SOME NEW ROLLING STOCK FOR VINNYBARB TO CREATE

[bushymo]

Vinnybarb... Could you do us an NJ or G&WA 1600, and a G&WA 1200?... also a HCN and XNW grain hopper set?..

The NJ... is exactly like the ARG 22 class in the DLS, except that it is a single end cab version, the five chime air horns are exactly the same (to the left of the cabtop, as is the ARG 22 class... It has a large vent at the rear, where normally the other end cab would be, and a corridor rear, similar to a GM.

THE ARG 1200 is actually a former Westrail A Class, with the slanted out airvents on it, and it is very much the same shape as the FCAB G18 or QR 1460.

The HCN's are the aluminium grain hoppers used now over on The Eyre Peninsula of South Australia (for those who are not Australian Members) and had a triangular frame on both ends, the XNW, which also orgiinated from WA (Western Australia) are very similar to the HCN's but are higher, and have a hydraulic lift mechanism similar to Davido's AWB grain hoppers....

I am wondering if you have seen any of these rolling stock items around, and are familiar with them, the old NJ's or now known as G&WA 1600's were the ones used on The Old Ghan to Maree, just until that line was closed down... not to confuse these with the funny lookingn old NSU'S of the earlier ghan days that had the headlight up at the top of the cab....and had a funny looking squarish nose similar to one of the old Austral Locomotives of the WAGR...(that's the old green and red ones)

Of course we must also remember that there was a NT Class, looking just a little bit like a BR Hymek, that preceeded the NJ's and were used after or at the same time as the NSU's and ran up in the NT before the NJ''s were built... All of the NT's have since been scrapped....but I know there may be one or two NSU's in static display either at Port Augusta or Port Dock Rail Museum... They would be an interesting addition to TRS, if any member here wanted to relive and recreate the days of the old Ghan... We do have CR coaches here in the DLS.... pop and old NSU in front of them and relive the old Ghan. The NSU's were Sulzer Engineering Co. units, but the NU's one of which was named 'The Ben Chiffley' were Clyde Engineering ones....

There are not too many NJ's left over on the EP now, and most of the locomotives over there are G&WA 900's that are 830's with a low nose - converted to DA units in a similar way to the old Vic T's were made into Low Nose 'T's ... a few remaining 830's and two 1200's (WA A Class's) and NJ 1601, and 1604.

There is yet another class of grain hopper used over there known as the HAN (the former SAR aluminium HAN's and ther were also a few of the slightly larger AN HANX's but they have been taken away in recent years... maybe because they were too big or would take too much grain that would push the light rails of the Lincoln Division down too much, (thus being too heavy)...

In recent years they also used a chute bottomed HVNX van with the liftable top for loading grain into them. but they too have all been scrapped.

Having come from there, I am fairly familier with what was being used over there.

Any chance of an ARG 'DD'? these are... converted former QR 2100 units, that were converted and re-engineered in Port Lincoln for use over in WA for the ore transport, and have the new QR Company ARG livery.. and look quite smart compared to the drab looking old dirty blue and white QR 2100's, that were brought down for complete refurb jobs on them...

 

[NSWGR_46Class]

You do know that the T were not made into having low a nose but left the factory like that.

The NJ project would be better approached with DavidO the amazing content guru who did the 422.

If you can source some plans and photos of the items your after you might want to get in touch with some other creators of Aussue rolling stock.

 

[Enkidoh]

John_SB did a Westrail AB class way back for Trainz 1.3, in both 80's style Westrail livery (KUID:60318:1535), and the early ARG-era livery (lettered as 'AWR') (KUID:60318:1534). Although the ABs were a slightly improved version of the original A class (bigger engine and a few other improvements), they still look more or less the same.

They're also in standard gauge form only, instead of the narrow gauge that the prototype runs on, but they're otherwise wonderful models.

As for an ARG DD class, I did a Paintshed reskin of a QR 2100 class in a 'near enough' ARG-QR livery many years ago to represent a DD, but I never got around to uploading it to the DLS, mostly because I'm not satisfied with it (not to mention I made a couple of mistakes with it).

 

[bushymo]

Just if I may correct you there, the A class units that were brought over to the EP had the slanted air vents that protruded out in front of the cab very similar to the FCAB G 18's in the DLS or the QR 1460. These G&WA formerly WA 'A's look quite impressive units, but the local division over there were to purchase another two of these units and number them 1203 and 1204, but for some reason they backed out of the deal, that were to involve sending all of the NR's over to WA in exchange for these other two A's.... I am wondering if there were two types of 'A's... because the ones that we got over there had the slanted out vents at the front of them where as the AB's in the DLS here don't.

I may be wrong about the class but when I was shown the blue print of these WA locomotives, the station manager back in Port Lincoln said to me that they were called Westrail A Class... Nevertheless, they are quite impressive looking units, and have the beacon on the front of them like the FCAB G 18s, or QR 1460's...

The DD's are very impressive looking refurbs too, and we were going to have a couple of them stay local while there was still every hope of iron ore being railed to Port Lincoln in covered hoppers to keep any red dust from letting fly loose, but unfortunately for me as a train buff, that has all fallen through now and any ore that is going to be mined at Wilgerup is now going to be slurry piped or trucked across from Lock to a place North of Tumby Bay called 'Sheep Hill' so I haven't missed much...

Port Lincoln is one of those places where much talked about big proposals, big things for Lincoln usually end up either not happening, or being drastically scaled down to a point where we wonder what all the exitement was for...and in a few years from then, nothing much is ever talked about, heard about, and we wonder whatever happened to that big thing that was going to happen, Ho Hum!....

Other places, when they say they're going to do something big, it happens, and the whole place really thrives... Port Lincoln is in danger of losing its rail link altogether now if things should really happen to derail themselves... I feel that it will only take another bad drought on the land, and a prolonged one, it could all just be closed down, the tracks just left there or even pulled up, and there will only be a seperate roadway for B doubles and ore trucks to road transport any ore across to Sheep Hill....

I often used to say "Port Lincoln just can't seem to get it right or take a trick when it comes to big things'... Anything that comes up usually gets so much heated huff and puff and demented opposition to it, and it just fizzles out to nothing really much if anything, and that is why I just got up and left....

So them Westrail A's the NJ's and that might all end up over in the West if that happens... very little work for the boys at the EDI in Port Lincoln, they were expecting big jobs repairing all the rolling stock, getting everything in readiness for the iiron ore railing, but now... that is just a might have been...

 

[Enkidoh]

Just if I may correct you there, the A class units that were brought over to the EP had the slanted air vents that protruded out in front of the cab very similar to the FCAB G 18's in the DLS or the QR 1460. These G&WA formerly WA 'A's look quite impressive units, but the local division over there were to purchase another two of these units and number them 1203 and 1204, but for some reason they backed out of the deal, that were to involve sending all of the NR's over to WA in exchange for these other two A's.... I am wondering if there were two types of 'A's... because the ones that we got over there had the slanted out vents at the front of them where as the AB's in the DLS here don't.

I may be wrong about the class but when I was shown the blue print of these WA locomotives, the station manager back in Port Lincoln said to me that they were called Westrail A Class... Nevertheless, they are quite impressive looking units, and have the beacon on the front of them like the FCAB G 18s, or QR 1460's...

Those vents on the short hood next to the cab you refer to (often nicknamed 'winkers' or 'elephant ears') are actually dynamic braking vents that the then WAGR (Westrail's predecessor) fitted to a number of units of the A/AA/AB class in the mid to late 1960s for use on the Jarrahdale-Kwinana bauxite trains here in Perth (the Jarrahdale line is steeply graded and curved, because it follows an old timber line alignment, hence the necessity for better braking, as westbound trains had to descend the Darling escarpment down to the coastal plain fully loaded).

Not all the class were so fitted however, but those that were became quite well known with gunzals here as a result.

You can find a number of A and AB class photos which show the similarities and differences between them here: http://wastations.i8.com/Locomotives/Classes/A diesel/WAGR A diesel.html and http://wastations.i8.com/Locomotives/Classes/AB diesel/WAGR AB Diesel.html

Hopefully this has helped clarify this detail.

 

[bushymo]

Yep! thanks Westrail Fanatic. just been and had a look, and the bottom one of the four, in that list of photos of the Westrail A is the one we've got over there... that's the one... the one that is numbered 1514.