WAGR Q class
Q139 with a train of new suburban carriages at Rocky Bay (North Fremantle), 1905
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
BuilderR&W Hawthorn Leslie & Co
Total produced6
RebuilderMidland Railway Workshops
Rebuild date1905, 1909
Number rebuilt4 as Qa class
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte4-6-2T
Gauge3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
LengthQ: 34 ft 1 in (10.39 m)
Qa: 35 ft 2 in (10.72 m)
Loco weightQ: 41 long tons 0 cwt (91,800 lb or 41.7 t)
Qa: 52 long tons 0 cwt (116,500 lb or 52.8 t)
Fuel typeCoal
Fuel capacityQ: 2.5 long tons 0 cwt (5,600 lb or 2.5 t)
Qa: 3 long tons 0 cwt (6,700 lb or 3 t)
Water cap.Q: 1,200 imp gal (5,500 L; 1,400 US gal)
Qa: 1,600 imp gal (7,300 L; 1,900 US gal)
Firebox:​
 • Grate areaQ: 14 sq ft (1.3 m2)
Qa: 17 sq ft (1.6 m2)
Boiler pressureQ: 160 lbf/in2 (1.10 MPa)
Qa: 175 lbf/in2 (1.21 MPa)
Performance figures
Tractive effortQ: 14,908 lbf (66.31 kN)
Qa: 16,306 lbf (72.53 kN)
Factor of adh.Q: 3.9, Qa: 4.3
Career
OperatorsWestern Australian Government Railways
NumbersQ138-Q143
First run19 August 1896
Withdrawn31 March 1925
DispositionAll scrapped

The WAGR Q class was a six-member class of 4-6-2T tank engine steam locomotives operated by the Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) between 1896 and 1925.

History

In April 1896, the WAGR placed an order with R&W Hawthorn Leslie & Co for four 4-6-2T locomotives. Meanwhile, the builder had two very similar locomotives that had been built in 1895 for the Portos e Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique, Mozambique as part of a cancelled order. A deal was done in May 1896 for the WAGR to purchase them and they entered service in August 1896. The other four entered service in 1896/97.[1] The 1895 built locomotives had different shaped cab windows and side tanks.[2]

They were employed as shunters at Fremantle and Midland. In 1905, Q140 was rebuilt with a new boiler and converted to 4-6-4T configuration with water and coal capacity increased to make it suitable to operate on the Upper Darling Range Railway, Q141-Q143 followed in 1909. They were reclassified as the Qa class.[2]

They operated branch line services on the Mundaring, Mundaring Weir, Pinjarra-Holyoake and Upper Darling Range lines as well as on the Eastern Railway to Northam and South Western Railway to Bunbury. All were withdrawn in 1924/25.[2]

Class list

The numbers and periods in service of each member of the Q class were as follows:[3]

Builder's
number		 Road
number		 In service Rebuilt as Qa Withdrawn
2312 138 19 August 1896 31 January 1924
2313 139 19 August 1896 31 January 1924
2351 140 5 December 1896 30 September 1905 31 January 1924
2352 141 20 January 1897 13 March 1909 31 March 1925
2353 142 13 March 1897 29 May 1909 31 March 1925
2354 143 13 March 1897 30 June 1909 31 January 1924

Namesakes

The Q class designation was reused for the Q class locomotives that were introduced in 1931. It was reused in the 1990s when the Westrail Q class diesel locomotives entered service.

See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Gunzburg 1984, p. 49.
  2. 1 2 3 Turner, Jim (1997). Australian Steam Locomotives 1896-1958. Kenthurst: Kangaroo Press. pp. 8, 44. ISBN 086417778X.
  3. ↑ Gunzburg 1984, p. 50.

Cited works

  • Gunzburg, Adrian (1984). A History of WAGR Steam Locomotives. Perth: Australian Railway Historical Society (Western Australian Division). ISBN 0959969039.
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