Power type Steam Model Class GG | Serial number 6232 Build date 1925 | |
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Designer Beyer, Peacock and Company Builder Beyer, Peacock and Company | ||
The South African Railways Class GG 2-6-2+2-6-2 of 1925 was an articulated steam locomotive.
Contents
In 1925, the South African Railways placed a single Class GG Garratt articulated steam locomotive with a 2-6-2+2-6-2 Double Prairie type wheel arrangement in fast mainline passenger service.
Manufacturers
The Class GG 2-6-2+2-6-2 Double Prairie type Garratt locomotive was a development of the Class GB. It was designed for the South African Railways (SAR) with large coupled wheels for fast passenger service on mainline duties. A single locomotive, no. 2290, was delivered from Beyer, Peacock and Company in 1925. It was superheated, with a plate frame, a Belpaire firebox and Walschaerts valve gear. The Class GG was the only Garratt locomotive on the SAR which was intended primarily for passenger working.
Characteristics
The Class GG had the largest coupled wheels yet seen on a Garratt locomotive in South Africa. An innovation was a coal pusher at the back of the coal bunker, designed to ease the work of the fireman by pushing the coal forward to the front of the bunker, as required. It was, however, the only instance of this appliance being used on any SAR locomotive.
In order to keep costs down, the cylinders were not enlarged to compensate for the increased wheel diameter, with the result that the locomotive's tractive effort was inferior to that of the Class 15CA, which was introduced on the same line between Touws River and De Aar a year later.
It was capable of speeds of 57 miles per hour (92 kilometres per hour), but it was found to be unsteady at high speed, due to the absence of a leading bogie on each engine unit. It could handle a load of 1,245 long tons (1,265 tonnes) on 1 in 80 (1¼%) gradients and hauled 340 long tons (345 tonnes) up the 15 miles (24 kilometres) of 1 in 40 (2½%) gradient of the Hex River Pass in sixty-two minutes, without the help of the usual banking locomotive.
Service
It was initially placed in service at Touws River and employed to work the Union Limited and Union Express fast passenger trains south of De Aar, but because of its unsteadiness at speed, it was taken off fast passenger traffic and demoted to ordinary passenger and goods train working out of Cape Town. No more Class GG locomotives were ordered and, since it was a non-standard locomotive, it was staged by 1938 and scrapped in 1947.