Observer18

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Full Name: The New Zealand Railway Observer

Issue Number: 18

Issue Date: December 1946

Volume and Number: 3/6

Pages: 18

Page Range: 91-110

Cover Image: n.a.

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CONTENTS

Presidential Message

Scenes Near Auckland Some recent photographs by W.W. Stewart

Modern Power on the NZR 4 photos with blocks courtesy NZR

New Zealand Locomotive Performance Part 9 - Wellington Suburban trains

• Wf_class_loco
• Wg_class_loco
• Ww_class_loco
• Wab_class_loco
• Loco_Wab687
• Loco_Wab798
• Loco_Wab801
• Loco_Ww685
• Loco_Ww673
• Loco_Wab790
• Loco_Wab686
• Loco_Wab799
• Loco_Wab797

The Gisborne Municipal Tramways - by D. Ross McQueen

• Edison Storage Battery System
• Stage 1 (78ch) opened 13 April 1913
• Tramcar_GT1 and TramcarGT2 both single truck wooden cars
• Stage 2 (28ch) opened July 1918
• Tramcar_GT3 added July 1917 and Tramcar_GT4 added May 1919 built by Boon Chch slightly larger that first cars
• Stage 3 (1m 31ch) opened in 1925
• System replaced by busses in 1929

Railway operating Statistics

Society Notes

News, Note and Comment

• Rimutaka Railway Deviation
  • Turning of first sod ceremony 9th November 1946
  • Deviation Length 14m 06ch
  • completion expected within 6 years

Otago Regional Plan

• Enlargement of yard and station building extensions
• completion of Sawyers Bay - St Leonards Deviation and duplication
• Various yard extensions and grade easements
• Enlargement of tunnels on Otago Central Branch
• Improvements at Hillside Workshops
• Oamaru - Dunedin investigate grade easements to reduce 1 in 50 grades to 1 in 70 or 80

Replace Dunedin's tramway system with Trolley busses

Hutt Valley Railway Extension

• Double track running to Naenae starting soon
• Track laying to Taita nearly complete

Railcar Speeds

• The highest ever scheduled speeds for a train are for the Wellington to Palmerston North railcar, 58.7miles in 72 minutes.

Summer Train Services two or thee shipments of coal from North America mean curtailed services lifted from 1st December

Passenger services to Seddonville have been withdrawn and replaced by road services since 14 October 1946

Taupo Totara Timber Company

• track north of Mokai has been lifted and relaid south of Mokai to new mill site
• Mill and associated equipment relocated by rail
• New tramways into the bush worked by two Heisler loco's, one line only 5 miles from Taupo

Locomotives of the Picton Section

• Loco_Fa375 did not have Piston valve as stated. Loco_372's status not known yet

Old T_class_loco boiler

• The boiler mentioned in the June issue is not the original boiler from loco_T101 which was re-boilered in 1901 but typically, retained her smoke box and maker's plate
• The original, boiler 119 was used as a stationary boiler till 1924.
• the new boiler (No227) was built at Addington in 1903 and fitted to loco_T101 in June 1904 with the loco being withdrawn in 1922
• Boiler 227 was used as a stationary boiler at East Town from 1924 - 1932 and sold in 1936 to the Mangapeehi Coal Co

Rolling Stock Changes

• EMU_D8 and EMU_7 went into service in early October with Trailer_108 and Trailer_108
• Railcar_10 "Arawa" written off aso equipment can be used as spares

Locomotive Notes

• Loco_K927 and Loco_K925 converted to burn fuel oil entered service at the end of October
• LocoWa220 sold to teh Napier Harbour Board in August 1946
• Loco_X446 is to be sold to the Ohai Railway Board after overhaul and conversion to a four cylinder simple
• Loco_Ba498 (with wide firebox)left Hillside recently with some changes, a Tender cab, cowcatcher, canvass cab side screens (a first?), an additional sand dome and a shunting headlight.
• Class_A_loco's with 2 cylinders are breaking trailing truck springs, Loco_A410 recently left Hillside fitted with a ballast block at the leading end in an attempt to overcome the problem
• Loco_Ab834 (N.I.) was first to get 2 new smoke-box hoppers replacing the one original. Loco_Ab823 followed in August and loco_821 in November. loco_C859 was the first of that class in July, loco_C856 in October and loco_C852 in November.
• Loco_Ab821 has been fitted with a ballast block on the leading bogie similar to S.I. locos of that class
• Loco_A601 was fitted with a Waikato spark-arrester in September 1946
• The following K_class_loco's have been seen in New Plymouth;935, 938, 955, 956, 960 and 961
• Loco_Ba552 has been working out of Oamaru when this class is normally not further north than Palmerston. It has been on the Kurow branch too, probably a first for the class.

The name Mount Maunganui seems to have replaced Te Maunga from where a short branch used to go during the PWD construction works. No reason known

Tauranga - Matapihi Grades, The Grade on the bridge just south of the Strand is 1 in 81 for a short distance and there is a half mile of 1 in 83 (up) approaching Matapihi.

An article describing Centralised Traffic Control in New Zealand does not seem to be possible for some time. Readers are directed to two articles in The Railway Gazette, October 1945 and January 28 1938.