Victorian Railways Y class

The Victorian Railways Y class was a class of 0-6-0 steam locomotives.

Victorian Railways Y class
Y419 (Y112) and K153 at Newport Workshops in 2018
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
BuilderKitson & Co. (1)
Phoenix Foundry (30)
Build date1885, 1888-1889
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte0-6-0
Gauge1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in)
Driver dia.54 in (1,400 mm)
Length60 ft 5 1⁄2 in (18.43 m)
Axle load14.5 long tons (14.7 t; 16.2 short tons)
Adhesive weight57.35 long tons (58.27 t; 64.23 short tons)
Loco weight66.95 long tons (68.02 t; 74.98 short tons)
Tender weight45.8 long tons (46.5 t; 51.3 short tons)
Total weight112.75 long tons (114.56 t; 126.28 short tons)
Fuel typeCoal
Fuel capacity5 long tons (5.1 t)
Water cap2,200 imp gal (10,000 l)
Cylinders2
Cylinder size18 in × 26 in (457 mm × 660 mm)
Career
OperatorsVictorian Railways
Number in class31
NumbersOriginal: 383–441, 445 (odd numbers)
1940 renumbering: 100–109, 111–112, 114–121
PreservedY108, Y109, Y112
Disposition3 preserved, 28 scrapped
For the later diesel locomotives, see Victorian Railways Y class (diesel).

The Y class was an example of the new policy of standard design principles being adopted by the railways of the time. The original pattern locomotive (an 0-6-0 tender engine) was built by Kitson & Co. at Leeds in England in 1885, and was exhibited, along with E426, in 1888 at the Melbourne Centennial Exhibition, held in the Melbourne Exhibition Building. The other 30 locomotives of this type were built by the Phoenix Foundry at Ballarat in 1888-1889. They were given road numbers 383 to 441 (odd numbers only), and the pattern engine 445, 443 having been allotted to an "Old" R class. They were big locomotives for their time—in fact the largest and most powerful 0-6-0s to run in Australia. The class excelled in their performance and acceptance by crews. They were often seen on suburban passenger trains prior to electrification, finishing their lives as yard shunters. Withdrawal of the Y class began in 1926, and only 20 were still in service when renumbered in 1940. The last in regular service was No. 108 which was withdrawn in 1963 after being a pilot engine at North Melbourne for many years.

Y109 (originally Y413) was taken off the register 23 December 1954 and frame and wheels sold to the Brunswick Plaster Mills Pty. Ltd, which rebuilt it into a diesel-mechanical locomotive, to work the Millewa South Railway from Nowingi to Raak Plain in north-western Victoria. It carried the number Y413 for some of the time it operated in that form.

Preservation

Y108 is on static display at the Australian Railway Historical Society Museum, Newport.

Y109/Y413 was acquired by Steamrail Victoria in the 1980s and moved to Ballarat East Locomotive Depot, where parts were used in the restoration of Y112. The remains were acquired by the Australian Railway Historical Society and donated to Millewa Pioneer Park at Meringur in 2008.[1]

Y112 was withdrawn from service in 1961 and was preserved on a plinth outside the Ballarat railway station. It was purchased by the Ballarat Historical Society and is now owned by Ballarat's Sovereign Hill Museum. The locomotive was leased to Steamrail Victoria and restored to operational condition with the help of West Coast Railway. It was returned to service in 1996 and operates occasional rail tours.[2]

Victorian Railways Y class

References
  1. "Y109". Australian Steam - Preserved Steam Locomotives Down Under. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
  2. "Y112". Australian Steam - Preserved Steam Locomotives Down Under. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
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