South African Class J 4-6-4T

The South African Railways Class J 4-6-4T of 1915 was a steam locomotive.

South African Class J 4-6-4T
Class J no. 345, c. 1950
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer South African Railways (D.A. Hendrie) Builder Nasmyth, Wilson and Company Serial number 1060-1065 Model Class J Build date 1915 Total produced 6
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-6-4T (Baltic)  • UIC 2'C2'n2t Driver 2nd coupled axle Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge Leading dia. 25+3⁄4 in (654 mm) Coupled dia. 42+3⁄4 in (1,086 mm) Trailing dia. 25+3⁄4 in (654 mm) Wheelbase 27 ft 5 in (8,357 mm) ​  • Axle spacing (Asymmetrical) 1-2: 4 ft (1,219 mm) 2-3: 4 ft 6 in (1,372 mm)  • Leading 5 ft 4 in (1,626 mm)  • Coupled 8 ft 6 in (2,591 mm)  • Trailing 5 ft 4 in (1,626 mm) Length: ​  • Over couplers 34 ft 3⁄4 in (10,382 mm) Height 12 ft (3,658 mm) Axle load 11 LT 4 cwt (11,380 kg) ​  • Leading 9 LT 12 cwt (9,754 kg)  • 1st coupled 10 LT 10 cwt (10,670 kg)  • 2nd coupled 11 LT 4 cwt (11,380 kg)  • 3rd coupled 11 LT (11,180 kg)  • Trailing 10 LT 2 cwt (10,260 kg) Adhesive weight 32 LT 14 cwt (33,220 kg) Loco weight 52 LT 8 cwt (53,240 kg) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 3 LT (3.0 t) Water cap. 1,200 imp gal (5,460 L) Firebox: ​  • Type Belpaire  • Grate area 15 sq ft (1.4 m2) Boiler: ​  • Pitch 6 ft 9 in (2,057 mm)  • Diameter 3 ft 10+1⁄4 in (1,175 mm)  • Tube plates 10 ft 5+3⁄4 in (3,194 mm)  • Small tubes 171: 1+3⁄4 in (44 mm) Boiler pressure 175 psi (1,207 kPa) Safety valve Ramsbottom Heating surface: ​  • Firebox 88 sq ft (8.2 m2)  • Tubes 821 sq ft (76.3 m2)  • Total surface 909 sq ft (84.4 m2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 15 in (381 mm) bore 22 in (559 mm) stroke Valve gear Walschaerts Valve type Piston Couplers Johnston link-and-pin AAR knuckle (1930s)
Performance figures Tractive effort 15,200 lbf (68 kN) @ 75%
Career Operators South African Railways Class Class J Number in class 6 Numbers 341-346 Delivered 1915 First run 1915 Withdrawn 1957

In 1915, the South African Railways placed six Class J tank steam locomotives with a 4-6-4 Baltic type wheel arrangement in service.

Manufacturer

D.A. Hendrie

To cope with the increasing traffic on the Natal South Coast, D.A. Hendrie, the Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the South African Railways (SAR), reverted to the old Natal Government Railways preference and designed a new 4-6-4 Baltic type side-tank steam locomotive.

Six of these locomotives were built by Nasmyth, Wilson and Company of Patricroft in Salford, England, and delivered in 1915, numbered in the range from 341 to 346. They were designated Class J and were the first side-tank engines to be acquired by the SAR since Union.

Characteristics

The engines used saturated steam and had Walschaerts valve gear, piston valves and Belpaire fireboxes. They were designed to work as double-enders on the Natal South Coast line where there was limited engine turning facilities.

Service

It was soon found, however, that due to their small proportions, they were of insufficient power to handle the rapidly increasing loads on the South Coast. They were therefore taken off the South Coast run and employed as shunting engines in the Durban harbour.

Four of them were later allocated to Mossel Bay and the Cape Midland for similar duties. They remained there until they were withdrawn by 1957 after more than forty years in service. The remaining two locomotives, numbers 341 and 342, were sold to gold mines on the Reef.

By the early 1970s, no. 341 was still at work on the East Daggafontein Mine as their no. 2. It was later acquired by the South African National Railway And Steam Museum (SANRASM) for preservation. It had to be scrapped in 2011, however, after being vandalised by scavenging scrap metal thieves at the SANRASM storage site in Chamdor.

Illustration

No. 341 was plinthed at SANRASM with a tender. The picture shows it as gate guard, prior to being vandalised into destruction c. 2010.

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  No. 341, East Daggafontein Mine no. 2 with a tender, 9 October 1989