NGR Class K 2-6-0T

NGR Class K 2-6-0T

NGR no. 4 with a balloon smokestack and Salter safety valves

Type and origin Power type Steam Designer Kitson and Company Builder Beyer, Peacock & Company Serial number 1702-1706 (1877), 1817-1818 (1878) Build date 1877 Total produced 7

Specifications Configuration 2-6-0T (Mogul) Driver 2nd coupled axle Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge Leading dia. 25 3⁄4 in (654 mm) Coupled dia. 39 in (991 mm) Wheelbase 12 ft 1 in (3,683 mm)  • Coupled 7 ft 9 in (2,362 mm) Wheel spacing (Asymmetrical) 1-2: 3 ft 7 1⁄2 in (1,105 mm) 2-3: 4 ft 1 1⁄2 in (1,257 mm) Length: ​  • Over couplers 23 ft 1 in (7,036 mm) Height 12 ft (3,658 mm) Frame type Plate, 1 in (25 mm) thick Axle load 6 LT 14 cwt (6,808 kg)  • Leading 6 LT 8 cwt (6,503 kg)  • 1st coupled 6 LT 12 cwt (6,706 kg)  • 2nd coupled 6 LT 14 cwt (6,808 kg)  • 3rd coupled 6 LT 4 cwt (6,299 kg) Adhesive weight 19 LT 10 cwt (19,810 kg) Loco weight 25 LT 18 cwt (26,320 kg) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 1 LT (1.0 t) Water cap 600 imp gal (2,700 l) Firebox type Round-top  • Firegrate area 11.3 sq ft (1.05 m2) Boiler: ​  • Pitch 5 ft 3 1⁄8 in (1,603 mm)  • Diameter 3 ft 4 in (1,016 mm)  • Tube plates 9 ft 6 in (2,896 mm)  • Small tubes 116: 1 3⁄4 in (44 mm) Boiler pressure 130 psi (896 kPa) Safety valve As built: Salter Modified: Ramsbottom Heating surface 639.5 sq ft (59.41 m2)  • Tubes 590 sq ft (55 m2)  • Firebox 49.5 sq ft (4.60 m2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 14 in (356 mm) bore 20 in (508 mm) stroke Valve gear Stephenson Valve type Slide Loco brake Vacuum Couplers Johnston link-and-pin

Performance figures Tractive effort 9,800 lbf (44 kN) @ 75%

Career Operators Natal Government Railways South African Railways East Rand Proprietary Mines Class Class K Number in class 7 Numbers NGR 1-7, later 501-507, SAR 0504 & 0507 Delivered 1877-1878 First run 1877 Last run 1931

The Natal Government Railways Class K 2-6-0T of 1877 was a South African steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Natal Colony.

The Natal Government Railways was established in terms of Law 4 of 1875. All the assets of the Natal Railway Company were taken over by the Colonial Government and became part of the new Railways with effect from 1 January 1877. On 1 June 1877, William Milne was appointed as the Railway's first Locomotive Superintendent. To cope with the anticipated traffic on the new Cape gauge line which was being built inland from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, Milne placed an order for seven new 2-6-0 tank locomotives. In 1905 or 1906, the survivors of these locomotives became part of the Natal Class K.

Natal Government Railways (NGR) Locomotive Superintendent William Milne, who first arrived in Natal on 14 March 1876 aboard the RMS Natal, was so impressed by the engines NGR 2-6-0T Durban & Pietermaritzburg, the two contractor's 2-6-0 tank locomotives which were being used on the construction of the line from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, that he placed an order with Beyer, Peacock and Company for seven of them. The locomotives were numbered in the range from 1 to 7 and were built in two batches, with numbers 1 to 5 being delivered in 1877 and the other two in 1878.

The first two locomotives, along with thirty open trucks and ten passenger carriages, were landed off the ship Empress of India on 14 December 1877. Engine no. 3 was the first to be placed in service, making its trial run on 10 January 1878.

These were the first Cape gauge locomotives to enter service on the NGR. As built, the first five locomotives were identical in appearance to the two contractor's locomotives and were also wood-burners, equipped with balloon smokestacks with spark arresters. Tenders had been called on 1 March 1877, well in advance of their arrival, for the supply of "10 tons of blue gum and 10 tons of thornwood per month" as "firewood for the locomotives on the NGR".

The leading wheels of these locomotives were smaller than those of the contractor's locomotives, at 25 ³⁄₄ inches (654 millimetres) dia­meter instead of 30 inches (762 millimetres). The last two engines were built as coal-burners and therefore had straight brass-capped chimneys instead of the balloon smokestacks. Another externally visible difference from the previous five was the top of the tank side-plate next to the cab, which had a cut-out along the top edge, compared to the straight top on the earlier models.