South African Class 6E1, Series 9

Class of 85 South African electric locomotives

6,972 mm (22 ft 10+1⁄2 in)Length:
• Over couplers15,494 mm (50 ft 10 in) • Over body14,631 mm (48 ft 0 in)Width2,896 mm (9 ft 6 in)Height:
• Pantograph4,089 mm (13 ft 5 in) • Body height3,937 mm (12 ft 11 in)Axle load22,447 kg (49,487 lb)Adhesive weight89,788 kg (197,949 lb)Loco weight89,788 kg (197,949 lb)Electric system/s3 kV DC catenaryCurrent pickup(s)PantographsTraction motorsFour AEI-283AY • Rating 1 hour623 kW (835 hp) • Continuous563 kW (755 hp)Gear ratio18:67Loco brakeAir & RegenerativeTrain brakesAir & VacuumCouplersAAR knuckle

Performance figures
Maximum speed	113 km/h (70 mph)
Power output:
• 1 hour	2,492 kW (3,342 hp)
• Continuous	2,252 kW (3,020 hp)
Tractive effort:
• Starting	311 kN (70,000 lbf)
• 1 hour	221 kN (50,000 lbf)
• Continuous	193 kN (43,000 lbf) @ 40 km/h (25 mph)

Career
Operators	South African Railways Spoornet
Class	Class 6E1
Number in class	85
Numbers	E2001-E2085
Delivered	1981-1982
First run	1981
Last run	2007

The South African Railways Class 6E1, Series 9 of 1981 was an electric locomotive.

In 1981 and 1982, the South African Railways placed eighty-five Class 6E1, Series 9 electric locomotives with a Bo-Bo wheel arrangement in mainline service.^[1]

Manufacturer

The 3 kV DC Class 6E1, Series 9 electric locomotive was designed and built for the South African Railways (SAR) by Union Carriage & Wagon (UCW) in Nigel, Transvaal. The electrical equipment was supplied by the General Electric Company (GEC).^[2]

In 1981 and 1982, 85 Series 9 locomotives were delivered, numbered in the range from E2001 to E2085. Like Series 6 to 8, the Series 9 units were equipped with AEI-283AY traction motors. UCW did not allocate builder's or works numbers to the locomotives it built for the SAR, but 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 locomotive 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 lower edge of the locomotive body on the roof access ladder side. The locomotive had one square and two rectangular access panels along the lower half of the body and a large hatch door below the second small window to the right of the side door on the roof access ladder side, and only one square access panel and a large hatch door below the first window immediately to the right of the door on the opposite side.^[1]

Series identifying features

The Class 6E1 was produced in eleven series over a period of nearly sixteen years. While some of the Class 6E1 series are visually indistinguishable from their predecessors or successors, some externally visible changes did occur over the years.^[1]

Series 8 and later locomotives could be distinguished from all older models by the large hatch door on each side. The Series 9 to Series 11 locomotives were visually indistinguishable from each other, but could be distinguished from all earlier models by the rainwater drainage holes on their lower sides. These holes were usually covered by so-called buckets, but the covers were absent on some locomotives. Another distinction was the end doors, which were recessed into the doorframes on Series 9 to Series 11 locomotives, compared to earlier models which had their end doors flush with the doorframes. In addition, on Series 9 and later models, the two side windows on the driver's assistant side were replaced by a single rectangular side window with rounded corners. Finally, unlike all earlier models, all four doors on Series 9 to Series 11 locomotives had rounded corners.^[1]^[3]^[4]

Crew access

The Classes 5E, 5E1, 6E and earlier 6E1 series locomotives were notoriously difficult to enter from ground level since their lever-style door handles were at waist level when standing inside the cab. This made it impossible to open the door from outside without first climbing up high enough to reach the door handle while hanging on to the side handrails with one hand only. Crews therefore often chose to leave the doors ajar when parking and exiting the locomotives.^[5]

Side doors with two interconnected latch handles on the outside, such as those which were introduced on the Class 7E1 with one outside handle mounted near floor level and the other at mid-door level, were also introduced on Class 6E1 locomotives beginning with Series 9.^[6]

Service

The Class 6E1 family saw service all over both 3 kV DC mainline and branch line networks, the smaller Cape Western mainline between Cape Town and Beaufort West and the larger network which covers portions of the Northern Cape, the Free State, Natal, Gauteng, North West and Mpumalanga.^[7]

Reclassification and rebuilding

Reclassification to Class 16E

During 1990 and 1991, Spoornet semi-permanently coupled several pairs of otherwise largely unmodified Class 6E1 locomotives, 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. Most pairs were later either disbanded with the units reverting to Class 6E1 and regaining their original numbers or getting rebuilt to Class 18E.^[7]

The first two Series 9 locomotives, numbers E2001 and E2002, were built as experimental logic control locomotives. They were the only two Series 9 units to have been reclassified and renumbered to Class 16E, becoming no. 16-500A and B.^[1]^[8]

Modification to Class 17E

During 1993 and 1994, Class 17E locomotives were modified and reclassified from Class 6E1 Series 7, 8 or 9 locomotives. Key modifications included improved regenerative braking and wheel-slip control to improve their reliability on the steep gradients and curves of the Natal mainline. Unlike the unmodified but reclassified Class 16E locomotives, the Class 17Es retained their original unit numbers after reclassification.^[7]

A stumbling block was that the regeneration equipment at many of the sub-stations along the route was unreliable, and since there was no guarantee that another train would be in the same section to absorb the regenerated energy, there was always the risk that line voltage could exceed 4.1 kV, which would make either the sub-station or the locomotive trip out. As a result, the subsequently rebuilt Class 18E locomotives were not equipped with regenerative braking.^[8]

Seventy known Series 9 locomotives were reclassified to Class 17E. Their unit numbers are displayed in the table below.^[7]

Rebuilding to Class 18E

Beginning in 2000, Spoornet began a project to rebuild Series 2 to 11 Class 6E1 locomotives to Class 18E, Series 1 and Series 2 at the Transnet Rail Engineering (TRE) 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 locomotive's bi-directional ability.^[7]^[8]

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 was 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.^[8]

While the earlier Class 6E1, Series 2 to 7 locomotives had been built with a brake system which consisted of various valves connected to each other with pipes, commonly referred to as a "bicycle frame" brake system, the Class 6E1, Series 8 to 11 locomotives were built with an air equipment frame brake system, commonly referred to as a "brake rack". Since the design of the rebuilt Class 18E locomotives included the same brake rack, the rebuilding project was begun with the newer series 8 to 11 locomotives to reduce the overall cost of rebuilding.^[8]

The Class 6E1, Series 9 locomotives which were used in this project were all rebuilt to Class 18E, Series 1 locomotives. Their numbers and renumbering details are shown in the table.^[8]

Class 6E1, Series 9 units rebuilt to Class 18E
as on 31 January 2014
Count	6E1 no.	Year built	18E no.	18E series	Year rebuilt	Notes
1	E2001	1981	18-029	1	2002	ex 16-500A
2	E2002	1981	18-030	1	2002	ex 16-500B
3	E2003	1981-82	18-285	1	2006	ex 17E
4	E2004	1981-82	18-009	1	2001
5	E2005	1981-82	18-308	1	2007	ex 17E
6	E2006	1981-82	18-325	1	2007	ex 17E
7	E2007	1981-82	18-236	1	2005	ex 17E
8	E2008	1981-82	18-275	1	2006	ex 17E
9	E2009	1981-82	18-042	1	2002
10	E2010	1981-82	18-022	1	2002
11	E2011	1981-82	18-255	1	2006	ex 17E
12	E2012	1981-82	18-273	1	2006	ex 17E
13	E2013	1981-82	18-050	1	2002
14	E2014	1981-82	18-058	1	2002
15	E2015	1981-82	18-261	1	2006	ex 17E
16	E2016	1981-82	18-232	1	2005	ex 17E
17	E2017	1981-82	18-299	1	2006	ex 17E
18	E2018	1981-82	18-249	1	2006	ex 17E
19	E2019	1981-82	18-252	1	2006	ex 17E
20	E2020	1981-82	18-194	1	2005	ex 17E
21	E2021	1981-82	18-045	1	2002
22	E2022	1981-82	18-211	1	2005	ex 17E
23	E2023	1981-82	18-267	1	2006	ex 17E
24	E2024	1981-82	18-259	1	2006	ex 17E
25	E2025	1981-82	18-193	1	2005	ex 17E
26	E2026	1981-82	18-196	1	2005	ex 17E
27	E2027	1981-82	18-319	1	2007	ex 17E
28	E2028	1981-82	18-210	1	2005	ex 17E
29	E2029	1981-82	18-327	1	2007	ex 17E
30	E2030	1981-82	18-223	1	2005	ex 17E
31	E2031	1981-82	18-304	1	2006	ex 17E
32	E2032	1981-82	18-301	1	2006	ex 17E
33	E2033	1981-82	18-246	1	2006	ex 17E
34	E2034	1981-82	18-254	1	2006	ex 17E
35	E2036	1981-82	18-247	1	2006	ex 17E
36	E2037	1981-82	18-037	1	2002	ex 17E
37	E2038	1981-82	18-074	1	2003	ex 17E
38	E2039	1981-82	18-230	1	2005	ex 17E
39	E2040	1981-82	18-241	1	2006	ex 17E
40	E2041	1981-82	18-276	1	2006	ex 17E
41	E2042	1981-82	18-227	1	2005	ex 17E
42	E2043	1981-82	18-234	1	2005	ex 17E
43	E2044	1982	18-219	1	2005	ex 17E
44	E2045	1982	18-238	1	2005	ex 17E
45	E2046	1982	18-271	1	2006	ex 17E
46	E2047	1982	18-268	1	2006	ex 17E
47	E2048	1982	18-258	1	2006	ex 17E
48	E2050	1982	18-239	1	2006	ex 17E
49	E2051	1982	18-229	1	2005	ex 17E
50	E2052	1982	18-218	1	2005	ex 17E
51	E2053	1982	18-093	1	2003	ex 17E
52	E2054	1982	18-257	1	2006	ex 17E
53	E2055	1982	18-028	1	2002	ex 17E
54	E2056	1982	18-079	1	2003	ex 17E
55	E2057	1982	18-240	1	2005	ex 17E
56	E2058	1982	18-253	1	2006	ex 17E
57	E2059	1982	18-321	1	2007	ex 17E
58	E2060	1982	18-250	1	2006	ex 17E
59	E2061	1982	18-056	1	2002
60	E2062	1982	18-282	1	2006	ex 17E
61	E2063	1982	18-242	1	2006	ex 17E
62	E2064	1982	18-281	1	2006	ex 17E
63	E2065	1982	18-192	1	2005	ex 17E
64	E2066	1982	18-212	1	2005	ex 17E
65	E2067	1982	18-245	1	2006	ex 17E
66	E2068	1982	18-302	1	2006	ex 17E
67	E2069	1982	18-291	1	2006	ex 17E
68	E2070	1982	18-224	1	2005	ex 17E
69	E2071	1982	18-328	1	2007	ex 17E
70	E2072	1982	18-020	1	2002
71	E2073	1982	18-243	1	2006	ex 17E
72	E2074	1982	18-008	1	2001
73	E2075	1982	18-073	1	2003	ex 17E
74	E2076	1982	18-228	1	2005	ex 17E
75	E2077	1982	18-244	1	2006	ex 17E
76	E2078	1982	18-054	1	2002
77	E2079	1982	18-127	1	2004	ex 17E
78	E2080	1982	18-181	1	2005
79	E2081	1982	18-251	1	2006	ex 17E
80	E2082	1982	18-235	1	2005	ex 17E
81	E2083	1982	18-057	1	2002
82	E2084	1982	18-217	1	2005	ex 17E
83	E2085	1982	18-214	1	2005	ex 17E

Liveries

All the Class 6E1, Series 9 locomotives were 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 9 units began to be repainted in the Spoornet orange livery with a yellow and blue chevron pattern on the cowcatchers.^[9]

Illustration

No. E2030 in SAR Gulf Red & whiskers at Chieveley, KwaZulu-Natal, c. 1999
No. E2057 in Spoornet orange livery at Chieveley, KwaZulu-Natal, c. 1999

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f South African Railways Index and Diagrams Electric and Diesel Locomotives, 610mm and 1065mm Gauges, Ref LXD 14/1/100/20, 28 January 1975, as amended
^ "UCW - Electric locomotives" (PDF). The UCW Partnership. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 October 2007. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
^ Paxton, Leith; Bourne, David (1985). Locomotives of the South African Railways (1st ed.). Cape Town: Struik. pp. 128–129. ISBN 0869772112.
^ 18-050 (ex Series 9 E2013) with recessed end door and rounded door corners
^ E1882 with high mounted door handle
^ 18-253 (ex Series 9 E2058) with two door handles
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Railways of Southern Africa Locomotive Guide, 2002 Edition, (Compiled by John N. Middleton), p57, as amended by Combined Amendment List 4, January 2009
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Information 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
^ Soul of A Railway, System 7, Western Transvaal, based in Johannesburg, Part 9. South-Eastwards as far as Volksrust (2nd part) by Les Pivnic. Caption 4. (Accessed on 11 April 2017)

External links

Media related to South African Class 6E1 Series 9 at Wikimedia Commons

Locomotives of South Africa

Steam

7' ¼" gauge	East London 0-4-0VB Table Bay 0-4-0ST Table Bay 0-4-0T Table Bay 0-4-0WT
Standard gauge	Cape 0-4-0T Blackie Cape 0-4-2 Cape 2-4-0T CGR 0-4-0ST Aid Natal 0-4-0ST Durban Natal 0-4-0WT Natal Natal 4-4-0T Perseverance
Cape gauge Tank engines	CGR 0-4-0ST 1873 CGR 0-4-0ST 1874 CGR 0-4-0ST 1881 CGR 0-4-0ST 1881 Coffee Pot CGR 0-6-0ST CGR 0-6-0T CGR 2-6-0ST 1900 CGR 2-6-0ST 1902 CGR 1st Class 0-4-0ST 1875 CGR 1st Class 0-4-0ST 1876 CGR 1st Class 2-6-0ST CGR 1st Class 4-4-0T CGR 2nd Class 4-4-0T CGR 3rd Class 2-6-0T CGR Railmotor CSAR Class C CSAR Class E CSAR Rack 4-6-4RT CSAR Railmotor Durban's Congella Durban's Edward Innes Durban's John Milne Durban's Sir Albert Port Elizabeth 0-4-0ST Kowie Railway 0-6-0T Kowie Railway 4-4-0T Metropolitan & Suburban 4-6-2T NGR 2-6-0T Durban & Pietermaritzburg NGR Class I 2-6-2T NGR Class K 0-4-0ST NGR Class K 0-6-0ST NGR Class K 2-6-0T NZASM 10 Tonner NZASM 13 Tonner NZASM 14 Tonner NZASM 18 Tonner NZASM 19 Tonner NZASM 32 Tonner NZASM 40 Tonner PPR 26 Tonner PPR 35 Tonner Portuguese SAR Class A SAR Class B SAR Class C SAR Class C1 SAR Class C2 SAR Class D SAR Class E SAR Class F SAR Class G SAR Class H SAR Class H1 SAR Class H2 SAR Class J SAR Class K SAR Railmotor SAR Dock 0-4-0ST SAR Dock 0-4-0T SWA 2-8-0T
Cape gauge Tender engines	CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1876 BP CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1876 Kitson CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1879 CGR 1st Class 2-6-0 1891 CGR 1st Class 4-4-0 CGR 1st Class 4-4-0TT CGR 2nd Class 2-6-2TT CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1883 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1884 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1889 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1898 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1901 CGR 3rd Class 4-4-0 1903 CGR 4th Class 4-4-2 CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1880 CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1882 CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1882 Joy CGR 4th Class 4-6-0TT 1884 CGR 5th Class 4-6-0 1890 CGR 5th Class 4-6-0 1891 NGR Havelock NGR Class I SAR Class Exp 1 SAR Class Exp 2 SAR Class Exp 3 SAR Class Exp 4 SAR Class Exp 5 SAR Class Exp 6 SAR Class S SAR Class S1 SAR Class S2 SAR Class 1 SAR Class 1A SAR Class 1B SAR Class 2 SAR Class 2C SAR Class 3 SAR Class 3A SAR Class 3B SAR Class 4 SAR Class 4A SAR Class 5 SAR Class 5A SAR Class 5B SAR Class 6 SAR Class 6A SAR Class 6B SAR Class 6C SAR Class 6D SAR Class 6E SAR Class 6F SAR Class 6G SAR Class 6H SAR Class 6J SAR Class 6K SAR Class 6L SAR Class 6Y SAR Class 6Z SAR Class 7 SAR Class 7A SAR Class 7B SAR Class 7C SAR Class 7D SAR Class 7E SAR Class 7F SAR Class 8 SAR Class 8A SAR Class 8B SAR Class 8C SAR Class 8D SAR Class 8E SAR Class 8F SAR Class 8R SAR Class 8X SAR Class 8Y SAR Class 8Z SAR Class 9 SAR Class 10 SAR Class 10A SAR Class 10B SAR Class 10C SAR Class 10D SAR Class 11 SAR Class 12 SAR Class 12A SAR Class 12B SAR Class 13 SAR Class 14 SAR Class 14A SAR Class 14B SAR Class 14C 1st SAR Class 14C 2nd SAR Class 14C 3rd SAR Class 14C 4th SAR Class 15 SAR Class 15A SAR Class 15B SAR Class 15C SAR Class 15CA SAR Class 15E SAR Class 15F SAR Class 16 SAR Class 16A SAR Class 16B SAR Class 16C SAR Class 16D SAR Class 16DA 1928 SAR Class 16DA 1930 SAR Class 16E SAR Class 17 SAR Class 18 SAR Class 19 SAR Class 19A SAR Class 19B SAR Class 19C SAR Class 19D SAR Class 20 SAR Class 21 SAR Class 23 SAR Class 24 SAR Class 25 SAR Class 25NC SAR Class 26 SAR Katanga SWA 2-8-0
Cape gauge Articulated engines	CGR Fairlie CGR Kitson-Meyer SAR Class FC SAR Class FD SAR Class GA SAR Class GB SAR Class GC SAR Class GCA SAR Class GD SAR Class GDA SAR Class GE SAR Class GEA SAR Class GF SAR Class GG SAR Class GH SAR Class GK SAR Class GL SAR Class GM SAR Class GMA SAR Class GO SAR Class HF SAR Class KM SAR Class MA SAR Class MB SAR Class MC SAR Class MC1 SAR Class MD SAR Class ME SAR Class MF SAR Class MG SAR Class MH SAR Class MJ SAR Class MJ1 SAR Class U
2' 6" gauge	Cape Copper John King & Miner Cape Copper Britannia Cape Copper Caledonia Cape Copper Clara Cape Copper Condenser Cape Copper Scotia Namaqua Copper Pioneer Walvis Bay 2-4-2T Hope
2' & 600mm gauges	ACR Class NG-G16A CGR NG 0-4-0T CGR NG 0-6-0T CGR NG 4-6-2T CGR Type A 2-6-4T CGR Type C 0-4-0T NGR Class N 4-6-2T SAR Dutton SAR NG 0-4-0T SAR Class NG1 SAR Class NG2 SAR Class NG3 SAR Class NG4 SAR Class NG5 SAR Class NG6 SAR Class NG7 SAR Class NG8 SAR Class NG9 SAR Class NG10 SAR Class NG-G11 SAR Class NG-G12 SAR Class NG-G13 SAR Class NG-G14 SAR Class NG15 SAR Class NG-G16 SWA Class Ha SWA Class Hb SWA Class Hc SWA Class Hd SWA Jung SWA Zwillinge

Electric

Amcoal Class E38

Gas-electric

SAR Gas-electric

Diesel

Cape gauge Diesel-electric	PRASA Class Afro 4000 SAR Class DS SAR Class DS1 SAR Class 31-000 SAR Class 32-000 SAR Class 32-200 SAR Class 33-000 SAR Class 33-200 SAR Class 33-400 SAR Class 34-000 SAR Class 34-200 SAR Class 34-400 SAR Class 34-500 SAR Class 34-600 SAR Class 34-800 SAR Class 34-900 SAR Class 35-000 SAR Class 35-200 SAR Class 35-400 SAR Class 35-600 TFR Class 35-800 SAR Class 36-000 SAR Class 36-200 SAR Class 37-000 Spoornet Class 39-000 TFR Class 39-200 TFR Class 43-000 TFR Class 44-000 TFR Class 45-000
2' gauge Diesel-electric	SAR Class 91-000
Cape gauge Diesel-hydraulic	SAR Class 61-000
Cape gauge Electro-diesel	Spoornet Class 38-000