NZR L class

The NZR L class were a series of ten small tank engines built in England for the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) during the early years of the development of New Zealand's railway network.[1]

NZR L class
NZR L 508 in Shantytown Heritage Park in 2004.
Type and origin
BuilderAvonside
Build date1877
Total produced10
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte2-4-0T
Gauge3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Driver dia.36 in (0.914 m)
Length24 ft 1⁄2 in (7.328 m)
Adhesive weight13.2 long tons (13.4 tonnes; 14.8 short tons)
Loco weight18.5 long tons (18.8 tonnes; 20.7 short tons)
Fuel typeCoal
Firebox:
 • Firegrate area		9.2 sq ft (0.85 m2)
Boiler pressure130 lbf/in2 (896 kPa)
Heating surface486 sq ft (45.2 m2)
CylindersTwo, outside
Cylinder size10.5 in × 18 in (267 mm × 457 mm)
Performance figures
Tractive effort4,893 lbf (21.77 kN)
Career
OperatorsNZR

Origin and design

The L class were designed to provide improved performance over the successful F class on faster passenger services and were built by the Avonside Engine Co.. All entered service in 1878 and were used on important passenger trains on the Auckland and Wellington Sections.[2] Although the G class, designed with a similar purpose in mind suffered from poor adhesion, the L was more successful in terms of performance. They were used intensively and provided solid service, although they were not used on passenger services for long due to their small size.

Modifications

NZR began an intensive programme of rebuilding older tank locomotives to attempt to extract improved performance. Parts from seven locomotives were used in this programme, being initially fitted with a leading bogie turning them into LA Class 4-4-0T's then later with larger coal bunkers to 4-4-2T's. The remaining three unmodified locomotives were sold to the Public Works Department (PWD) in the early 1900s.[3]

Sales and disposals

While all of the rebuilt L class had been officially withdrawn by 1939, the three unmodified locomotives sold to the PWD went on to have much longer careers. No. 507 (formerly 207 in NZR service) was sold to the Taranaki Harbour Board in 1931, and numbers 508 and 509 (formerly 208 and 219) were sold to Wilson's Portland Cement, an industrial plant south of Whangarei. All three ended up working at Portland until the 1970s, when they were around 95 years old. They were then all donated for preservation where all three remain operational.

Preserved locomotives

Three L Class locomotives have been preserved:

References
  1. Palmer & Stewart 1965, p. 44.
  2. Heath & Stott 1993, p. 28.
  3. Palmer & Stewart 1965, p. 69.

Bibliography
  • Heath, Eric; Stott, Bob (1993). Classic Steam Locomotives Of New Zealand. Grantham House. ISBN 1869340361.
  • W.G.Lloyd (2002), Register of New Zealand Railways Steam Locomotives 1863 - 1971, Otago Railway & Locomotive Society/Triple M Publications
  • Millar, Sean (2011). The NZR Steam Locomotive. Wellington: New Zealand Railway and Locomotive Society. ISBN 978-0-908573-89-9.
  • Palmer, A. N.; Stewart, W. W. (1965). Cavalcade of New Zealand Locomotives. Wellington: A H. & A W. Reed. ISBN 978-0-207-94500-7.
  • Stewart, W. W. (1974). When Steam was King. Wellington: A. H. & A. W. Reed Ltd. ISBN 978-0-589-00382-1.
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