The South African Railways Class 6E1, Series 3 of 1971 was an electric locomotive.
Between 1971 and 1973, the South African Railways placed 150 Class 6E1, Series 3 electric locomotives with a Bo-Bo wheel arrangement in mainline service.[1]
One hundred and fifty units were delivered between 1971 and 1973, numbered in the range from E1296 to E1445. Like Series 1 and 2, Series 3 units were equipped with four AEI-283AZ axle-hung traction motors. UCW did not allocate builder’s numbers to the locomotives it built for the SAR and used the SAR unit numbers for their record keeping.[1]
Characteristics
Orientation
These dual cab locomotives had a roof access ladder on one side only, just to the right of the cab access door. The roof access ladder end was marked as the no. 2 end. A corridor along the centre of the unit connected the cabs which were identical apart from the fact that the handbrake was located in cab 2. A pantograph hook stick was stowed in a tube mounted below the bottom edge of the locomotive body on the roof access ladder side. The units had one square and two rectangular access panels along the lower half of the body on the roof access ladder side, and only one square access panel on the opposite side.[1]
Series identifying features
Narrow stirrup on E1345Wide stirrup on E1346
The Class 6E1 was produced in eleven series over a period of nearly sixteen years, with altogether 960 units placed in service, all built by UCW. While some Class 6E1 series were visually indistinguishable from their predecessors or successors, some externally visible changes did occur over the years.[1][3]
The fifty Series 2 and the first fifty Series 3 units are visually indistinguishable from each other. On the Series 3 units in the number range from E1346 to E1445, an externally visible difference is a wider stirrup below their side doors.[1][4][5]
This appears to indicate that Series 2 should actually have consisted of one hundred units and not fifty, firstly since unit numbers E1246 to E1345 are identical in exterior appearance and secondly since Series 4, 5 and 6 were all delivered in batches of one hundred. In addition, Series 2 and 3 used the same AEI-283AZ traction motors.[1][4][5]
During 1990 and 1991, Spoornet semi-permanently coupled several pairs of otherwise largely unmodified Class 6E1 units, reclassified them to Class 16E and allocated a single locomotive number to each pair, with the individual units in the pairs inscribed "A" or "B". The aim was to accomplish savings on cab maintenance by coupling the units at their no. 1 ends, abandoning the no. 1 end cabs in terms of maintenance and using only the no. 2 end cabs.[6]
One such pair was made up of two Series 3 units, numbers E1418 and E1419, which became Class 16E no. 16-227A and B respectively.[6]
Rebuilding to Class 18E
Cab 1 of Class 18E no. 18-689, ex Class 6E1 no. E1390, Bellville Depot, 31 January 2013
Beginning in 2000, Spoornet began a project to rebuild Series 2 to 11 Class 6E1 units to Class 18E, Series 1 and Series 2 at the Transnet Rail Engineering workshops at Koedoespoort. In the process the cab at the no. 1 end was stripped of all controls and the driver's front and side windows were blanked off to have a toilet installed, thereby forfeiting the loco's bi-directional ability.[6][7]
Since the driving cab's noise level had to be below 85 decibels, cab 2 was selected as the Class 18E driving cab primarily based on its lower noise level compared to cab 1, which is closer and more exposed to the compressor's noise and vibration. Another factor was the closer proximity of cab 2 to the low voltage switch panel. The fact that the handbrake was located in cab 2 was not a deciding factor, but was considered an additional benefit.[7]
The known Class 6E1, Series 3 units which were used in this project, were all rebuilt to Class 18E, Series 2 locomotives. Their numbers and renumbering details are listed in the table.[7]
Class 6E1, Series 3 units rebuilt to Class 18E as on 19 January 2015
Count
6E1 no.
Year built
18E no.
18E series
Year rebuilt
Notes
1
E1297
1971-72
18-761
2
2013
2
E1298
1971-72
18-776
2
2013
c. 2013
3
E1300
1971-72
18-435
2
2013
PRASA
4
E1303
1971-72
18-651
2
2011
5
E1305
1971-72
18-861
2
2015
6
E1310
1971-72
18-764
2
2013
7
E1311
1971-72
18-695
2
2012
8
E1313
1971-72
18-672
2
2011
9
E1315
1971-72
18-681
2
2011
10
E1316
1971-72
18-704
2
2012
11
E1319
1971-72
18-707
2
2012
12
E1320
1971-72
18-788
2
2014
c. 2014
13
E1322
1971-72
18-677
2
2012
14
E1323
1971-72
18-682
2
2012
15
E1325
1971-72
18-679
2
2012
16
E1326
1971-72
18-743
2
2013
17
E1327
1971-72
18-791
2
2014
c. 2014
18
E1329
1972
18-807
2
2014
19
E1330
1972
18-806
2
2014
20
E1331
1972
18-706
2
2012
21
E1336
1972
18-678
2
2011
22
E1337
1972
18-676
2
2011
23
E1343
1972
18-759
2
2013
24
E1346
1972
18-748
2
2013
25
E1353
1972
18-771
2
2013
26
E1358
1972
18-721
2
2012
27
E1361
1972
18-766
2
2013
28
E1363
1972
18-684
2
2012
29
E1367
1972
18-732
2
2013
30
E1369
1972
18-724
2
2013
31
E1370
1972
18-793
2
2014
c. 2014
32
E1371
1972
18-680
2
2011
33
E1372
1972
18-745
2
2013
34
E1375
1972
18-683
2
2011
35
E1379
1972
18-434
2
2013
PRASA
36
E1380
1972
18-812
2
2014
37
E1385
1972
18-427
2
2013
PRASA
38
E1386
1972
18-685
2
2011
39
E1390
1972-73
18-689
2
2011
40
E1397
1972-73
18-430
2
2013
PRASA
41
E1399
1973
18-646
2
2010
42
E1400
1973
18-653
2
2011
43
E1402
1973
18-775
2
2013
c. 2013
44
E1405
1973
18-860
2
2015
45
E1406
1973
18-747
2
2013
46
E1407
1973
18-773
2
2013
47
E1408
1973
18-735
2
2013
48
E1410
1973
18-796
2
2014
c. 2014
49
E1413
1973
18-783
2
2014
c. 2014
50
E1414
1973
18-423
2
2012
PRASA
51
E1415
1973
18-760
2
2013
52
E1416
1973
18-744
2
2013
53
E1419
1973
18-790
2
2014
c. 2014
54
E1421
1973
18-702
2
2012
55
E1422
1973
18-655
2
2011
56
E1423
1973
18-858
2
2015
57
E1428
1973
18-652
2
2011
58
E1429
1973
18-850
2
2015
59
E1430
1973
18-762
2
2013
60
E1433
1973
18-782
2
2014
c. 2014
61
E1434
1973
18-432
2
2013
PRASA
62
E1437
1973
18-422
2
2012
PRASA
63
E1440
1973
18-863
2
2015
64
E1441
1973
18-808
2
2014
65
E1442
1973
18-673
2
2011
66
E1444
1973
18-859
2
2015
Liveries
With five exceptions, the whole series was delivered in the SAR Gulf Red livery with signal red cowcatchers, yellow whiskers and with the number plates on the sides mounted on three-stripe yellow wings. In the 1990s many of the Series 3 units began to be repainted in the Spoornet orange livery with a yellow and blue chevron pattern on the cowcatchers. Several later received the Spoornet maroon livery. In the late 1990s at least two were repainted in the Spoornet blue livery with solid numbers and at least one in the Spoornet blue livery with outline numbers.[8]
The five exceptions, numbers E1341 to E1345, were delivered in blue with yellow whiskers for use on the Blue Train between the Rand and Kimberley. In about 1985, these five were replaced by the five ex MetroBlitzClass 12E locomotives which were then all repainted in blue and whiskers. The five blue Series 3 locomotives were all eventually repainted in Spoornet’s orange livery.[6]
In 2009 no. E1328 was withdrawn from road service and repainted in a white and dull green livery for use as apprentice trade test locomotive at Sentrarand.
Illustration
No. E1329 in Spoornet lined orange livery at Ladysmith, 5 August 2007
No. E1377 in Spoornet orange livery at Kaalfontein, 23 September 2009
No. E1365 in Spoornet blue with solid numbers, Sentrarand, 22 September 2009
No. E1399 in Spoornet blue with outline numbers at Koedoespoort, 9 October 2009
No. E1328 being repainted in a shop livery at Sentrarand, 22 September 2009
No. E1328 as trade test locomotive at Sentrarand, 18 May 2013
^ abcdefSouth African Railways Index and Diagrams Electric and Diesel Locomotives, 610mm and 1065mm Gauges, Ref LXD 14/1/100/20, 28 January 1975, as amended
^ abcdeMiddleton, John N. (2002). Railways of Southern Africa Locomotive Guide - 2002 (as amended by Combined Amendment List 4, January 2009) (2nd, Dec 2002 ed.). Herts, England: Beyer-Garratt Publications. p. 57.
^ abcInformation gathered from the rebuild files of individual locomotives at Transnet Rail Engineering’s Koedoespoort shops, or obtained from John Middleton as well as several Transnet employees