South African Class 34-400
No. 34-401 at Kaalfontein, Gauteng, 7 October 2009
Type and origin Power type Diesel-electric Designer General Electric Builder SA GE-DL Locomotive Group Serial number 38623-38722 Model GE U26C Build date 1973–1974 Total produced 100
Specifications Configuration: ​  • AAR C-C  • UIC Co'Co'  • Commonwealth Co+Co Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge Wheel diameter 915 mm (36.0 in) Wheelbase 13,004 mm (42 ft 8.0 in) ​  • Bogie 3,188 mm (10 ft 5.5 in) Pivot centres 10,058 mm (33 ft 0 in) Length: ​  • Over couplers 17,982 mm (59 ft 0 in) Width 2,756 mm (9 ft 0.5 in) Height 3,962 mm (13 ft 0 in) Axle load 18,850 kg (41,560 lb) Adhesive weight 113,100 kg (249,300 lb) Loco weight 113,100 kg (249,300 lb) max Fuel type Diesel Fuel capacity 5,400 litres (1,200 imp gal) new 7,000 litres (1,500 imp gal) mod. Prime mover GE FDL-12 RPM range 450-1,050 ​  • RPM low idle 450  • RPM idle 535  • Maximum RPM 1,050 Engine type 4-stroke diesel Aspiration Elliott H-581 turbocharger Alternator 10 pole 3 phase GE 5GT-A11C1 Traction motors Six GE 5GE-761A13 DC 4 pole ​  • Rating 1 hour 665A  • Continuous 655A @ 24 km/h (15 mph) Cylinders V12 Gear ratio 92:19 MU working 6 maximum Loco brake 28-LAV-1 with vigilance control Train brakes Westinghouse 6CDX4UC compressor/exhauster Air tank cap. 825 litres (181 imp gal) Compressor 0.039 m3/s (1.4 cu ft/s) Exhauster 0.155 m3/s (5.5 cu ft/s) Couplers AAR knuckle type E
Performance figures Maximum speed 100 km/h (62 mph) Power output: ​  • Starting 2,050 kW (2,750 hp)  • Continuous 1,940 kW (2,600 hp) Tractive effort: ​  • Starting 272 kN (61,000 lbf) @ 25% adhesion  • Continuous 218 kN (49,000 lbf) @ 26 km/h (16 mph) Factor of adh.: ​  • Starting 25%  • Continuous 20% Brakeforce 60% ratio @ 345 kPa (50.0 psi) Dynamic brake peak effort 180 kN (40,000 lbf) @ 29 km/h (18 mph)
Career Operators South African Railways Spoornet Kenya Railways Sheltam Sasol Blue Circle Transnet Freight Rail Class Class 34-400 Number in class 100 Numbers 34-401 to 34-500 Delivered 1973–1974 First run 1973

The South African Railways Class 34-400 of 1973 is a diesel-electric locomotive.

Between April 1973 and November 1974, the South African Railways placed one hundred Class 34-400 General Electric type U26C diesel-electric locomotives in service.^[1]

Manufacturer

The Class 34-400 type GE U26C diesel-electric locomotive was designed by General Electric (GE) and built for the South African Railways (SAR) by the South African General Electric-Dorman Long Locomotive Group (SA GE-DL, later Dorbyl). One hundred locomotives were delivered between April 1973 and November 1974, numbered in the range from 34-401 to 34-500.^[1][2][3]

Distinguishing features

As built, the GE Classes 34-000, 34-400 and 34-900 locomotives were visually indistinguishable from each other. The Class 34-500 locomotives could be distinguished from the other series by the air conditioning units mounted on their cab roofs and initially, when it was still a feature unique to them, by their running board mounted handrails. At some stage during the mid-1980s, all Class 34-000, 34-400 and 34-500 locomotives had saddle filters installed across the long hood, mounted just to the rear of the screens behind the cab on the sides. Since then, Class 34-900 locomotives could be distinguished from the older models by the absence of the saddle filter.^[4][5][6]

Modifications

Fuel capacity

As built, the Class 34-400 had a 5,400-litre (1,200-imperial-gallon) fuel tank and interlinked bogies, while the Class 34-500 was delivered new to Iscor with a 7,000-litre (1,500-imperial-gallon) fuel tank to cope with the lack of en route refuelling points on the Sishen-Saldanha iron ore line. To facilitate the larger fuel tank, the inter-bogie linkage found on all other models had to be omitted on the Class 34-500.^[7]

Standard 5,400 litre fuel tank

Enlarged 7,000 litre fuel tank

To be usable on the iron ore line, Class 34-400 units which ended up working there were modified to a similar fuel capacity. The inter-bogie linkage was removed and the fuel tank was enlarged by changing it from saddle-shaped to rectangular box-shaped. To maintain its lateral balance, a slab of metal was attached to each bogie in place of the removed linkage. In the second picture, the weld lines on the end of the enlarged fuel tank as well as the metal slab at the end of the bogie are visible.

Service

South African Railways

GE Class 34-400s work on most mainlines and some branch lines in the central, western, southern and southeastern parts of the country. On the busy line from Krugersdorp via Zeerust to Mafeking, the Class 34-400 became the standard motive power.^[8][9]

Some eventually joined the Class 34-500 on the 861-kilometre long (535-mile) Sishen-Saldanha iron ore line, to haul export ore from the open cast iron mines at Sishen near Kathu in the Northern Cape to the harbour at Saldanha in the Western Cape. Here they ran consisted to electric locomotives to haul the 342 wagon iron ore trains. Each wagon has a 100-ton capacity and the trains are at least 3.72 kilometres (2.31 miles) in length. In South Africa, mixed electric and diesel-electric consists are unique to the iron ore line.^{[1][3][10][11]}

Ore train about 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of Lamberts Bay

Works numbers

The Class 34-400 builder's works numbers and known deployment are listed in the table.^[2]

Liveries

The Class 34-400 were all delivered in the SAR Gulf Red livery with signal red buffer beams, yellow side stripes on the long hood sides and a yellow V on each end. In the 1990s many of the Class 34-400 units began to be repainted in the Spoornet orange livery with a yellow and blue chevron pattern on the buffer beams. At least one later received the Spoornet maroon livery. In the late 1990s many were repainted in the Spoornet blue livery with outline numbers on the long hood sides. After 2008 in the Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) era, many were repainted in the TFR red, green and yellow livery.^[2][12]

Illustration

• 
  No. 34-435 in SAR Gulf Red and whiskers livery and without saddle filters at Millsite, Krugersdorp, c. March 1982
• 
  No. 34-402 at the Transwerk shops in Bloemfontein, Free State, undergoing a major overhaul, 7 April 2006
• 
  No. 34-469 (ex Kenya Railways no. 9511) at Saldanha, Western Cape, in SAR Gulf Red and whiskers, 19 August 2010
• 
  No. 34-497 in Spoornet orange livery at Cambridge loco depot, East London, Eastern Cape, 24 April 2013
• 
  No. 34-464 shunting at the LaFarge Cement siding at Kaalfontein, Kempton Park, Gauteng, in Spoornet maroon livery, 21 August 2007
• 
  Bright Star equipped no. 34-418 in Transnet Freight Rail livery, Saldanha, 10 February 2013

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to South African Class 34-400.