performance figures
Tractive effort 24,489 lbf (108.93 kN)
Career
Operator(s) Western Australian Government Railways
Class Msa
Number(s) 466–475 (later 491–500)
Withdrawn 1962-1963
Preserved None
Disposition All scrapped

The WAGR Msa class was a class of 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge 2-6-0+0-6-2 Garratt-type articulated steam locomotives. The class was built at the Midland Railway Workshops in Midland, Western Australia, and was operated by the Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) between 1930 and 1963.

The class was preceded on the WAGR system by the M and the Ms Garratts. The class were used extensively on WAGR lines with light rails and sharp curves, as a consequence many of the smaller older branch lines on the Darling Scarp; as well as those with steep inclines such as those on the Mundaring Weir Branch Railway, the Nannup Branch Railway, and the Flinders Bay Branch Railway railways.

Hearsay evidence suggests that the poor quality of the boilers in the Msa rendered some inoperable by the late 1940s. The last remaining Msa was awaiting moving to a preservation status in the 'steam graveyard' adjacent to the Midland Railway Workshops, when instructions were misunderstood by a scrap metal company employee, and it was destroyed.

Class list

The numbers and periods in service of each member of the Msa class were as follows:[1][2]

Builder's
number		 First
number		 Second
number		 In service Renumbered Withdrawn Notes
46 466 491 22 February 1930 22 September 1947 7 October 1963 Stowed 3 April 1962.
47 467 492 22 February 1930 16 November 1949 7 October 1963
48 468 493 26 April 1930 29 July 1948 7 October 1963 Stowed 20 September 1961.
49 469 494 31 May 1930 1 November 1947 7 October 1963 Stowed 8 November 1961.
50 470 495 28 June 1930 2 October 1947 7 October 1963
51 471 496 19 July 1930 1 October 1947 7 October 1963 Stowed 27 September 1959.
52 472 497 16 August 1930 11 July 1947 7 October 1963 Stowed 29 June 1961.
53 473 498 13 September 1930 3 June 1948 6 September 1962 Stowed 20 January 1962.
54 474 499 4 October 1930 30 April 1948 7 October 1963 Stowed 12 August 1960.
55 475 500 1 November 1930 6 February 1948 7 October 1963 Stowed 14 December 1958.

See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Durrant 1981, p. 68.
  2. ↑ Gunzburg 1984, p. 110.

Bibliography

  • Durrant, A E (1981). Garratt Locomotives of the World (rev. and enl. ed.). Newton Abbot, Devon, UK; North Pomfret, Vt, USA: David & Charles. ISBN 0715376411.
  • Gunzburg, Adrian (1984). A History of WAGR Steam Locomotives. Perth: Australian Railway Historical Society (Western Australian Division). ISBN 0959969039.
  • Watson, Lindsay (1995). The Railway History Of Midland Junction: Commemorating The Centenary Of Midland Junction, 1895-1995. Swan View, W.A: L & S Drafting in association with the Shire of Swan and the Western Australian Light Railway Preservation Association.

External links

Media related to WAGR Msa class at Wikimedia Commons