South African Class 6D 4-6-0 Explained

CGR 6th Class 4-6-0 1898
South African Class 6D 4-6-0
Hatnote:♠ Original locomotive, as built
Reboilered locomotive
Powertype:Steam
Designer:Cape Government Railways
(H.M. Beatty)
Builder:Neilson, Reid and Company
Serialnumber:5240-5272
Buildmodel:CGR 6th Class
Builddate:1898
Totalproduction:33
Whytetype:4-6-0 (Tenwheeler)
Uicclass:2'Cn2
Driver:2nd coupled axle
Leadingdiameter:NaN0NaN0
Coupleddiameter:540NaN0
Tenderdiameter:370NaN0
Wheelbase:42feet
Engine Total:20feet
Leading:5feet
Coupled:11feet
Tender Total:100NaN0
Wheelspacing:1-2: 4feet
2-3: 6feet
Over Couplers:51feet
Height:12feet
Frametype:Plate
Axleload:12lt
Leadingbogie/Pony:11lt
Coupled 1:11lt
Coupled 2:12lt
Coupled 3:12lt
Tenderaxle:10lt average
Weightondrivers:36lt
Locoweight:48lt
Tenderweight:31lt
Locotenderweight:79lt
Tendertype:YC (3-axle)
YB, YC, YE, YE1 permitted
Fueltype:Coal
Fuelcap:5lt
Watercap:2590sigfig=4NaNsigfig=4
Fireboxtype:Round-top
Firearea:18square feet
Pitch:6feet
Diameterinside:4feet
Lengthinside:11feet
Smalltubediameter:185: NaN0NaN0
Boilerpressure:♠ 1600NaN0
1800NaN0
Safetyvalvetype:Ramsbottom
Totalsurface:1122square feet
Tubearea:1015square feet
Fireboxarea:107square feet
Cylindercount:Two
Cylindersize:170NaN0 bore
260NaN0 stroke
Valvegear:Stephenson
Coupling:Johnston link-and-pin
AAR knuckle (1930s)
Tractiveeffort:♠ 16690lbf @ 75%
18780lbf @ 75%
Operator:Cape Government Railways
South African Railways
Sudan Railways
Operatorclass:CGR 6th Class, SAR Class 6D
Numinclass:33
Fleetnumbers:CGR 234-259, 585, 586 & 594, 665-668
SAR 565-597
Sudan M714-M715
Deliverydate:1898
Firstrundate:1898
Withdrawndate:1973

The South African Railways Class 6D of 1898 was a steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Cape of Good Hope.

In 1898, a fourth batch of 33 6th Class steam locomotives were placed in service by the Cape Government Railways. In 1912, when these locomotives were assimilated into the South African Railways, they were renumbered and designated Class 6D.[1]

Manufacturer

The original 6th Class passenger steam locomotive was designed at the Salt River works of the Cape Government Railways (CGR) in 1893, at the same time as the 7th Class and both according to the specifications of Michael Stephens, at the time Chief Locomotive Superintendent of the CGR, and under the supervision of H.M. Beatty, at the time Locomotive Superintendent of the Western System.

The 33 locomotives in this fourth group of the CGR 6th Class were built in 1898 by Neilson, Reid and Company. Of these engines, 26 went to the CGR's Western System, numbered in the range from 234 to 259, three to the Midland System, numbered 585, 586 and 594, and four to the Eastern System, numbered in the range from 665 to 668.[2]

These locomotives represented a further advance on earlier 6th Class locomotives, with a greater heating surface and a larger firegrate area. They did, however, revert to the same Type YC six-wheeled tenders which were earlier used with the second group of 6th Class locomotives, later the Class 6A.

Class 6 sub-classes

When the Union of South Africa was established on 31 May 1910, the three Colonial government railways (CGR, Natal Government Railways and Central South African Railways) were united under a single administration to control and administer the railways, ports and harbours of the Union. Although the South African Railways and Harbours came into existence in 1910, the actual classification and renumbering of all the rolling stock of the three constituent railways were only implemented with effect from 1 January 1912.[1] [3]

When these locomotives were assimilated into the South African Railways (SAR) in 1912, they were renumbered in the range from 565 to 597 and designated Class 6D. The rest of the CGR's 6th Class locomotives, together with the Class 6-L1 to 6L3 locomotives which had been inherited by the Central South African Railways from the Oranje-Vrijstaat Gouwerment-Spoorwegen via the Imperial Military Railways, were grouped into thirteen more sub-classes by the SAR. The locomotives became SAR Classes 6, 6A to 6C, 6E to 6H and 6J to 6L, the locomotives became Class 6Y and the locomotives became Class 6Z.[1] [4]

Service

South Africa

The Class 6 series of locomotives were introduced primarily as passenger locomotives, but when the class became displaced by larger and more powerful locomotive classes, it literally became a Jack-of-all-trades which proved itself as one of the most useful and successful locomotive classes ever to be designed at the Salt River shops. It went on to see service in all parts of the country, except Natal, and was used on all types of traffic.

After the Simon's Town line in Cape Town was electrified in 1928, Class 6D engines that used to haul commuters on this line became dock shunting engines in Table Bay Harbour. This continued until they were gradually replaced by new Class S2 0-8-0 shunting engines from 1952.[5]

Sudan

During the Second World War, sixteen locomotives of the Classes 6 to 6D were transferred to the Middle East to assist with the war effort during the North African Campaign. The two Class 6D locomotives in this group were numbers 572 and 587. They did not return to South Africa after the war and were sold to the Sudan Railways Corporation in 1942. Sudan Railways renumbered them M714 and M715, in the same order as their former SAR engine numbers.[6]

Renumbering

The Class 6D works numbers, system allocation and renumbering are listed in the table.[1]

Preservation

Only one of these locomotives survives. No. 579 is plinthed at King William's Town Station Forecourt.[7]

Notes and References

  1. Classification of S.A.R. Engines with Renumbering Lists, issued by the Chief Mechanical Engineer's Office, Pretoria, January 1912, pp. 8, 12, 14, 31-32 (Reprinted in April 1987 by SATS Museum, R.3125-6/9/11-1000)
  2. Neilson, Reid works list, compiled by Austrian locomotive historian Bernhard Schmeiser
  3. The South African Railways - Historical Survey. Editor George Hart, Publisher Bill Hart, Sponsored by Dorbyl Ltd., Published c. 1978, p. 25.
  4. South African Railways and Harbours Locomotive Diagram Book, 2'0" & 3'6" Gauge Steam Locomotives, 15 August 1941, as amended
  5. https://sites.google.com/site/soulorailway/home/system-1/part-16---table-bay-harbour Soul of A Railway, System 1, Part 16: Table Bay Harbour © Les Pivnic. Caption 109.
  6. Class 6 to 6D sold to Sudan Railways during the WWII North African Campaign, list compiled by Austrian locomotive historian Reimar Holzinger
  7. http://steam-locomotives-south-africa.blogspot.co.nz/2012/04/king-williams-town-station-forecourt.html - No 579 at King Williams Town Station - 7 April 2012.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "South African Class 6D 4-6-0".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.