|
|
3026T Lachlan Valley Railway |
|
3026T and 4204 hauling a
Lachlan Valley Railway tour at Westville on 25 September 1993.
My thanks to Chris Stratton for contributing this view.
|
Builder |
Beyer Peacock
& Co, Manchester |
|
Builder’s Number & Year |
4469 of 1903 |
|
Wheel Arrangement |
4-6-0 |
|
No. in class |
(C)30T
class – 77 (C)30
class – 68 |
|
This
locomotive is one of 145 members of the (S) 636 class of passenger tank
engines, which were the backbone of Sydney suburban services prior to
electrification. It was originally
numbered S 661 and became 3026 of the (C)30 class in
the NSWGR 1924 renumbering scheme. Following
the electrification of the Sydney suburban system, 3026 became one of 77
class members converted from 4-6-4T
to 4-6-0 tender configuration for mixed traffic use on country branch
lines. The converted locomotives were
known as the (C)30T class to differentiate them from
the remaining 68 (C)30 class tank engines, with the "T" denoting
“tender”. The (C)30T
class replaced various older 4-4-0 and 2-6-0 locomotives at country depots;
indeed many (C)30T's were allocated second-hand bogie Baldwin or 6-wheeled
tenders from the obsolete locomotives they were displacing. The first conversion was 3088 outshopped in
July 1928 and the final conversion was completed in 1933. 29 of the 4-6-0 tender locomotives later received
superheating and other improvements. Preserved
loco 3026T represents the (C)30 class as originally
converted, retaining a short smokebox associated with the saturated steam
boiler. It is paired with an antique
6-wheel Beyer Peacock tender of the type originally fitted to the Z16-class
4-4-0 passenger locomotives, albeit rebuilt with a renewed superstructure
with straight “slab sides” and higher capacity. 3026T
was placed in service by the NSWGR in February 1904 and withdrawn from
service in November 1971, having travelled 2,319,228 km. Fortunately it was saved for preservation
by the Lachlan Valley Railway and is shedded
in their museum and operational base within the Cowra semi-roundhouse. 3026T had been operational for lengthy
periods from the 1970s to the 1990’s but is currently under overhaul at
Cowra.
|
References
|
a |
"A
Compendium of New South Wales Steam Locomotives" compiled by Alex Grunbach, published by the Australian
Railway Historical Society, New South Wales Division, 1989. |
|
b |
"Standards In Steam - The 30
Class" by Ron Preston, published by
the New South Wales Rail Transport Museum, 1985. |
|
c |
Lachlan Valley Railway website,
retrieved 13 April 2015. |
|
d |
Webmaster's observation or comment |
Page updated: 14 April 2015
|
Government Railways: |
|
|||||||||
|
Private & Industrial Railways: |
|