NZR E class (1906)

New Zealand E class locomotive (1906)

E 66 at Petone Workshops in February 1906, just after it was built.

Type and origin Power type Steam Builder New Zealand Railways Department, Petone Workshops. Serial number 69 Build date 1906 Total produced 1

Specifications Configuration 2-6-6-0T Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Driver dia. 36.5 in (0.927 m) Length 37 ft 2 in (11.33 m) over couplers Adhesive weight 61 long tons 2 cwt (136,900 lb or 62.1 t) 61 long tons 2 cwt (62.1 t; 68.4 short tons) Loco weight 65 long tons 16 cwt (147,400 lb or 66.9 t) 65 long tons 16 cwt (66.9 t; 73.7 short tons) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 3 long tons 4 cwt (7,200 lb or 3.3 t) 3 long tons 4 cwt (3.3 t; 3.6 short tons) Water cap 1,250 imp gal (5,700 l; 1,500 US gal) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 26.0 sq ft (2.42 m2) Boiler pressure 200 lbf/in2 (1,400 kPa; 14 kgf/cm2) Heating surface 1,540 sq ft (143 m2) Cylinders 4 HP, 4 LP, Vauclain compound High-pressure cylinder 9.5 in × 18 in (241 mm × 457 mm) Low-pressure cylinder 16 in × 18 in (406 mm × 457 mm)

Performance figures Tractive effort 24,200 lbf (108 kN)

Career Operators NZGR Numbers E 66 Nicknames Pearson's Dream First run 1906 Withdrawn 1917 Disposition Scrapped

The New Zealand E class locomotive comprised a single steam locomotive operated by New Zealand Railways (NZR) from 1906 until 1917. Classified as E 66 and nicknamed Pearson's Dream after its designer, it was an experimental Mallet locomotive designed to work on the Rimutaka Incline. The "E" classification was previously used by the Double Fairlie E class of 1872-75, but the classification was free as they had all been withdrawn by the time E 66 entered service. After the withdrawal of E 66, "E" was again re-used on the battery-electric E class of 1922.

The Rimutaka Incline opened in 1878, connecting Wellington with the Wairarapa region, and with the completion of the Wairarapa Line in December 1897, it provided NZR's main link to the north as the west coast route was then privately owned by the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company (WMR). Six special Fell locomotives, the H class, worked the Incline, but after 1897, traffic increases necessitated additional motive power. Initially, two members of the B class were converted from tender locomotives into tank locomotives and reclassified as the W^E class; W 192 was also transferred to assist on the Incline. These locomotives proved to be more expensive to operate and used more fuel than the H class. However, they were considered successful enough by Chief Mechanical Engineer A. L. Beattie that he authorised his Chief Draughtsman, G. A. Pearson, to design another, more powerful locomotive to work the Incline.