South African Class C 4-6-0T

NGR Kitson 2-6-0T
NGR Class G 4-6-0T
South African Class C 4-6-0T

NGR Class G no. 26

Type and origin ♠ - 2-6-0T configuration, as built ♥ - 4-6-0T configuration, modified or as built Power type Steam Designer Kitson and Company Builder Kitson and Company Robert Stephenson and Company Serial number Kitson 2254-2258, 2269-2270, 2358-2360, 2504-2508, 2898-2900 Stephenson 2484-2490, 2519-2520, 2571-2580 Model NGR Class G Build date 1879-1885 Total produced 37 Rebuilder Natal Government Railways Rebuild date 1883, 1896 & 1902 Number rebuilt 1883: 7 to 4-6-0T (Ten-wheeler) 1896: 1 to 4-6-4T (Baltic) 1902: 1 to 4-6-2T (Pacific)

Specifications Configuration ♠ 7 built as 2-6-0T (Mogul) ♥ 30 built as 4-6-0T (Ten-wheeler) Driver 2nd coupled axle Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge Leading dia. ♠ 24 in (610 mm) ♥ 25 3⁄4 in (654 mm) Coupled dia. ♠ 38 in (965 mm) ♥ 39 in (991 mm) Wheelbase ♠ 14 ft 1 in (4,293 mm) ♥ 16 ft 8 1⁄4 in (5,086 mm)  • Leading ♥ 5 ft (1,524 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 ♠ 24 ft (290 in) ♥ 26 ft 3⁄4 in (7,944 mm)  • Over beams ♠ 21 ft 9 5⁄8 in (6,645 mm) ♥ 23 ft 10 3⁄8 in (7,274 mm) Height 11 ft 7 1⁄4 in (3,537 mm) Frame type Plate Axle load ♥ 8 LT 4 cwt (8,332 kg)  • Leading ♥ 5 LT 18 cwt (5,995 kg)  • 1st coupled ♥ 7 LT 14 cwt (7,824 kg)  • 2nd coupled ♥ 8 LT 4 cwt (8,332 kg)  • 3rd coupled ♥ 7 LT 6 cwt (7,417 kg) Adhesive weight ♥ 23 LT 4 cwt (23,570 kg) Loco weight ♥ 29 LT 2 cwt (29,570 kg) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity ♠ 1 LT 5 cwt (1.3 t) ♥ 1 LT (1.0 t) Water cap 700 imp gal (3,180 l) Firebox type Round-top  • Firegrate area 11 sq ft (1.0 m2) Boiler: ​  • Pitch 5 ft 7 in (1,702 mm)  • Diameter 3 ft 4 3⁄4 in (1,035 mm)  • Tube plates 10 ft 3 1⁄2 in (3,137 mm)  • Small tubes 130: 1 3⁄4 in (44 mm) Boiler pressure ♠ 140 psi (965 kPa) ♥ 175 psi (1,207 kPa) reboilered Safety valve Salter and Ramsbottom Heating surface 669 sq ft (62.2 m2)  • Tubes 611 sq ft (56.8 m2)  • Firebox 58 sq ft (5.4 m2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 14 in (356 mm) bore 21 in (533 mm) stroke Valve gear Stephenson Valve type Slide Couplers Johnston link-and-pin AAR knuckle (1930s)

Performance figures Tractive effort ♠ 11,080 lbf (49.3 kN) @ 75% ♥ 13,850 lbf (61.6 kN) @ 75%

Career Operators Natal Government Railways South African Railways Eskom Class NGR Class G, SAR Class C Number in class NGR 37, SAR 15 Numbers NGR 8-14, 16-26, 29-47 SAR 62-76 Delivered 1879-1885 First run 1879 Withdrawn 1940

The South African Railways Class C 4-6-0T of 1879 was a steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Colony of Natal.

Between 1879 and 1885, the Natal Government Railways placed thirty-seven 4-6-0 Ten-wheeler type tank steam locomotives in service. Of these, the first seven were built as 2-6-0T Mogul type locomotives and were subsequently modified to a 4-6-0T wheel arrangement. They were designated Class G and, in 1912, when fifteen of them were assimilated into the South African Railways, they were renumbered and reclassified to Class C. These were the oldest pre-Union locomotives to be classified and renumbered onto the SAR roster.

In 1875, when the Natal Government took over all the assets of the Natal Railway Company and formed the Natal Government Railways (NGR), two important decisions were made. The first was to extend the tracks inland from Durban to Pietermaritzburg to open up the line into the interior, and to Verulam on the North Coast and Isipingo on the South Coast to serve the growing farming communities up and down the coast from Durban. The second was to convert the railway from broad gauge to Cape gauge to conform to the gauge used by the Cape Government Railways. Apart from eventual compatibility with the Gape's railways, this decision to regauge was probably equally much brought about by the terrain which confronted the new railway in the Natal interior, which would demand heavy grades and tight curves.

The first Cape gauge locomotives of the NGR were seven Class K 2-6-0T engines which had been ordered from Beyer, Peacock and Company in 1877 to meet the expected traffic demands on these new lines. They were built to the same specifications as the engines Durban and Pietermaritzburg, a pair of 2-6-0T locomotives which were built by Kitson and Company for Wythes and Jackson, the contractors who built the line between Durban and Pietermaritzburg.