The motive power roster attempts to replicate the locomotives that could be seen operating through Ballarat during 1982 and 1983.
Significant changes occurred during this period, some B class were painted teacup orange and silver while others were withdrawn for rebuilding into the A class. The much maligned W class diesel hydraulics that had performed the shunting in and around the Ballarat area for many years were progressively withdrawn, replaced by more reliable and higher horsepower Y class.
In August 1983 V/Line was launched and locomotives started emerging from the workshops in V/Line orange and grey. Although C class had been running to Adelaide, through running hadn't been introduced in Victoria. Alco 942 was sent to Victoria for trials and crew training in August. By years end the first stage of CTC west of Ararat had been commissioned and longer Jet's commenced together with through running of 930 class (initially as second unit to X's on the Overland).
B class
Introduced in 1952 as the VR's first mainline diesel, the B class were utilised in all types of service across the state. The flexibility of the double ended design, saw the B class run very high mileages with most having run between 5 and 5.5 million kilometres by the early 80's.
Nine B class (B64, B68, B69, B74, B80, B81, B82, B83, B84) had been painted in the VicRail orange and silver scheme to match the new N cars (often referred to as the teacup or pudding bowl scheme). During 1983 three B class were withdrawn (B60 in Feb 83, B85 in Mar, B62 in Oct) stripped of parts and sent west to join B71, B73 and B77 at the Clyde plant at Rosewater for rebuilding into A class. In August, B84 was painted an all over orange scheme for the official launch of V/Line.
During 1983 Ballarat and Horsham passenger trains were almost exclusive hauled by B class. The B's shared duties with X class hauling the Vinelander and were regularly rostered on freight trains on both the Serviceton and Mildura lines.
The fleet includes 7 B class (B60, B61, B65, B68 (tea-cup), B69 (tea-cup) and B72, B81 (tea-cup)) all except B68 are kit-bashed from Lima S class (prior to the release of the Lima model of the B class).
C class
Introduced in 1977 as the VR's first turbocharged diesel, the C class were utilised to haul heavy goods trains on the Serviceton and North-east standard gauge lines. The C class were restricted to a top speed of 80km/h and were the VR's first diesels to be fitted with train radios. In 1982 the 4 C class on standard gauge were converted to broad gauge to operate with the other C's on the western line.
During 1983 the C hauled the majority of interstate goods trains (either solo or in multiple with other classes) and were involved in through running into South Australia. In July cracks were detected in the underframes of the C class, which saw a number sidelined until repairs could be made. Both C501 and C502 were repainted during 1983, the only C's to be repainted in blue and gold. Upgrading of the Portland line saw C's employed in moving block grain trains to the port for 1983/84 harvest.
There are 5 C class on the roster C501, C503 (V/line), C504, C505 and C507. All are Austrains models (except for C504 which is an Austrain's body on an Athearn mechanism and C505 which is a kitbashed Athearn body on an Atlas mechanism (built back in 1983!).
F class
Being a fan of English Electric locomotives, I have included one on the roster, even though they didn't operate at Ballarat in the 1980's. F212 is used as the pilot at Ballarat North Railway Workshops. There is also a stripped shell of a F class on the scrap road at the workshops replicating one I photographed at Newport in 1984.
S class
The S class were an improvement on a B class and featured one cab with a more modern engine (567C), producing 1,800hp. There single cab restricted there use to the mainlines and to locations where turning facilities were available.
During 1983 the Overland was almost exclusive hauled by S class and third series X class. The S's shared duties with the X class on Dimboola passenger trains (at the time it was not uncommon for the same locomotive to be rostered on this train for a week). The S class (in multiple with other classes) were also regularly rostered on Express goods and grain trains. S300, S315 and S311 were repainted in blue and gold for use on the royal train to Ballarat in April 1983.
There are 8 S class on the roster S300, S305, S307, S308, S310, S311, S312 and S313. All are Lima models painted blue and gold except S310 which is in V/Line colours.
X class
During 1983 the Overland was almost exclusive hauled by third series X and S class. The 3rd series X's shared duties with the S class on Dimboola passenger trains and were regularly rostered on Western line express goods trains. The first and second series X class shared duties with B class hauling the Vinelander and freight trains on the Mildura line.
Hiring of Western Australian L class and Australian National GM class from Oct and Nov 1983, released the 5 X's on the standard gauge (X44, 46, 51, 52 and 54) back to broad gauge for the bumper 1983/84 grain harvest.
There are 4 X class on the roster, X31, X32 (V/line), X40 and X48. X31, X40 and X48 are Northern Models bodies (with either Athearn or Mashina mechanisms), while X32 is from Austrains.
Y class were employed on pilot duties around Ballarat and roadside goods to Ararat and Maryborough. They also share duties with T class on branchline goods trains on the Skipton and Newlyn lines that originated from Ballarat.
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There are three 930 class on the roster, 934, 942 and 957. 934 and 957 Are Trainorama models, while 942 is a modified Lima 44 class.
Significant changes occurred during this period, some B class were painted teacup orange and silver while others were withdrawn for rebuilding into the A class. The much maligned W class diesel hydraulics that had performed the shunting in and around the Ballarat area for many years were progressively withdrawn, replaced by more reliable and higher horsepower Y class.
In August 1983 V/Line was launched and locomotives started emerging from the workshops in V/Line orange and grey. Although C class had been running to Adelaide, through running hadn't been introduced in Victoria. Alco 942 was sent to Victoria for trials and crew training in August. By years end the first stage of CTC west of Ararat had been commissioned and longer Jet's commenced together with through running of 930 class (initially as second unit to X's on the Overland).
A Class
The A class were an extensive rebuild of B class undertaken by Clyde at there Rosewater plant in South Australia. . The rebuild involved a 50% increase in power with a turbo charged EMD 12-645E3B engine producing 2,250hp replacing the original EMD 16-567B of 1,650hp. EMD Dash-2 electrical equipment was fitted with improved air filtering and crew comfort was improved with cab air-conditioning and a better driving position.
During 1983 three B class were withdrawn (B60 in Feb 83, B85 in Mar, B62 in Oct) stripped of parts and sent west to join B71, B73 and B77 at the Clyde plant at Rosewater for rebuilding.
The first unit completed A73, commenced its delivery run on 19th December 1983, Vibration, cab noise and other issues saw A73 returned to Clyde at Rosewater for adjustments in February 1984. After modification it was returned to Victoria with the second rebuild A71 on 20th March 1984.
Extensive testing and driver training was undertaken before the A73 and A71 entered service in May 1984. Initially the A class were used on Albury and Bendigo passenger trains. During the second half of 1984, A85 was regularly rostered on the Vinelander.
The original plan was to convert all 26 B class but the program was stopped after 11, instead the N class order was extended by 15 locomotives.
There are two A class in the fleet, A73 and A85, both are Northern Models bodies.
B class
Introduced in 1952 as the VR's first mainline diesel, the B class were utilised in all types of service across the state. The flexibility of the double ended design, saw the B class run very high mileages with most having run between 5 and 5.5 million kilometres by the early 80's.
Nine B class (B64, B68, B69, B74, B80, B81, B82, B83, B84) had been painted in the VicRail orange and silver scheme to match the new N cars (often referred to as the teacup or pudding bowl scheme). During 1983 three B class were withdrawn (B60 in Feb 83, B85 in Mar, B62 in Oct) stripped of parts and sent west to join B71, B73 and B77 at the Clyde plant at Rosewater for rebuilding into A class. In August, B84 was painted an all over orange scheme for the official launch of V/Line.
During 1983 Ballarat and Horsham passenger trains were almost exclusive hauled by B class. The B's shared duties with X class hauling the Vinelander and were regularly rostered on freight trains on both the Serviceton and Mildura lines.
The fleet includes 7 B class (B60, B61, B65, B68 (tea-cup), B69 (tea-cup) and B72, B81 (tea-cup)) all except B68 are kit-bashed from Lima S class (prior to the release of the Lima model of the B class).
C class
During 1983 the C hauled the majority of interstate goods trains (either solo or in multiple with other classes) and were involved in through running into South Australia. In July cracks were detected in the underframes of the C class, which saw a number sidelined until repairs could be made. Both C501 and C502 were repainted during 1983, the only C's to be repainted in blue and gold. Upgrading of the Portland line saw C's employed in moving block grain trains to the port for 1983/84 harvest.
There are 5 C class on the roster C501, C503 (V/line), C504, C505 and C507. All are Austrains models (except for C504 which is an Austrain's body on an Athearn mechanism and C505 which is a kitbashed Athearn body on an Atlas mechanism (built back in 1983!).
F class
Built by the Dick Kerr Works in the United Kingdom, the F class were the VR's first diesels entering service in 1951. They were used for shunting around Melbourne, Geelong, Bendigo, Seymour and Wodonga. The last 6 in the class were purchased second hand from the State Electricity Commision.
The F class were living on borrowed time by 1983, with the majority of class having been withdrawn during 1981 and 1982. At the start of 1983 the only F's in active service were F201, F208 and F215 at Dynon South, F202 and F216 at Newport Workshops and F211 and F212 at Geelong. By April F215 had been set-aside for scrap leaving only 6 in service.
S class
The S class were an improvement on a B class and featured one cab with a more modern engine (567C), producing 1,800hp. There single cab restricted there use to the mainlines and to locations where turning facilities were available.
During 1983 the Overland was almost exclusive hauled by S class and third series X class. The S's shared duties with the X class on Dimboola passenger trains (at the time it was not uncommon for the same locomotive to be rostered on this train for a week). The S class (in multiple with other classes) were also regularly rostered on Express goods and grain trains. S300, S315 and S311 were repainted in blue and gold for use on the royal train to Ballarat in April 1983.
There are 8 S class on the roster S300, S305, S307, S308, S310, S311, S312 and S313. All are Lima models painted blue and gold except S310 which is in V/Line colours.
T class
The T class were VR's most numerous diesel loco class and were delivered in 5 orders in 4 different body styles over a 13 year period from 1955 to 1968. The T class were the VR's primary branchline loco and could be found all over the state.
The T's share duties with Y class on branchline goods trains on the Skipton and Newlyn lines that originated from Ballarat, They were regularly rostered with the B and X class hauling the Vinelander and freight trains on the Mildura line. On the Serviceton line, the T class were employed on everything from a roadside goods to use in multiple unit lashups with mainline locomotives on an interstate express goods.
There are currently 11 T class on the roster, T321, T331, T342, T354, T356, T359, T367, T386, T381, T388 and T401. They are a mixed group, T321 is from Bendigo Models, T342 is an early casting of unknown origin, T331 is a Black Diamond Models repowered with an Athearn mechanism. T354 is a whitemetal Trainworld model from the 1980s with a rebuilt body (to the correct width). T359 and T386 are Powerline models. T356, T381, T388 and T401 are all scratchbuilt bodies on Athearn SW1500 mechanisms. All except T386 are painted blue and gold.
Built at Tullochs Ltd in N.S.W, they featured Mercedes Benz diesel engines and Krupp transmissions. The Mercedes Benz engines proved to be maintenance intensive and to improve their reliability 10 W's were fitted with GM diesel engines between 1973 and 1977 (indentified by the higher long end hood and an extra exhaust stack).
X class
During 1983 the Overland was almost exclusive hauled by third series X and S class. The 3rd series X's shared duties with the S class on Dimboola passenger trains and were regularly rostered on Western line express goods trains. The first and second series X class shared duties with B class hauling the Vinelander and freight trains on the Mildura line.
Hiring of Western Australian L class and Australian National GM class from Oct and Nov 1983, released the 5 X's on the standard gauge (X44, 46, 51, 52 and 54) back to broad gauge for the bumper 1983/84 grain harvest.
There are 4 X class on the roster, X31, X32 (V/line), X40 and X48. X31, X40 and X48 are Northern Models bodies (with either Athearn or Mashina mechanisms), while X32 is from Austrains.
Y class
Designed for branchline and shunting duties, thr Y class were the second largest class of diesels on the Victorian Railways. The first 50 were equipped with 6 cylinder E.M.D. 567 engines, with the last 25 having 6 cylinder E.M.D 645 engines. A feature of the Y class was the use of bogies with GE traction motors that came off scrapped swing door motors. The controls were specially designed for shunting, with the loco brake being "self lapping" which provided for instantaneous brake action.
Y150 to Y154 had been allocated to Ballarat in 1983, largely replacing the W class on pilot duties.
There are 7 Y class on the roster, Y111, Y150, Y151, Y152, Y153, Y170 and Y175. All are scratch built bodies on either Athearn or Proto-2000 SW1000 or SW1500 mechanisms.
930 class
930 class
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Built by AE Goodwin for the South Australian Railways the first six single ended 930's were delivered in 1955 and 1956 to operate over the steeply graded Adelaide to Tailem Bend line and onwards to Serviceton. A further 31 double ended examples entered service between July 1957 and June 1967 and operated across the broad gauge network. The double ended locomotives had a "bulldog nose" at one end, and a flat end at the other.
Alco 942 was sent to Victoria for trials and crew training in August and October. Through running of 930 class as second unit to X's on the Overland commenced in November 1983.
There are three 930 class on the roster, 934, 942 and 957. 934 and 957 Are Trainorama models, while 942 is a modified Lima 44 class.
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