BHP NEWCASTLE 32 CLASS

Specifications
Specifications
Configuration:;
• UIC	Bo-Bo
Gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Wheel diameter	33 in (838 mm)
Minimum curve	75 ft 0 in (22.86 m)
Length	38 ft 10 in (11.84 m)
Width	9 ft 9 in (2,972 mm)
Height	13 ft 11 in (4,242 mm)
Fuel type	Diesel
Fuel capacity	400 imp gal; (1,800 L; 480 US gal)
Lubricant cap.	100 imp gal; (450 L; 120 US gal)
Coolant cap.	80 imp gal; (360 L; 96 US gal)
Sandbox cap.	12 cu ft (0.34 m3)
Prime mover	Cooper Bessemer FWL-6-T
RPM range	350-1010
Engine type	4 stroke, 6 in line, diesel
Aspiration	Turbocharged
Generator	General Electric GT-571
Traction motors	4 off General Electric GE-747
Cylinders	6
Cylinder size	9 in × 10.5 in; (230 mm × 270 mm); bore x stroke
Loco brake	Westinghouse A7; Railway air brake
Train brakes	Westinghouse AH7

Type and origin
Type and origin
Power type	Diesel-electric
Builder	A Goninan & Co, Broadmeadow
Model	General Electric 70 Ton switcher
Build date	1954-56
Total produced	5

BHP Newcastle 32 class
BHP Newcastle 32 class
	34 at Richmond Vale Railway Museum; in September 2000
Power type
Type and origin
Power type	Diesel-electric
Builder	A Goninan & Co, Broadmeadow
Model	General Electric 70 Ton switcher
Build date	1954-56
Total produced	5
Configuration:;
Specifications
Configuration:;
• UIC	Bo-Bo
Gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Wheel diameter	33 in (838 mm)
Minimum curve	75 ft 0 in (22.86 m)
Length	38 ft 10 in (11.84 m)
Width	9 ft 9 in (2,972 mm)
Height	13 ft 11 in (4,242 mm)
Fuel type	Diesel
Fuel capacity	400 imp gal; (1,800 L; 480 US gal)
Lubricant cap.	100 imp gal; (450 L; 120 US gal)
Coolant cap.	80 imp gal; (360 L; 96 US gal)
Sandbox cap.	12 cu ft (0.34 m3)
Prime mover	Cooper Bessemer FWL-6-T
RPM range	350-1010
Engine type	4 stroke, 6 in line, diesel
Aspiration	Turbocharged
Generator	General Electric GT-571
Traction motors	4 off General Electric GE-747
Cylinders	6
Cylinder size	9 in × 10.5 in; (230 mm × 270 mm); bore x stroke
Loco brake	Westinghouse A7; Railway air brake
Train brakes	Westinghouse AH7
Power output
Performance figures
Power output	Gross:; 627 hp (470 kW),; For traction:; 600 hp (450 kW)
Operators
Career
Operators	BHP Newcastle Steelworks
Number in class	5
Numbers	32-36
Preserved	32, 34
Disposition	2 preserved, 3 scrapped

The BHP Newcastle 32 class were a class of diesel locomotives built by A Goninan & Co, Broadmeadow for the BHP, Newcastle Steelworks between 1954 and 1956.

History

In 1954 BHP took delivery of three GE 70-ton switchers for use on its Newcastle Steelworks network from A Goninan & Co, Broadmeadow with a further two delivered in 1956.^[1]^[2]

Locomotive	Builder's No	Entered service	Withdrawn	Notes
32	1/S0001	Jul 1954	Aug 1986	preserved on static display at the Richmond Vale Railway Museum
33	2/S0002	Aug 1954	Feb 1987	-
34	3/S0003	Dec 1954	Jan 1990	stored at the Richmond Vale Railway Museum
35	10/S3006	Dec 1956	Aug 1988	-
36	11/S3007	Dec 1956	Jun 1985	-

^ Australian-Built Shunting Locomotive Diesel Railway Traction January 1955 page 10
^ Oberg, Leon (1984). Locomotives of Australia 1850s – 1980s. Frenchs Forest: Reed Books. p. 218. ISBN 0-730100-05-7.

Men, Steel and Rails by David Jehan 1999, Published by BHP ISBN 1-876634-09-X
Australian Diesel Scene 5 2002, Published by Eveleigh Press ISBN 1-876568-23-2
Specification sheet ex BHP Newcastle Steelworks diesel shop
Steel and Rails in Newcastle, by Keith McDonald 1981, Published by Light Railway Research Society of Australia ISBN 0-909340-15-3