Rhodesia Railways 19th class

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Rhodesia Railways 19th class
Wankie Coal Co. no.1 in Hwange, Zimbabwe, 1990.
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Henschel Build date 1951-1953 Total produced 20 (for Rhodesia Railways) 1 (19C class) 6 (for industrial users)
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-8-2 Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge Driver dia. 4 ft 6 in (1.37 m) Length 86 ft 9 in (26.44 m) (with tender) Axle load 13 long tons 15 cwt (30,800 lb or 14 t) Adhesive weight 53 long tons 19 cwt (120,800 lb or 54.8 t) Loco weight 81.23 long tons 18 cwt (184,000 lb or 83.4 t) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 12 LT (12 t) Water cap 6,500 imp gal (30,000 l; 7,800 US gal) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 36 sq ft (3.3 m2) Boiler pressure 19th: 200 psi (1.38 MPa) Heating surface:  • Tubes and flues 1,700 sq ft (160 m2)  • Firebox 1,847 sq ft (171.6 m2) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 390 sq ft (36 m2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 21 in × 26 in (533 mm × 660 mm)
Performance figures Tractive effort 19th: 36,090 lbf (160.5 kN)
Career Operators Rhodesia Railways National Railways of Zimbabwe Wankie Colliery Nkana Mine Class 19th Numbers 316–335 (19th class) 335 (19C class) 337-338 (19B class) Delivered 1951 First run 1952
Reference:

The Rhodesia Railways 19th class was a class of 20 4-8-2 locomotives built between 1951 and 1953. These were similar in design to the Class 19D used by South African Railways, and were the last non-articulated steam locomotives ever purchased by Rhodesia Railways.

Service

Between 1951 and 1953, Henschel & Son built twenty locomotives for Rhodesia Railways, as their 19th class, numbered in the range from 316 to 335. They had tenders similar to the SAR Torpedo type, but with plate frame bogies instead of cast frame Buckeye bogies.

A single 19C class, no. 336, was built by Henschel in 1954 as a condensing locomotive. Nicknamed "Silent Suzie", it was intended for use in Botswana, but was unpopular with crews, and was rebuilt into a non-condensing 19th Class in 1958 after being involved in a collision. The condensing tender was rebuilt to a Torpedo tender by mounting a tank and coal bunker, supplied locally in Bulawayo, on the frame. This rebuilt tender is the one paired with no. 330 which is preserved in the Bulawayo Railway Museum.

By February 1979, only three were left in service, with no. 328 allocated to the Bulawayo shed, no. 329 at Lobatse in Botswana, and no. 330 out-stationed at Mafeking in South Africa. In addition, a further nine locomotives were in storage.

Industrial use

Wankie Colliery

At the same time as the Rhodesia Railways' order, the Hwange Colliery (then known as the Wankie Coal Company) was looking forward to cut down expendetures of having the Rhodesia Railways handling rail operations from its mines, which cost the colliery company £50 per shunt.

The company decided to order four locomotives identical to the 19th class for £47,000 each from the North British Locomotive Company. These locomotives differed from the Rhodesia Railways examples by having a 12th class tender, and the absence of a superheater. The four locomotives were numbered 1 to 4. A few of the Rhodesian 19th class were later sold to the Wankie Colliery, continuing off where the four first-hand locomotives left off.

Nkana Mines

A further two locomotives were delivered by Henschel in 1952 to the Nkana copper mines in Northern Rhodesia, who numbered them 107 and 108. In 1967, these were sold to a scrap merchant, who in turn sold them to Rhodesia Railways, becoming their numbers 337 and 338, and were classified as class 19B.

References

Bibliography

• Durrant, A.E. (1997). The Smoke That Thunders (1 ed.). Harare: African Publishing Group. ISBN 1-77901-134-2. Search this book on
• Garratt, Colin Dennis (1974). Steam Safari. London: Blandford Press. ISBN 0713707127 – via Internet Archive. Search this book on

External links

• Smith, Jonathan D. H. "Rhodesia Railways steam locomotives". The terminal: Standard steam locomotives. Iowa State University. Retrieved 2024-09-29.

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