South African Class 5E, Series 2

The South African Railways Class 5E, Series 2 of 1957 was an electric locomotive.

In 1957 and 1958, the South African Railways placed forty-five Class 5E, Series 2 electric locomotives with a Bo-Bo wheel arrangement in mainline service.^[1]

Manufacturer

The 3 kV DC Class 5E, Series 2 electric locomotive was built for the South African Railways (SAR) by Vulcan Foundry (VF) on a sub-contract from English Electric (EE), who had designed the locomotive and supplied the electrical equipment. Forty-five series 2 locomotives were delivered and placed in service in 1957 and 1958, numbered in the range from E319 to E363.^[2][3]

Orientation

These dual cab locomotives have a roof access ladder on one side only, just to the right of the cab access door. The roof access ladder end is marked as the no. 2 end. A passage along the centre of the locomotive connects the cabs, which are identical, except that Cab 2 is where the handbrake is located.^[1]

Brakes

While the locomotive itself used air brakes, it was only equipped to operate trains with vacuum brakes. While hauling a train, the locomotive's air brake system would be made subordinate to the train's vacuum brake system and would come into operation as the vacuum brakes were being applied, gradually building up to its maximum of 350 kilopascals (51 pounds per square inch). While working a train downgrade, the locomotive's regenerative braking system would also work in conjunction with the train's vacuum brakes.

The locomotive's air brakes would usually only be used along with the train brakes during emergencies. Under normal circumstances the train would be controlled, using the train brakes alone to slow down and stop.

While the locomotive was stopped, the air brakes on each bogie could be applied independently. The handbrake or parking brake, located in Cab no. 2, only operated on the unit's last axle, or no. 7 and 8 wheels.

Class 5E series

The Class 5E was produced in three series, the EE and VF-built Series 1 and the VF-built Series 2 and Series 3. The VF-built locomotives all have a works number for EE as well as VF, since the order was placed with EE, who then subcontracted their construction to VF. Between 1955 and 1959, altogether 160 Class 5E locomotives were delivered, 60 Series 1, 45 Series 2 and 55 Series 3.^[2][1][3]

According to crews, the Class 5E gave a rough ride, which soon earned it the nickname balstamper. The successor Class 5E1, with its new design bogies, gave a smoother ride.

Legacy

The Class 5E introduced a locomotive body shape which eventually became the most prolific to ever run on South African rails, serving on all the 3 kV DC lines country-wide. The body shape and dimensions were continued with the Class 5E1 in 1959, the Class 6E and the Class 6E1 from 1969 to 1985, and still later with the rebuilding of Class 6E1 locomotives to Class 18E, a project which was begun in 2000.^[1][3][4]

Industrial service

Three Class 5E, Series 2 locomotives were sold into industrial service.

• No. E320 was sold to the Impala platinum mine in Rustenburg.
• No. E343 and E356 were sold to the Driefontein gold mine near Carletonville.^[2]

Works numbers

The EE and VF works numbers of the Class 5E, Series 2 and their disposal are shown in the table.^[2]

Illustration

The main picture shows Series 2 no. E326 and E319 and Series 1 no. E297, departing Touws River and heading northeast towards Beaufort West in September 1984. The following pictures depict the SAR Gulf Red and the Driefontein mine liveries. An overhead view of the locomotive is shown in a picture which was taken at an accident scene near Olifantsfontein in 1975.

• 
  No. E345 with Series 1 no. E295 in the Table Bay Docks, c. 1984
• 
  No. E348 wrecked near Olifantsfontein, Transvaal, c. July 1975
• 
  Driefontein Gold Mine no. 3, ex SAR no. E356, Carletonville, 21 January 2009

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to South African Class 5E Series 2.

Locomotives of South Africa
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Electric	Amcoal Class E38 SAR Class ES SAR Class ES1 SAR Class Exp-AC SAR Class 1E SAR Class 2E SAR Class 3E SAR Class 4E SAR Class 5E s1 SAR Class 5E s2 SAR Class 5E s3 SAR Class 5E1 s1 SAR Class 5E1 s2 SAR Class 5E1 s3 SAR Class 5E1 s4 SAR Class 5E1 s5 SAR Class 6E SAR Class 6E1 s1 SAR Class 6E1 s2 SAR Class 6E1 s3 SAR Class 6E1 s4 SAR Class 6E1 s5 SAR Class 6E1 s6 SAR Class 6E1 s7 SAR Class 6E1 s8 SAR Class 6E1 s9 SAR Class 6E1 s10 SAR Class 6E1 s11 SAR Class 7E SAR Class 7E1 SAR Class 7E2 s1 SAR Class 7E2 s2 SAR Class 7E3 s1 SAR Class 7E3 s2 Spoornet Class 7E4 SAR Class 8E SAR Class 9E s1 SAR Class 9E s2 SAR Class 10E SAR Class 10E1 s1 Spoornet Class 10E1 s2 SAR Class 10E2 SAR Class 11E SAR Class 12E Spoornet Class 14E Spoornet Class 14E1 TFR Class 15E Spoornet Class 16E Spoornet Class 17E Spoornet Class 18E s1 TFR Class 18E s2 TFR Class 19E TFR Class 20E TFR Class 21E TFR Class 22E
Gas-electric	SAR Gas-electric
Diesel	3' 6" 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 2' gauge Diesel-electric SAR Class 91-000 3' 6" gauge Diesel-hydraulic SAR Class 61-000 3' 6" gauge Electro-diesel Spoornet Class 38-000
List of South African locomotive classes South African locomotive numbering and classification