Sign my
GuestBook

Collection

NGG16 No 87 (WHR, ex-SAR/SAS)

The prototype

The NGG16 is a class of narrow gauge steam locomotive built for the South African Railways on 2ft (610mm) narrow gauge.

 

The Garratts in South Africa have a long tradition and the NGG16 class has a long way in the making. The class evolved from two earlier classes.

  • The NGG11, a 2-6-0+0-6-2, was the first Garratt class built for the South African Railways. Five examples were erected in 1920 (3) and 1925 (2).
  • The NGG13, consisting of twelve examples, built in 1927 (3) and 1928 (2+7), proved to be successful. The design had evolved to a 2-6-2+2-6-2 wheel arrangement. The 2-6-2 arrangement of both drive units was very compact and yet allowed the spreading of the weight on the relatively light narrow gauge track beneath.

In 1937 the need to expand the fleet of motive power was felt and the need for serious power made the SAR management decide for yet another Garratt design. Highly content with the performace of the NGG13 class a further development of that class followed. Not differing very much from it pre-cursor class the new NGG16 class was put into service in five batches

  • 1937 (Cockerill, 4),
  • 1939 (Beyer Peacock, 8),
  • 1951 (Beyer Peacock, 7),
  • 1958 (Beyer Peacock, 7)
  • and a final batch in 1967 (Hunslet-Taylor, 8),

numbering a total of thirtyfour. Just as the NGG11 was the first ever Garratt for the SAR, so was the NGG16 the last. It was also the last steam locomotive built for the so called developed countries. The fourth batch was the final steam locomotive order and last Garratt order for Beyer Peacock.

 

The NGG16 was the largest 2ft gauge steam locomotive in the world. They were used extensively on the large 2ft network in South Arfica deep into the eighties of the 20th century. The Alfred County Railway operated five NGG16's privately into the nineties but unfortunately bankrupted in 2004. Attempts are currently (2016) being made to revive the line for tourism.

 

Since the demise of steam in South Africa quite a few found their way into the wider world. Two (127 and 129) are now in Austalia at the Puffing Billy Railway. Seven are in the UK, five of which at the Welsh Highland Railway.

 

The current dispotion of the class is as follows (2015)

 

 

Australia

England

South Africa

Wales

Total

In storage

 

1

7

 

8

Operational

 

 

5

3

8

Restoration

2

 

2

1

5

Scrapped

 

 

1

 

1

Unrestored

 

1

10

1

12

Total

2

2

25

5

34

 

No 87 in the grey livery in which it emerged from the Boston Lodge Workshops after restoration. Heading a train towards Caernarfon near Bryn Gloch Caravan park, 13 June 2009.

Again No 87 in its later final blue livery.
Boston Lodge Works and heading over the cob to its morning train from Porthmadog, 27 August 2011.

No. 143 taking water at Rhyd Ddu, 25 August 2011

The model

I had long eyed for Backwoods Minatures OO9 version of the NGG16. My wife gave me the kit for my fiftieth birthday.

I didn't take long before I started building the kit, but as it was only the third kit I had taken up it was a long time in the making. I had many things to figure out and stumble upon. The kit is excellently made. It is accureate and thougthful etch work. The drives are pretty hard to build. Not because of any fault from the maker but simply because the drives are pretty good to scale and that means that there are very tight tolerances. It took me really a long time to get one unit together and running well. I learned how to solder a Walschaerts valve gear without soldering it solid, what about that?

There was also a steep learning curve in painting the model. But all in all, the NGG16 has been a fierce but very instructive master to me and after completing it I felt I could handle just about anything. And really, during the build of the AD60 I encoutered little I had not already learned form the NGG16. In hindsight I would have preferred an On3 gauge version. Despite being the largest 2ft gauge steam locomotive in the world this locomotive is still very small in OO9. But still I am very happy with my wife's gift and very happy with the end result.

As to the supplier, Backwoods Miniatures, the owner Pete McParlin, has been most supportive and you need not have any second thought about Backwoods.

As a result of the build I was invoted by Narrow Gauge Down Under magazine to write about it and that resulted in a general article about the loco (Issue 51, 10-2013) and one specifically zooming in on soldering the Walschaerts valve gear (Issue 52, 01-2014).

The finished but unpainted loco

The painted loco numbered no87 in the livery as I had seen it at the WHR in 2009