Steam locomotive Ww 491
Maker and role
New Zealand Railways, Commissioned by
Hillside Railway Workshop, Manufacturer
Production date
1912
See full details
Object detail
Accession number
1975.79
Production period
Description
"Wg" SPECIFICATIONS (1919):
Wheel arrangement: 4-6-4T
Weight: 50.5 tons
Cylinders: 14" x 22"
Boiler pressure: 200 pounds
Driving wheels: 45"
"Ww" SPECIFICATIONS (1956):
Wheel arrangement: 4-6-4T
Weight: 51.8 tons
Cylinders: 15½" x 22"
Boiler pressure: 180 pounds
Driving wheels: 45"
Grate area: 16.9 sq. ft.
Total heating surface: 526S
Adhesive weight: 29.7 tons
Total weight of engine & tender: 51.5 tons
Tractive effort: 16,900 pounds
Wheel arrangement: 4-6-4T
Weight: 50.5 tons
Cylinders: 14" x 22"
Boiler pressure: 200 pounds
Driving wheels: 45"
"Ww" SPECIFICATIONS (1956):
Wheel arrangement: 4-6-4T
Weight: 51.8 tons
Cylinders: 15½" x 22"
Boiler pressure: 180 pounds
Driving wheels: 45"
Grate area: 16.9 sq. ft.
Total heating surface: 526S
Adhesive weight: 29.7 tons
Total weight of engine & tender: 51.5 tons
Tractive effort: 16,900 pounds
Brief History
Locomotive Wg 491 was one of a class built to meet the need for a more powerful type of locomotive for the haulage of suburban trains, chiefly at Auckland and Wellington. The class saw much main-line service in Taranaki, where for some years they were the largest locomotives permitted to run there. Between 1940 and 1942, 10 superheated Wg class locomotives were fitted with larger cylinders and modified valve gear, and were reclassified. Ww 491 was one of this batch that was altered. Ww's were for many years employed in the North Island in suburban services at Auckland and Wellington, on short distance main line services, on branch lines and local shunts, until they were superseded by the powerful Wab class. Ww 491 was written off in August of 1955, after many years of service hauling Auckland suburban trains. However, it partially escaped the scrapper's torch and was sectionalised and placed on a plinth at the Otahuhu Railway Workshops where it was used as a teaching aid. It was acquired by MOTAT in November 1975 and is the last remaining "Ww" with its original unmodified appearance.
Marks
WW / 491 Embossed
NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS / No 116.1912. / BUILT AT HILLSIDE WORKSHOPS Embossed
NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS / No 116.1912. / BUILT AT HILLSIDE WORKSHOPS Embossed
Media/Materials
Credit Line
New Zealand Railways et al. 1912. Steam locomotive Ww 491, 1975.79. The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT).
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