|
|
V 499 Project to build a replica Baldwin Vauclain compound 2-8-0 |
|
The ex-K157 tender frame
being prepared for V499 seen at Maldon on 23 May 2015.
This photo is courtesy of Jonathan Newton / Victorian Steam Locomotive Company P/L.
|
Builder |
New-Build replica: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA |
|
Builder’s Number & Year |
17396
of 1900 |
|
Wheel Arrangement |
2-8-0 |
|
The American-built V-class 2-8-0
locomotives represented a significant step forward in Victorian Railway’s
locomotive practice, being much larger than the English style 0-6-0
locomotives then in use for freight duties and the forerunners of larger
2-8-0 freight locomotives that followed. Pattern engine V 499 was supplied by
Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1900 (builder’s number 17396) and represents a
classic Baldwin product of the time, with similar units provided to railways
around the world. V 499 featured the Vauclain
Compound system which significantly improved fuel efficiency; this innovation
was patented by Baldwin and popular around the turn of the century. V 499 was considered a success by
the Victorian Railways administration and 15 further examples were
subsequently supplied by local company Phoenix Foundry, Ballarat. (It would
be interesting to know if Baldwin supplied the patterns and drawings to Phoenix
Foundry in return for a licence or design fee.) The V-class settled into heavy
freight duties on the more challenging main routes until superseded by more
modern steam locomotives. Like most Vauclain compound locomotives worldwide,
they were rebuilt to simple expansion as heavy overhauls became due, the
improved fuel efficiency apparently being outweighed by higher maintenance
costs due to uneven crosshead forces between the high and low pressure
cylinders. Withdrawal and scrapping started in 1924 and the last of the
V-class was pattern engine V 499 which was scrapped in 1930, well before the
preservation era. In recent years the Victorian
Steam Locomotive Company (commonly known as Vicsteam) has formed to create a
replica of V499. Initial progress centred on design work, creation of
engineering drawings and the collection of parts. In recent developments the project
has made significant progress on the tender, with a frame and bogies acquired
and an antique tender body recovered after decades in use as a roadside tar
holder. The new cab for V499 has been constructed (photos below) and is
stored at Maldon on the Victorian Goldfields Railway where the locomotive is
being built. The Vicsteam site
provides detailed monthly newsletters and photographs for the V499 project. A surprising story relating to the
V-class is the extraordinary discovery in China of a very similar 5’-gauge
Baldwin Vauclain compound 2-8-0 during 2005. Excavations near a bridge over
the Lalin River (between Jilin and Heilongjiang) revealed Baldwin Builder’s
Number 16117 of 1898 which had been buried for over 70 years, presumably
following an accident or war action. This locomotive and tender have since
been exhumed, restored and placed on static display for museum display at the
Changchun
Puppet Imperial Palace. (This museum gains its intriguing name from the
period of Japanese occupation in China and creation of the puppet state of
Manchukuo, ending in 1945.) Rob Dickinson’s excellent World Steam
site contains further information and photographs of this locomotive. Wikipedia provides a useful
history for the Victorian
Railways V-class steam locomotives while another page describes the Vauclain Compound
system. For detailed information about the V-class (and indeed all
early VR motive power), I recommend ‘Steam Locomotives of the Victorian
Railways – Volume 1: The first 50 years’ by Norman Cave, John Buckland and
David Beardsell; this detailed and authoritative work also features many
historical photographs and drawings. (This beautiful book is treasured in the
webmaster’s library; hopefully Volume 2 will one day be released to cover the
later period of Victorian Railways steam.) |
Baldwin B/N 16117 of
1898 as displayed at the Changchun Puppet
Imperial Palace,
China.
The
Vauclain compounding is clearly visible; in this case the low-pressure cylinder
is above the high-pressure cylinder.
This photo is from China.org.cn
The antique tender tank
recently recovered for the V 499 project is seen at Maldon on 5 December 2014.
The
tender frame being prepared for V 499 is immediately behind.
This photo is courtesy of Jonathan Newton / Victorian Steam Locomotive Company P/L.
V499’s cab under
construction, as seen on 28 June 2017.
The three photos of V499’s cab are courtesy of Jonathan Newton / Victorian Steam Locomotive Company P/L.
Side view of V499’s cab under
construction on 28 June 2017.
Third view of V499’s cab under
construction on 28 June 2017.
V499’s newly-constructed smokebox, as at
September 2018.
This photo kindly contributed by Jonathan Newton / Victorian Steam Locomotive Company P/L.
References
|
a |
‘Steam
Locomotives of the Victorian Railways – Volume 1: The first 50 years’ by Norman Cave, John Buckland
and David Beardsell. Published by the Australian
Railway Historical Society (Victorian Division), 2002. |
|
b |
Rob
Dickinson’s International
Steam site (China pages), retrieved 12 March 2015. |
|
c |
‘Locomotives
of Australia - 1985 to 2010’ (Fifth Edition), by Leon Oberg, published
2010 by Rosenberg Publishing Pty Ltd. |
Page updated: 15 September
2018
|
Government Railways: |
|
|||||||||
|
Private & Industrial Railways: |
|