WAGR Msa class

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WAGR Msa class
Steam MSA468.jpg
Works photo of Msa468, taken in 1930.
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
Builder Midland Railway Workshops
Serial number46–55
Build date1930
Total produced10
Specifications
Configuration:
   Whyte 2-6-0+0-6-2 (Garratt)
   UIC (1′C)(C1′) h4t
Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Driver dia.39 in (991 mm)
Adhesive weight 60 tonnes (59 long tons; 66 short tons)
Loco weight74 tonnes (73 long tons; 82 short tons)
Firebox:
  Grate area27 sq ft (2.5 m2)
Boiler pressure160 lbf/in2 (1.10 MPa)
Heating surface1,088 sq ft (101.1 m2)
Superheater:
  Heating area180 sq ft (17 m2)
Cylinders 4 (Garratt)
Cylinder size 13.25 in × 20 in (337 mm × 508 mm)
Performance figures
Tractive effort 24,489 lbf (108.93 kN)
Factor of adh. 4.9
Career
Operators Western Australian Government Railways
NumbersMsa466–Msa475 (later Msa491–Msa500)
Withdrawn1962-1963
Current ownerall scrapped

The WAGR Msa class was a class of 2-6-0+0-6-2 Garratt articulated steam locomotives. The class was built at the Midland Railway Workshops and operated by the Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) between 1930 and 1963. It was the first Garatt type to be designed and constructed entirely in Australia.

Contents

Class Msa Garratt articulated steam locomotive Western Australian Government Railways class Msa Garratt articulated steam locomotive -- elevation and plan drawing.jpg
Class Msa Garratt articulated steam locomotive

History

The class was preceded on the WAGR system by the M/Ms class Garratts. The class were used extensively on WAGR lines with light rails and sharp curves, as a consequence many of the smaller older branch lines on the Darling Scarp; as well as those with steep inclines such as those on the Mundaring Weir, Nannup, and Flinders Bay lines. In their later years, the boiler pressure was reduced to match that of the M/Ms class. By this stage they had been concentrated on the Bunbury to Boyup Brook and Pinjarra to Boddington lines. [1] [2] [3]

Contrary to popular belief, the last Msa was not accidentally cut up. In 1951, the Commissioner of Railways issued a directive to the Chief Mechanical Engineer not to cut up any written off locomotives and retain a "strategic reserve" in case they were required for future increases in traffic. In the ensuing years the directive was not strictly adhered to, though Ministerial approval was required before locomotives could be disposed of, which allowed many steam locomotives to survive long enough to be preserved. In 1964, the Commissioner reaffirmed the 1951 directive. A number of locomotives were approved for scrapping in February 1964, though it was specified that Msa, Ds, Es and U Class locomotives be retained, and "NOT TO BE CUT UP" was painted on the locomotives. [4]

In 1965, Rail Heritage WA sent a letter to the WAGR requesting an Msa be retained for preservation. However, the Chief Mechanical Engineer at the time, Sidney Griffiths, believed the Msa was not a successful design and the WAGR refused to offer an example for preservation. Griffiths worked as a draftsman under Frederick Mills on the design of the MSA and later noted that when designing the locomotive there was a directive from the then Chief Mechanical Engineer, Ernest Alfred Evans, to make the firebox of the MSA one foot longer than the MS Class garratt, which threw out all the firebox and boiler proportions and made it a relatively poor steamer.

The MSA were finally approved for scrapping in 1966 and the last MSA locomotive was cut up in 1967.

Class list

The numbers and periods in service of each member of the Msa class were as follows: [5] [6]

Builder's
number
First
number
Second
number
In serviceRenumberedWithdrawnNotes
4646649122 February 193022 September 19477 October 1963Stowed 3 April 1962
4746749222 February 193016 November 19497 October 1963
4846849326 April 193029 July 19487 October 1963Stowed 20 September 1961
4946949431 May 19301 November 19477 October 1963Stowed 8 November 1961
5047049528 June 19302 October 19477 October 1963
5147149619 July 19301 October 19477 October 1963Stowed 27 September 1959
5247249716 August 193011 July 19477 October 1963Stowed 29 June 1961
5347349813 September 19303 June 19486 September 1962Stowed 20 January 1962
544744994 October 193030 April 19487 October 1963Stowed 12 August 1960
554755001 November 19306 February 19487 October 1963Stowed 14 December 1958

See also

References

Notes

  1. Watson, Lindsay (1995). The Railway History of Midland Junction: Commemorating The Centenary Of Midland Junction, 1895-1995. L&S Drafting. ISBN   0-646-24461-2.
  2. Turner, Jim (1997). Australian Steam Locomotives 1896-1958. Kenthurst: Kangaroo Press. p. 107. ISBN   086417778X.
  3. Oberg, Leon (2010). Locomotives of Australia 1850s-2010. Dural: Rosenberg Publishing. pp. 208–209. ISBN   9781921719011.
  4. Austin, Jeff (1991), "To The Torch", The Westland, no. 74, Rail Heritage WA
  5. Durrant 1981, p. 68.
  6. Gunzburg 1984, p. 110.

Bibliography

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