SAR class NGG 13 / NGG 16
| SAR class NGG 13 / NGG 16 | |
|---|---|
 A WHR NGG 16
|
|
| Numbering: | see text |
| Number: | 12 NGG 13 34 NGG 16 |
| Manufacturer: | see text |
| Year of construction (s): | 1927-1968 |
| Type : | (1'C1 ') (1'C1') h4 (Garratt) |
| Gauge : | 610 mm |
| Length over coupling: | 14,757 mm |
| Service mass: | 62.6-63.2 t |
| Friction mass: | 40.8-43.3 t |
| Wheel set mass : | 7.2 t (NGG 13) 7.0-7.3 t (NGG 16) |
| Top speed: | 40 km / h |
| Coupling wheel diameter: | 838 mm |
| Impeller diameter outside: | 533 mm |
| Inner impeller diameter: | 533 mm |
| Cylinder diameter: | 304.8mm |
| Piston stroke: | 406 mm |
| Boiler overpressure: | 124 N / cm² |
| Grate area: | 1.81 m² (NGG 13) 1.78 m² (NGG 16) |
| Superheater area : | 13.8 m² (NGG 13) 13.6 m² (NGG 16) |
| Evaporation heating surface: | 85.5 m² |
| Train brake: | Suction air brake |
The classes NGG 13 and NGG 16 of the South African Railways (SAR) are Garratt steam locomotives for 610mm narrow gauge ( NGG stands for Narrow Gauge Garratt ), the largest locomotives ever built for this gauge. The last locomotives of the NGG 16 class were only delivered in 1968 ; by then it was the last Garratts to be built. More recently, however, new garrats have been built for the Ferrocarril Austral Fueguino of the KM type .
Manufacturers and supplies
12 locomotives of the class NGG 13 were built by Hanomag in 1927 and 1928 (No. NG 49, 50, 58–60, 77–83). In 1937 four NGG 16s from Cockerill (No. NG 85-88) and eight from Beyer-Peacock (No. NG 109-116) followed. In 1951 another seven Beyer-Peacock machines followed (No. NG 125-131).
Beyer-Peacock delivered another seven locomotives in 1958. These were initially intended for the mining railway of the Tsumeb Corporation in South West Africa (today Namibia) and were also assembled there; however, due to the conversion of the Tsumeb routes to Cape Gauge , they were released to the SAR before their first use (No. NG 137-143). While the previously delivered locomotives had water tanks on the rear chassis in addition to the coal stores, only the coal bunker was installed there on the machines for this delivery. The volume of the water tank on the front chassis was increased slightly by a less rounded shape, but the locomotives often drove with an additional water tender attached , as was necessary with the SAR for some of the large Kapspur Garratts. Three of the four NGG 16s that made it to the Welsh Highland Railway come from this delivery series, but operate on the comparatively short route without an additional water tender.
SAR ordered a further eight locomotives in 1965; As Beyer-Peacock was about to close at the time, the contract was transferred to Hunslet-Taylor . The locomotives (No. NG 149–156) were delivered in 1967 and 1968 as the last steam locomotives for the SAR and as the last Garratt locomotives at all. The enlarged front water tank of the Tsumeb delivery was retained, but the supplies carried on the rear bogie were again the same as in the 1951 delivery.
technology
For a track width of only 610 mm (this corresponds roughly to the track width of typical field railways ), a powerful steam locomotive with six driving axles can practically only be designed as an articulated Garratt locomotive. More than three or four coupling axles cannot be accommodated in a rigid frame because of the tight curve radii (sometimes less than 50 m), and the Garratt type has a higher profile than other joint types such as B. Mallet or Meyer has the advantage that the boiler is between the two chassis and not above. This is why it can be placed very low, which reduces the risk of tipping over as much as possible. As you can see in the picture above, the ash box under the standing boiler reaches almost down to the rails.
The problem of the risk of tipping becomes clear when you consider that the locomotives have a boiler diameter of almost 1.50 m and are approx. 2.10 m wide; the latter is three and a half times the gauge!
The NGG 13 and NGG 16 have the axis order (1'C1 ') (1'C1'). Both classes are almost identical; In fact, the individual deliveries of the NGG 16 class differed more from each other than the first NGG 16 from the NGG 13 class. A difference between the two types is the equipment of the running axles of the NGG 16 with roller bearings . In addition, the inner running axles of the NGG 13 are mounted in the frame, while the NGG 16 are designed as a Bissel frame .
The trolleys have outer frames and outer cylinders. Driving rods and coupling rods are attached to crank webs outside the frame ( Hall cranks ), a design that is almost inevitable for large steam locomotives with this narrow gauge. The control corresponds to the type Walschaerts / Heusinger. The locomotives are fired with coal; some of the specimens that were later brought abroad were converted to oil firing.
The unusually long procurement period of 40 years underlines the success of this construction.
commitment
The locomotives of the classes NGG 13 and NGG 16 were initially used primarily on the Port Elizabeth – Avontuur route . This is 283 km long - the longest 2-foot route in the world - and was mainly used to transport fruit directly to the port of Port Elizabeth, which is why it was not necessary to reload the goods onto Cape Lane. The trains were therefore known under the name Apple Express . The NGG 13 and NGG 16 also pulled heavy trains loaded with limestone for a cement works on this route. From the mid-1970s, the Garratts were replaced by class 91 diesel locomotives ; steam locomotives continued to be used for lighter trains, although these were single-frame locomotives of class NG 15 .
About 40 Garratts were then transferred to four narrow-gauge lines in Natal , some of which had curves with a radius of only 45 m and gradients of up to 30 ‰. As universal locomotives, the locomotives handled all traffic there in front of passenger and freight trains. The freight trains mainly transported sugar cane and wood.
At the SAR, the narrow-gauge Garratts were in use until well into the 1980s ; however, with increasing line closures, fewer and fewer of these locomotives were needed. The last narrow-gauge line in Natal, the Alfred County Railway , a 122 km long railway line from Port Shepstone to Harding , was closed in 1986 by the SAR. Then two railway specialists took over the railway under the name Port Shepstone & Alfred County Railway Company Limited , ACR for short. However, operations had to be stopped in 2006.
Two ACR locomotives (No. 141 and 155) were rebuilt in 1989 and 1990 to improve their economy. Thanks to the fuel savings of 20 to 25%, this conversion paid for itself within 12 months. The converted locomotives are designated as class NGG 16A. The success of the modifications led to considerations to develop and build a new class NGG 17 according to the most modern design principles, the bankruptcy of the Alfred County Railway prevented these plans.
The whereabouts of NGG 13 and NGG 16
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10 of the 12 built NGG 13 and all NGG 16 are still preserved. NGG 13 No. 59 was scrapped after an accident in 1982, while 79, which was parked ready for scrap, was scrapped in 2010 as part of the evacuation of the railway station in Porth Elizabeth. Since many of the surplus locomotives were still in relatively good condition after they were taken out of service, some of them ended up on museum railways outside of South Africa.
The NGG 13 No. 50 was brought to the USA in 1985 by the Hempstead & Northern Railroad and is the first and only Garratt locomotive ever operated in North America.
In 1996, the Ffestiniog Railway Company bought two NGG 16 locomotives (No. 138 and 143 from the Tsumeb delivery) for their Welsh Highland Railway , had them reconditioned by the ACR and have been using them on their route ever since. Locomotive 140 from the same delivery was given to the WHR as a gift from railway enthusiasts; reactivation began in 2005, but is running alongside the main inspections of the locomotives that are already operational. The exchange of large components (boiler, chassis) within this series is carried out in the same way as in South Africa. In January 2006 - also through a sponsor - a fourth NGG 16 with locomotive no. 87, the reconstruction of which was completed in January 2009, came to the WHR. NGG 16 No. 109 was acquired by a private foundation and, after processing, is also to be made available to the WHR, as is the 130.
Other NGG 13 and NGG 16 are located in Australia, the United Kingdom and Germany. The NGG 13 No. 78 is in the German Museum of Technology in Berlin . This locomotive incorrectly bears the number plates and factory plates of NGG 13 No. 83, which was also brought back to Germany together with No. 78. NGG 13 No. 60 Drakensberg was refurbished by the Schinznacher Baumschulbahn in Switzerland and, after a few years in operation, sold to the Vale of Rheidol Railway in Wales in 2017 . The majority of the NGG 13 and 16 remaining in South Africa are located, e.g. Partly in working order on the Sandstone Estates , a private museum railway.
Overview table
The following table contains all the locomotives for which information is available.
| SAR no. | Manufacturer | last known location / owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class NGG 13 | |||
| NG 49 | Hanomag | Sandstone Estates | operational |
| NG 50 | Hanomag | Hempstead & Northern Railroad | operational |
| NG 59 | Hanomag | Scrapped after an accident | |
| NG 60 | Hanomag | Vale of Rheidol Railway | operational |
| NG 77 | Hanomag | Exmoor Steam Railway | inoperable |
| NG 78 | Hanomag | German Museum of Technology Berlin | inoperable |
| NG 79 | Hanomag | Humewood Station, Port Elizabeth (South Africa) | scrapped |
| NG 80 | Hanomag | Monument locomotive in the train station of Joubertina (South Africa) | inoperable |
| NG 81 | Hanomag | Monument locomotive in Patensie (South Africa) | not operational, external restoration planned |
| NG 83 | Hanomag | Private property Dr. Muhr (Germany) | inoperable |
| Class NGG 16 | |||
| NG 85 | Cockerill | Sandstone Estates | parked inoperable |
| NG 86 | Cockerill | Sandstone Estates | parked inoperable |
| NG 87 | Cockerill | Welsh Highland Railway | operational since February 2020 |
| NG 88 | Cockerill | Sandstone Estates | operational |
| NG 109 | Beyer-Peacock | Welsh Highland Railway / Peter Waterman Trust | dismantled, refurbishment planned |
| NG 111 | Beyer-Peacock | Gold Reef City | inoperable |
| NG 112 | Beyer-Peacock | Cape Town | inoperable |
| NG 113 | Beyer-Peacock | Sandstone Estates | operational |
| NG 115 | Beyer-Peacock | Exmoor Steam Railway | inoperable |
| NG 127 | Beyer-Peacock | Puffing Billy Preservation Society (Australia) | inoperable |
| NG 128 | Beyer-Peacock | Sandstone Estates | incomplete, restoration possible |
| NG 129 | Beyer-Peacock | Puffing Billy Preservation Society | Re-tracked to 762 mm, new boiler, operational since December 2019 |
| NG 130 | Beyer-Peacock | Welsh Highland Railway | in preparation, commissioning planned for 2020 |
| NG 131 | Beyer-Peacock | Avontuur Railway (Port Elizabeth) | inoperable |
| NG 137 | Beyer-Peacock | Sandstone Estates | inoperative, heavily rusted |
| NG 138 | Beyer-Peacock | Welsh Highland Railway | in operation |
| NG 140 | Beyer-Peacock | Welsh Highland Railway | in processing, operational use planned |
| NG 141 | Beyer-Peacock | deposited for a private owner | NGG 16A, currently not operational |
| NG 143 | Beyer-Peacock | Welsh Highland Railway | in operation |
| NS 150 | Hunslet-Taylor | Sandstone Estates | inoperative, heavily rusted |
| NG 152 | Hunslet-Taylor | Sandstone Estates | inoperative, heavily rusted |
| NG 153 | Hunslet-Taylor | Sandstone Estates | operational |
| NG 154 | Hunslet-Taylor | Humewood Station, Port Elizabeth | disassembled, badly rusted |
| NG 155 | Hunslet-Taylor | Sandstone Estates | NGG 16A, currently not operational |
literature
- AE Durrant: Garratt locomotives of the world. Birkhäuser, Basel et al. 1984, ISBN 3-7643-1481-8 .
- Hugh Ballantyne: South African two-foot gauge. Featuring the Garratts. Middleton Press, Midhurst 2009, ISBN 978-1-906008-51-2 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Alfred County Railway - Garratt 2-6-2 + 2-6-2 NGG16A. Martyn Bane, Modern and Modernized Steam Locos, accessed July 11, 2009 .
- ↑ Accident pictures. (No longer available online.) Sandstone Heritage Trust, formerly the original ; Retrieved July 11, 2009 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ NGG16 no. 140. (No longer available online.) The Welsh Highland Railway Project, archived from the original on January 21, 2010 ; Retrieved July 11, 2009 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ NG / G16 Garratt No.109 purchased for service on Welsh Highland Railway by Peter Waterman Trust. Welsh Highland Railway. Retrieved July 11, 2009 .
- ↑ Farewell and a new beginning - The Schinznacher Baumschulbahn association separates from its Drakensberg locomotive after 31 years. Effinger Medien, accessed on December 23, 2017 .
- ↑ Festipedia: 87
- ↑ Sandstone Estates - NGG 16 No.88. Retrieved April 22, 2010 .
- ^ Old steam locomotives in South Africa
- ^ Old steam locomotives in South Africa
- ↑ NGG16 No.127
- ^ Australian leisure management: Puffing Billy Railway set to debut restored locomotive
- ↑ Festipedia: 130
