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A Beyer Garratt from BNR’s stable

Beyer-Garratts

of the IndianSubcontinent

The term India, for the purpose of this book, includesthe railways of the colonial British India, as it was duringthe period of British rule that all the Garratts used onthe subcontinent, were supplied. While some were, atone time, used in areas now included in Pakistan andBangladesh, these countries no longer possess any formof articulated steam power.

Actually, India was the second country to introduce theGarratt type, and in fact the first true Garratt, that is withsimple-expansion cylinders at the outer ends of the powerbogies, was for this country.

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This little line, of 2ft gauge, is one of the world's mostdifficult to operate. Connecting with the metre gauge atSiliguri, the line climbs fifty-one miles into the Himalayanmountains to Darjeeling, for much of the way on 1 in 30gradients, and over curves as sharp as 90ft radius. Eventhese severe conditions are inadequate to gain altitudesufficiently without additional devices such as completeloops in some places, and zig-zag reversing stations atothers. The maximum altitude reached is 7407 ft.

Most of the work on the line had always been done with0-4-OT locomotives of various types, but it was in 1910that Beyer Peacock produced for this little line theirsecond design of Garratt, this being the first true Garratt.It was of the 0-4-0 + 0-4-0 type, with the generaldimensions predictably equal to two of the larger0-4-OT engines. Building details are: Beyer PeacockNo.5407 of 1909, Darjeeling Himalayan Rly Class 'D',engine No.31.

DarjeelingHimalayan Railway

Outside frames were used, and the slide-valve cylindershad steam distribution by Walschaerts gear. The Belpaireboiler was not superheated and, an unusual feature,infrequently repeated, was the well tank slung under theboiler barrel. The cab was completely open on bothsides, being simply a roof supported on columns but withspectacle plates fore and aft.

For some reason, the engine was not considered a success,and although not withdrawn from service until 1954,was used but infrequently. No doubt the possession ofone engine of double the normal power presentedoperating difficulties in finding adequate train loads,while possibly the maximum loads were greater than thecouplers could accommodate. Equally, such an embryonicGarratt probably contained a number of details whichhad yet to be perfected, and may have given trouble.Nevertheless, the engine lasted forty-four years, havingentered the hall of fame as an early Beyer-Garratt.

The first true Garratt – Darjeeling Himalayan Railway.Note the extraordinary reversing gear, with crudeexpansion and universal joints; clearly Beyer. The seconddesign of Garratt, DHR No. 31 was built in 1909.

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Details of this NWR Garratt were quite sound andstraightforward; it had two cylinder units with plateframes, and modern, straight-ported cylinders, the drivebeing to the third axle of each unit. The boiler wassuperheated, with a Belpaire firebox, and conformedgenerally to Indian standards. There seems no doubtthat the design, which otherwise appeared very soundindeed, was simply too small for the job, and was probablydeliberately so in order to effect a direct comparison withthe Mallet. It is of interest to compare the principaldimensions and capacities of the four competing types:

Class HGS Mallet N GarrattType 2-8-0 2-6-6-2 2-10-0 2-6-2 + 2-6-2Cylinders (2) 22in x 26in (4) 19in/291/2in x 30in (4) 20in x 26in (4) 181/2in x 26inCoupled wheels 4 ft 81/2in 4ft 4in 4ft 81/2 in 4ft 3inTractive effort(Ib) 60136* 46400 49700 47110Grate area (sq ft) 64* 56.25 45 56.5Adhesion weight (tons) 128.5* 104.8 94.3 115.4Total weight (tons) 274* 187.7 174.4 178.4

*Combined figures for two locomotives. All tractive efforts at 75 per cent boiler pressure.

North Western Railway; class GAS Garratt No 480.Built 1925 (BP 6203) Loco was scrapped in 1937

The NWR was India's largest railway system, comprisingabout 6600 route miles of track, divided now betweenthe Pakistan Railways and the Northern Railway of India.In the furthest north section, now in Pakistan, were someextremely difficult sections including the Quetta linewhere, through the Bolan pass, gradients of 1 in 25 hadto be surmounted. Normal power units on this divisionwere the HGS 2-8-0, and upto four were required on aheavy train. Naturally, this was hardly an economicalmethod of working and in about 1923 a Baldwin-builtcompound 2-6-6-2 was placed in service, the generalidea being to replace two 2-8-0s. Then, in 1925, BeyerPeacock built a 2-6-2 + 2-6-2 Garratt to test not onlyagainst the Mallet but also against a pair of 2-8-0s.

According to Beyer Peacock's catalogue, the Garratt wasable to manage 354 tonnes compared with 160 tonnesfor a 2-8-0. The principal dimensions of the Garratt wereobviously arranged to afford a direct comparison withthe Mallet rather than with a double 2-8-0s, with theidea of determining which type of articulated locomotiveto adopt in India, when loads were too great forconventional types.

Beyer Peacock, of course, claimed that their Garratt wasan immense success, but clearly, when weather conditionsbecome difficult, it is impossible to replace eight-coupledunits with six-coupled. As a result, neither the Garrattnor the Mallet was considered a complete success on theNWR and they were not repeated. In later years theywere transferred to the more easily graded Rawalpindisection where the ruling gradient is only 1 in 100 andwhere they could take a double load.

No doubt a larger, eight-coupled Garratt as supplied tothe BNR would have proved more effective and mightwell have been purchased, but for the fact that the GreatIndian Peninsular Railway, having electrified its 'Ghats'or mountain sections, had surplus some thirty large four-cylinder 2-10-0s of Class 'N', which had a haulage capacityapproximately equal to that of the Garratt and Mallet.Doubtless purchased at a bargain price, these remainedthe heavy freight power on the NWR until replaced bydiesels.

The Garratt and the Mallet, being non-standard, werescrapped after a fairly short life, the Garratt in 1937 withonly eleven years of service. The NWR Garratt wasrailway No.480, Class GAS, and built by Beyer Peacock,No.6203, in 1925.

North Western Railway

The Garratts' successful run with the BNR (now SouthEastern Railway) started around 1927 with two 'HSG'Class locos and then sixteen 'N' Class locos (one of whichwas the 38811) giving huge operational advantages tothe BNR in handling coal traffic. They performed creditablytill 1970 in the Anara -Bhojudih and Bhillai - Dallirajharasections. Later, they could even out-haul the Diesels.With electrification, however they were stabled,de-commissioned, condemned, cut and finally sold asscrap. Only 38811 and 38815 were preserved as relicsof a bygone era at Kharagpur and New Delhi, respectively.

Whilst the NWR were playing with a six-coupled Garratt,the BNR, who operated a heavy coal traffic with 1,600ton trains, were also trying out the type, again to eliminatethe double-heading of the old standard 2-8-0s. In thiscase the sensible course was adopted by making theGarratt the equal of two 2-8-0s, the whole of the motionbeing standard. Upon this was mounted a large Belpaireboiler, with rather more than double the grate area of a2-8-0. This was, of course, superheated and despite itssize, hand fired. The frames were of plate, in accordance

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with British-Indian practice of the time, and the first twolocomotives were put to work on the Chakradharpur-Jharsuguda section, where they effectively managed thedouble 2-8-0 loads. This section is now electrified, andthe two engines once out of use were scrapped.

The success of these two engines led to the ordering ofa further sixteen Garratts, built in 1929, these beingsubstantially larger. The 4-8-0 + 0-8-4 wheel arrangementwas used (it is not found on any railway apart from theBNR), and with a permissible axle load of just over 20tons, the opportunity was taken of substantially increasingthe tractive effort, and also the water capacity, which isthe greatest of any Garratt. The original boiler on the2-8-0 + 0-8-2 had proved perfectly adequate, and wasonly slightly enlarged on the new design.

Cylinder design was looked at thoroughly, and of this 'N'class, Nos. 810-819 had modern straightported piston-valve cylinders of considerably superior design to thoseof the old BESA 2-8-0s and corresponding HSG Garratt,although whether superior design showed up to muchadvantage in slow, heavy haulage is a moot point. Nos.820-822 had RC type poppet valves for comparison whileNos. 823-825 used Caprotti gear. All six poppet valveengines later had piston valves and Walschaerts.

The Bengal Nagpur Railway class N Garratt in first and final form,with piston valves. Indian Railways 38818 leaves Kusumkasaloop in 1970, with a 2400 tonne ore train bound for Bhilai steelworks.

A. E. Durrant

“Part of the strange Cargo of the Norwegian steamer,‘Belpamela’, which sailed from Liverpool for India in Februarywith a cargo consisting of 16 engines (each weighing 90tons), 9 tenders, a seaplane carrier and a light ship.”Ship being loaded with Garratts. From Bengal NagpurRailway Magazine – Vol. XIV No. 4, April 1930

One of the sixteen ‘N’ class locos at Kharagpur at thebeginning of World War II, 1940 (note a few army men)

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These were the largest locomotives ever to run in India,a record which still stands today. Originally used on coaltraffic between Chakradharpur and Jharsuguda, Anarato Tatanagar, and also to Asansol, they were last usedin 1970-71 hauling 2400 tonnes iron ore trains fromDallirajhara to Bhilai.

With their heavy axle load, the 'N' class were restrictedto the main lines and branches laid with 90 lb rail, buttheir ability to haul upto 2400 tonnes up a 1 in 100gradient, and to reach maximum speeds of 45mph, seta standard of performance which could be wellappreciated on certain more lightly laid branches.

Accordingly, in 1931, a further ten Garratts of a modifieddesign, Class 'NM', were supplied, these differing fromClass 'N' in having Lentz poppet valves and greatlyreduced fuel and water capacities, so that the axle loadcould be reduced to 17 tons. There was an excess ofweight in the original 'N' design, and only a tokenreduction of tractive effort was made. The firebox,however, was fitted with thermic syphons and arch tubesas an aid to even better performance. The class wasstationed at Sahdol for working the line from Bilaspur toKatni, and also on the Anuppur-Chirimiri branch, servingthe coalfields in the area. Although later than theN class, the NM, probably due to their poppet valves,were withdrawn by the late 1960s.

On this latter branch line, with its severe curvature, itwas found desirable to have Garratts with carrying wheelsat the inner ends of the power units, and accordingly, in1939, the final BNR class, 'P', was produced. These4-8-2 + 2-8-4s were direct derivations of the 'N' and

'NM' classes, having the piston-valve cylinders of theearlier 'N' plus a slightly enlarged thermic syphon boilerof the 'NM' type. Coal and water capacities were increasedfrom the 'NM' valves, but not to the extent of the 'N'while with the extra two pairs of wheels, the axle loadingremained as on the 'NM', making the locomotives suitablefor 75 lb track. Loads of 1500 tonnes are normally hauledon this branch up gradients of 1 in 91, while upto 1750tonnes have been hauled on occasions. The P class alsofinished their days at Bhilai, lasting to about 1971. BothN and P classes have a member preserved for the IndianRailways museum at New Delhi.

Building data for all the BNR Garratts, which later ranon the Indian Government's South Eastern Railway, aretabulated below:

Class BNR ISR(SER) B.P.Nos Nos Nos Date

HSG 691-2 38691-2 6261-2 1925

N 810-25 38810-25 6583-98 1929

NM 826-35 38826-35 6705-14 1931

P 855-58 38855-58 6931-34 1939

BNR class N at work, as fitted with rotary campoppet valves. These were later replaced bypiston valve cylinders.

W. H. C. Kelland

Advertisements published in The Bengal NagpurRailway Magazine during 1930.

A BNR P class is pouring over its ownreflection at Bhillai (1970). How times change

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"The B.N.R have always been well to the forein matters of research and experiment andwe may feel justifiably proud of the recentorder which has been placed with the well-known locomotive makers, Messrs. BeyerPeacock and Co. Manchester, for 16 newGarratt engines. It is understood that these locomotiveswill be the largest and heaviest in service in the East.The steep gradients which comprise more than 50 percentof the B.N.R main line and the heavy goods traffic whichhas to be hauled over them have been engaging theattention of our Loco Department for several years andit was only recently that two Garratt H. S. G. type2-8-0-0-8-2 locomotives were ordered from Messrs. BeyerPeacock and Co., as a possible solution to the peculiarlydifficult problems which our heavy traffic provided.

The Garratts now in commission, Nos.691 and 692, havean overall length of 86 feet 8 1/2 inches, includingcowcatchers; the front water tank holds 3,330 gallons,and the rear tank, 170 gallons, making a total tankcapacity of 5,500 gallons; the fuel capacity is 8 tons; theboiler pressure is 180 lbs. per square inch; while thetotal weight of the engine in workingorder is 185.55 tons.

The new Garratts will be of the 4-8-0+0-8-4 type andwill have a total tank capacity of 10,000 gallons, or4,500 gallons more than the present engines; their fuelcapacity will be 14 tonnes as against 8 tonnes at present;and the boiler pressure will be 190 lbs. per square inchor 10 lbs. per square inch higher than that employed inthe existing type boilers. The total overall length of thenew engines, and naturally their total weight in working

An excerpt from theBNR magazine May 1929

order, will be greater than that of the locomotives nowin use. In other respects the new Garratts will be similarto Nos. 691 and 692, their boilers and engine machineryin general being as far as possible interchangeable withthose of the existing engines. The new engines will,however, be fitted with Caprotti valve gear and theircoal bunkers will be self-trimming, which in itself willsave a considerable amount of labour for the firemen.

The fire grates of both the existing and new locomotiveshave an area of 67.3 square feet. Much is expected fromthe new locomotives in the way of improved haulage andrunning. Meanwhile, it is a matter for satisfactoryreflection that the B.N.R. will shortly have on theirpermanent way 16 of the biggest and heaviest locomotivesin the Indian Empire".

A.C. Carr, CME of the Bengal Nagpur Railway noted 'thatthe use of Garratts got rid of double heading, banking,and a certain amount of shunting for reversal andincreased capacity on single lines'. (Journal of Institutionof Locomotive Engineers, Volume 23 of 1933, Paper No.299 by W.C. Williams.)

N Class BNR No. 814 (Later SER No. 38814) Built 1929 (BP 6587). This was atwin to BNR 811 that was revived.

P Class BNR No 857 (Later SER No. 38857). Built 1932 and was the last ofGarratts to be used by BNR (BP 6933)

HSG Class BNR No. 692 (Later SER No. 38692). Built 1925 (BP 6262)NM Class BNR No. 831 (Later SER No. 38831) Built 1930 as a successorto N Class. (BP 6710)

The Agent of BNR who had the foresightto introduce Garratts into the BNR ablyassisted by A.C. Carr, CME and much wasexpected in the way of improved haulageand running. Their choice was prophetic.

C. Carroll

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This railway, which was situated in the far north-eastcorner of India, is in rugged country bordering Burma,China, and what is now Bangladesh. From near theBangladesh border, at Badarpur, to a junction at Lumding,is a metre-gauge line through the hills, with a rulinggradient of 1 in 37 between Jatinga and Harangajao forwhich, in 1927, the ABR purchased five 2-6-2 + 2-6-2Garratts.

Although these were of modest capacity, due to theunrestricted Indian metre-gauge moving dimensions,were of massive appearance, and were simple plate-framed jobs with modern piston-valve cylinders, and asuperheated Belpaire boiler. The introduction of theseengines enabled loads to be increased from 230 tonnesfor the standard 4-8-0 to 300 tonnes for the Garratt,banking assistance being provided for both types overthe steepest section.

In 1942, the railway switched its name around, becomingthe Bengal Assam Railway, and during the BurmaCampaign, a number of the War Department Garrattswere allocated to the BAR. Nine Wartime Garrattsremained behind after the war, these being of the4-8-2 + 2-8-4 type.

At the partition of India and Pakistan, the railway becamethe Assam Railway for a while, and is now the IndianGovernment's North East Frontier Railway. The originalABR 2-6-2 + 2-6-2, reduced to four by the cannibalization

of two engines after a collision, together with the nineex-WD locomotives, were joined by four new 4-8-2+2-8-4s originally built for Burma, but soon sold to theNFR. The data below set out details of these engines onthe NFR, together with their various re-numberings etc.

ABR Class T Nos 401-5, Beyer Peacock 6358-89 of1927. Became BAR Class 'GT', Nos 191-95 in 1942. 191, withdrawn, parts going into No.194. Renumbered 671-74,Thence to Assam Railway Became NERNos 971-74. Finally NFR Nos 32078-81

BAR Class (Ex-WD) Nine Locomotives MWGXbecame NER 975-83. FinallyNFR 32082-90.

Ex-Burma Four locomotives ex BR. became NERNos. Locomotives 984-87. FinallyNFR 32091-94.

Assam Bengal Railway

Nepal Government Railways Garratt named‘Sitaram’ at Simra in April 1958

Metre gauge T Class Assam Bengal Garratt No401 ready for action on the hill section. Built 1927(BP 6385), with drawn from Saria 1941. No. 191