Victorian Railways W class

The W class are a diesel-hydraulic shunting locomotive ordered and operated by the Victorian Railways of Australia. In 2006 locomotive W241 was used to haul the 4D train to the scrapyard, with W241 and W244 also operated in revenue service by El Zorro on works trains.

History
In mid 1957 the Victorian Railways called for tenders for a fleet of 25 diesel-hydraulic locomotives rated at 500hp. Tulloch Ltd., based in Rhodes, NSW, won the contract with an offer for West German styled locomotives, using a Mercedes V12 diesel engine to develop 660hp which was then coupled to a Krupp 2W1D46 hydraulic transmission powering the centre axle, with the leading and trailing axles powered via connecting rods. The full 25 engines entered service in the year from December 1959.

Tulloch expected a repeat order for a further 25 units from the Victorian Railways, and also built a standard gauge version numbered 7101 as a demonstrator unit for the New South Wales Railways. However, the latter system rejected the design as not suitable, and so that unit was sold to the Victorian Railways and used for construction trains on the Albury to Melbourne route. After that project was completed it became one of the standard gauge shunting units operating between South Dynon and Spencer Street Station. The final engine, W267, had been built in anticipation of the repeat order that never eventuated - while the contract was written, it was never signed. Instead, the final engine was converted to standard gauge and shared duties with W266.

Engines were fitted with controls on both sides of the centre console, although these were removed not long after delivery. The engines were initially rostered on local passenger services to Werribee and trialled on Bacchus Marsh runs, but with the low speed limit of 40mph and relatively little power they were unable to keep the latter timetables.

The engines proved incredibly unpopular due to ride quality problems, engine reliability issues and a transmission change needed to achieve mainline running speeds. The high gear setting was removed early on and the class relegated to shunting duties in an attempt to better utilise the fleet. However, the cab profile made visibility a problem in yards, and engine crews had to lean out the side to observe shunting instructions. The cab design also provided no shelter from the weather in storms or on hot days. Common failures included seized transmissions, oil leaking onto the shunters steps presenting a slip hazard, and failed engine blocks.

Between 1973 and 1977 at least ten engines, starting with W249, had these removed and replaced with General Motors diesel units. Engines after the first had different exhaust arrangements, but all those refitted could be identified externally by a second exhaust stack at the end of the long hood, with the original adjacent to the driving cabin plated over. The alterations raised the engine hood by 208mm but did not replace the original transmission or gearbox.

The class was generally allocated to Ballarat, Geelong and Melbourne for short shunting trips, and one each at Ararat, Bendigo and Seymour explicitly for yard work only.

Locomotives
Table details are drawn from Newsrail, December 1982 p.311.

Model railways
Brass models of the W Class have been produced in HO Scale by Trainbuilder, including five each of the original (241-243, 251 and 265) and modified (241, 245, 257, 262 and 266), plus W250 as preserved, 7101 in Indian Red and W244 in the faux-V/Line livery. .

As of mid-2019, IDR Models is producing ready-to-run HO Scale models of the class in both original and re-engined forms.