NZR UC class

NZR UC class
UC Class 368 soon after arrival in New Zealand in about 1901
Type and origin Builder Sharp, Stewart and Company Build date 1901 Total produced 10
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-6-0 Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Driver dia. 49.125 in (1.248 m) Adhesive weight 26.8 long tons (27.2 tonnes; 30.0 short tons) Total weight 62.6 long tons (63.6 tonnes; 70.1 short tons) Fuel type Coal Firebox: ​  • Grate area 17 sq ft (1.6 m2) Boiler pressure 200 lbf/in2 (1,379 kPa) Heating surface 975 sq ft (90.6 m2) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 16 in × 22 in (406 mm × 559 mm)
Performance figures Tractive effort 18,340 lbf (81.58 kN)
Career Operators NZR

The NZR U^C class were a group of ten 4-6-0 steam locomotives obtained from Scottish builders Sharp, Stewart and Co. Essentially they were developments of the firm's previous batch of 4-6-0s' for NZR.

Origin and design

Due to an increase in traffic around the turn of the century, NZR obtained 47 4-6-0 locomotives to provide additional capacity. All were used in the South Island. The U^C class were the last new 4-6-0's to be delivered, entering service between August and October 1901 . They were briefly classified U . Externally they were similar in appearance to Sharp Stewart's earlier U^A class, but with a longer cylinder stroke and considerably higher boiler pressure (200 psi as opposed to 175 psi) they had a significantly higher tractive effort. All of the locomotives began service in the Christchurch area aside from two allocated to the Dunedin - Invercargill section.

Service

With the opening of the Otira Tunnel in 1923 all ten were gradually transferred to the West Coast of the South Island. Due to weight restrictions they were the most powerful mainline locomotives on the West Coast until the 1940s. In the late 1920s and 1930s seven locomotives were fitted with narrow firebox superheated boilers and lever type reverse controls in place of the original wheel and screw type. Other alterations included fitting sand domes and a new type of funnel. The remaining three locomotives were withdrawn by 1937.

The superheated boilers on the U^Cs provided better performance and from the mid 1930s they saw considerably greater use than their Baldwin built U^B stable mates. They were still being used on passenger services as well as their staple coal trains in the mid 1950s, however the arrival of more A Class locomotives in the 1950s (displaced by dieselisation in the North Island) allowed their withdrawal by 1959. Although none were initially preserved a number were dumped in rivers as erosion prevention measures, and two have been recovered for potential restoration.

Class register

Number	Builder	Builder's NO	Entered service	Withdrawn	Notes
361	Sharp Stewart	4745	16-08-1901	1-1957	Dumped at Omoto, July 1958.
362	Sharp Stewart	4746	7-08-1901	10-1958	Dumped at Omoto, July 1959.
363	Sharp Stewart	4747	28-9-1901	8-1936
364	Sharp Stewart	4748	28-9-1901	2-1957
365	Sharp Stewart	4749	7-10-1901	10-1959	Dumped at Omoto, May 1961.
366	Sharp Stewart	4750	10-10-1901	8-1936	Dumped at Oamaru, c. 1936. Remains recovered in 2008 by ONTRACK, now owned by Oamaru Steam & Rail and placed on static display.
367	Sharp Stewart	4751	12-10-1901	10-1955
368	Sharp Stewart	4752	18-10-1901	12-1934
369	Sharp Stewart	4753	21-10-1901	01-1957	Dumped at Omoto, May 1958. Recovered in 2005 by the Midland Rail Heritage Trust, currently stored at Springfield.
370	Sharp Stewart	4754	24-10-1901	01-1957	Dumped at Omoto, May 1958. Recovered in 2005 by the Midland Rail Heritage Trust, currently stored at Springfield.

Preservation

In March 2005, the newly formed Midland Rail Heritage Trust in conjunction with a family of private individuals salvaged the remains of U^C 369 and U^C 370 from the Grey River. The locomotives had fallen into the Grey River in 1997-98 during a period of bad weather; both were recovered with the remains of their tenders and are currently stored at the MRHT's Springfield depot pending completion of a workshop to restore them in.

In 2008, the remains of U^C 366 were recovered by ONTRACK during an exercise to remove as many of the locomotive remains dumped at Oamaru which were at risk of being lost due to deterioration of the dumpsite. The badly deteriorated remains of the U^C were passed to the Oamaru Steam & Railway Society, who have placed it on display at their workshops along with another selection of salvaged locomotive parts.

References

Bibliography

• Lloyd, W.G.; Register of New Zealand Railways Steam Locomotives 1863-1971, Rogan-McIndoe Print Ltd., 2002
• McClare, E. J. (1991). Steam Locomotives of New Zealand: Volume Three 1930-1971. New Zealand Railway & Locomotive Society. ISBN 0-908573-58-8.
• Millar, Sean (2011). The NZR Steam Locomotive. New Zealand Railway & Locomotive Society. ISBN 978-0-908573-89-9.
• Stewart, W.W., When Steam Was King, Reed, 1970

External links

• Preserved NZR Steam Locomotives