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Indian locomotive class HP

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BESA class HP
HPS 24467 on display at the National Rail Museum, New Delhi.
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
DesignerBritish Engineering Standards Association
BuilderVulcan Foundry
North British Locomotive Co.
Robert Stephenson & Co.
Kitson & Co.
William Beardmore & Co.
Build date1906-1950
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte4-6-0
 • UIC2′C n2
Gauge1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)
Leading dia.3 ft 7 in (1,092 mm)
Driver dia.74 in (1,880 mm)
Wheelbase:​
 • Leading7 ft 0 in (2,134 mm)
 • Coupled6 ft 9 in (2,057 mm)
 • incl. tenderVariant with 3000 gallon tender: 50 ft 7 1 ⁄ 2  in (15,430 mm)
Length:
​
 • Over buffersVariant with 3000 gallon tender: 60 ft 9 3 ⁄ 4  in (18,535 mm)
Width9 ft 6 in (2,896 mm)
Height13 ft 6 in (4,115 mm)
Axle load16.8 long tons (17.1 t)
Service weightwith 3000 gallon tender: 107 t
with 4000 gallon tender: 113 t
with 4500 gallon tender: 126 t
Water cap.3,000 or 4,000 or 4,500 imperial gallons (14,000 or 18,000 or 20,000 L; 3,600 or 4,800 or 5,400 US gal)
Firebox:​
 • TypeBelpaire
 • Grate area32 sq ft (3.0 m)
Boiler pressure180 psi (12.4 bar; 12.7 kgf/cm)
Heating surface:​
 • Tubes1,880 sq ft (175 m)
 • Total surface2,037 sq ft (189.2 m)
CylindersTwo, outside
Cylinder size20 in × 26 in (508 mm × 660 mm)
Valve gearWalschaerts
Valve typeSlide (HP class)
Piston (HPS/HPC class)
Performance figures
Tractive effortStarting:
  • 11.2 bar boiler pressure: 101 kN (23,000 lbf)
  • 9.3 bar boiler pressure: 84 kN (19,000 lbf)
Career
Operators
LocaleBritish Raj (until 1947)
India (from 1947)
Pakistan (from 1947)
Bangladesh (from 1971)
Retired1980s-early 1990s
Preserved2 (India)
1 (Bangladesh)
DispositionThree preserved, remainder scrapped

The Class HP (Heavy Passenger) was a 4-6-0 broad gauge passenger steam locomotive introduced in 1906 on the railways of British India. It was one of the BESA locomotives developed by the British Engineering Standards Committee, later called the British Engineering Standards Association (BESA).

History

The HP class passenger locomotive was first catalogued in the BESA report on standard locomotive classes for the British Raj of 1907. Like the AP class, the HP was provided with three different tenders: a small one holding 3000 gallons of water, a medium tender holding 4000, and a large tender holding 4500.

The HP class locomotives were delivered to various railways, but only the Indian States Railways (ISR)-operated railways referred to them as the HP class. They were built by several British locomotive manufacturers, including the Vulcan Foundry, Robert Stephenson and Company, North British Locomotive Company, Kitson and Company and William Beardmore and Company.

A later, superheated version was fitted with a Schmidt superheater and classified as HPS (the S means superheated). Retrofitted HPs with superheaters were classified as HPC (the C means converted).

  • Variant with 3000 gallon tender Variant with 3000 gallon tender
  • Variant with 4000 gallon tender Variant with 4000 gallon tender
  • Variant with 4500 gallon tender Variant with 4500 gallon tender

Design

The locomotives were designed with two cylinders, a Belpaire firebox, and used saturated steam. The grate was arranged between the two rear coupled wheelsets, which had their wheel base lengths increased to accommodate the grate. The cylinders were fitted on the outside and the motion was driven from the second driving wheel. The saturated HPs were fitted with Walschaerts valve gear with slide valves; piston valves were used in the HPS and HPC classes. The running board was positioned low, so splashers had to be fitted above the driving wheels. As with the AP class locomotives, the cab running board is positioned to match the height of the tender running board, and the cab running board also arcs up to the locomotive running board. A small pilot was attached to the front buffer beam. The driver's cab was completely enclosed with a half-cab on the tender. The tender was equipped with running boards and handrails along the side walls, which made it possible to reach the train from the locomotive while running.

Preservation

Three HPS class locomotives have been preserved:

Working Class Number Location Built Zone Builders Build No Name
No HPS 30 Rajshahi Railway HQ
No HPS 32 Regional Rail Museum Howrah ER
No HPS 24467 National Rail Museum 1950 RB Vulcan Foundry Ltd, Newton Le Willows
  • Preserved Bangladesh Railway HPS Preserved Bangladesh Railway HPS
  • Preserved HPS in the National Rail Museum of India Preserved HPS in the National Rail Museum of India

References

  1. Second report of the Locomotive committee on standard locomotives for Indian railways. February 1907. pp. 4–5. Retrieved August 31, 2024.
  2. Llanso, Steve. "Great Indian Peninsula 4-6-0 Locomotives in India". SteamLocomotive.com. Sweat House Media. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
  3. Hughes 1979, p. 18.
  4. J. Stuart (1907). "North British Locomotive Company Glasgow (NBL) L294, Indian State Railway (ISR)-East Bengal Railway 234" (in German). Zurich: ETH Library. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
  5. Schneider, Torsten. "Preserved Steam Locomotives in Bangladesh". International Steam Pages. Retrieved August 28, 2017.
  6. Hughes 1979, p. 91.

External links

Broad-gauge locomotives of India
Steam
BESA designs
IRS designs
World War II designs
IGR standard designs



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