WAGR W class
W934 on the Pichi Richi Railway in April 2012
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| Type and origin | |
|---|---|
| Power type | Steam |
| Designer | Frederick Mills, Charles Clarke & Beyer, Peacock & Co |
| Builder | Beyer, Peacock & Co |
| Serial number | 7378-7417, 7453-7472 |
| Build date | 1951–1952 |
| Total produced | 60 |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Configuration | 4-8-2 |
| Gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) |
| Driver dia. | 4 ft 0 in (1,219 mm) |
| Length | 61 ft 10.9 in (18.87 m) |
| Width | 8 ft 2 in (2.49 m) |
| Height | 12 ft 4.4 in (3.77 m) |
| Loco weight | 97 long tons 10 cwt (218,400 lb or 99.1 t) |
| Fuel type | Coal |
| Fuel capacity | 5 long tons 0 cwt (11,200 lb or 5.1 t) |
| Water cap | W901-W940: 3,000 imp gal (14,000 l; 3,600 US gal) W941-W960: 3,620 imp gal (16,500 l; 4,350 US gal) |
| Boiler pressure | 200 lbf/in2 (1.38 MPa) |
| Cylinder size | 16 in × 24 in (406 mm × 610 mm) |
| Valve gear | Walschaerts |
| Performance figures | |
|---|---|
| Tractive effort | 21,760 lbf (96.79 kN) |
| Factor of adh. | 4 |
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Operators | Western Australian Government Railways |
| Number in class | 60 |
| Numbers | W901-W960 |
| Disposition | 15 preserved, 45 scrapped |
The WAGR W class was a class of 4-8-2 steam locomotives operated by the Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) between 1951 and 1972.
The class was first proposed by Chief Mechanical Engineer Frederick Mills in 1947. However, the death of Mills in 1949 put a hold on the project, with his successor Charles Clarke, taking up the project on his appointment later that year.
Mills had requested Beyer, Peacock & Co to reserve capacity for their construction when the design was first proposed, however, by the time Clarke took over, Beyer, Peacock & Co had identified a number of possible problems with the design. This led to a meeting in the United Kingdom in 1950, the outcome of which was a substantial redesign of the locomotive.
The resultant locomotive included many proprietary boiler and ancillary fittings, as well as parts interchange ability. The firebox was substantially altered to take into account the properties of Collie coal. This included a combustion chamber, thermic syphons and arch bar tubes.
The running gear was based heavily on Beyer, Peacock & Co's Standard Light Garratt, which was built for the South Australian Railways as its 400 class. The first 40 were delivered partially erected, whilst the final 20 were fully assembled prior to shipping. The last 20 had larger tenders, capable of holding an additional 2,500 litres (550 imp gal; 660 US gal). All were delivered between April 1951 and June 1952.
The light axle load of the W class, 9.5t, gave it availability across the entire WAGR Network. Although essentially a freight engine, the W class regularly hauled The Australind from Perth to Bunbury. It effectively replaced the aged O and G classes still working on lighter parts of the network.
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Wikipedia