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W 933 Pichi Richi Railway |
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W 933 waiting to depart Stirling North for the return
journey to Quorn. 11 June 2000
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Builder |
Beyer
Peacock & Co, Manchester |
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Builder’s Number & Year |
7410 of 1951 |
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Wheel Arrangement |
4-8-2 |
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No. in class |
60 |
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W 933 entered
service in December 1951 as one of sixty "W-class" 4-8-2
locomotives delivered to the Western Australia Government Railways for light
lines service. The W-class proved to be highly successful locomotives,
displacing older O-class 2-8-0T+T and G-class 2-6-0 & 4-6-0 types on
secondary lines and augmenting the V and S-classes on main line duties. Most WAGR
W-class locomotives were withdrawn in June 1971 and joined the long lines of
modern steam power that were cut up for scrap at Collie and Midland
Workshops, however 19 class members (W 901 / 905 / 906 / 907 / 909 / 914 /
916 / 919 / 924 / 927 / 929 / 931 / 933 / 934 / 941 / 953 / 954 / 958 &
959) were retained a little longer until officially withdrawn in August 1972.
Among these, W 933 and W 934 survived
long enough to be purchased by the newly-formed Pichi
Richi Railway Preservation Society in early 1974. Both were transferred in March 1974 to the Pichi Richi Railway's depot at
Quorn in the rugged Flinders Ranges, South Australia and returned to
operation. W 933 & W 934 have been stalwarts of the Pichi Richi Railway's steam
fleet since their restoration and capably handle trains through the steep and
curvaceous Pichi Richi
Pass. The webmaster thoroughly recommends the Pichi
Richi Railway for any steam enthusiast visiting
South Australia! As
at June 2015, W 933 was stored pending general overhaul, having been withdrawn
from traffic in early 2011 after a small number of stays were found to be weeping.
The locomotive is due for a general
overhaul; it has never had a bearing replaced or re-metalled since its last
overhaul in WAGR ownership! The tender
tank also requires major work or total replacement. For more
information about the WAGR W-class locomotives, refer to the notes for
class-leader W 901. |
Another view of W 933 waiting to depart Stirling North for
the return journey to Quorn. 11 June 2000
References
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a |
A.
Gunzburg 'A history of WAGR steam locomotives', published by ARHS (Western
Australian Division) 1984. |
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b |
Information
provided by D. Heah via email, 16 May 2015 |
Page updated: 23 June 2015
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Government Railways: |
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Private & Industrial Railways: |
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