Climax Locomotive 1650 restored to steam after 68 years

[Mayner]

Visited the Bushtramway Club on their monthly operating day yesterday my first afternoon off in two years, the big surprise was to see Climax 1650 in steam operation double heading a passenger train.

The loco owned by a Trust was last steamed 65 years ago and recently won this years Federation of Railway Organisations of New Zealand restoration award.

Yeah the Climax was in steam, being a geared loco moving very slowly not showing smoke and steam as I toook the photo. I had last seen the loco un-restored about 12 years ago

The Climax locomotives were American manufactured geared locomotives capable of running on steeply graded, sharply curved, often temporary track once common on Logging Railroads or Bush Tramways (NZ) and once were a popular type on Bush Tramways.

1650 which was used on one of the last remaining  Central North Island bush tramway operations was rescued by a group of enthusiasts during the 1960s and restored to working order off site in a Central North Island general engineering workshop in the region where the loco formerly operated. 

Ironically I noticed a steam loco cab outside the workshop while working in the area but never drew the connection with the Climax or called in to have a look.

The Bush Tramway has a collection of ex-mail line and industrial locos (drawn from logging, dairy and meat processing industries) with a high proportion of the restoration work carried out in the railways own workshop.

Along with the Climax the Bushtramway Club has a collection of geared locos including a Heisler (American manufacture) and a couple of NZ built A G Price locos

The Heisler currently under overhaul is similar in general principal to a Climax but with the engine arranged in a V powering a driveshaft which transmits power to the bogies by sets of bevel gears at the outer end of the trucks (bogies) with coupling rods transmitting power to the wheels. The Heisler boiler is currenty offsite for major repairs.

A "Price B" the local equivalent of a "Climax A" powered by a vertical steam engine in the cab, boilers often un-lagged on NZ "Bush Lokies" This loco regularly ran up & down the Pukemiro station yard on operating days.

 

More conventional the NZR F Class 0-6-0ST the standard main line loco of the early years of the New Zealand railway system until replaced by increasingly larger locos as the system expanded and loads increased.

This loco 185 was sold into industrial service with one of the local coal mines and and the regular 'main line' loco on the Bushtramway during the 2000s but requires major boiler/firebox work.

[Mayner]

Some odd IC stuff too

Steam often replaced by "Tractors" manufactured by foundries in remote area's that once produced steam powered machinery for the mining and logging industries, this leading axle on this tractor would have been powered by a chain drive from the rear axle. Possibly from the Dispatch Foundry on the West Coast of the South Island and important mining area.

"White Jigger" or railtruck converted from a White Truck (US manufacturer) once used to transport workers on a bush tramway in the Central North Island, an extensive restoration was carried out by the owner in his own workshop. Truck is used to give passenger rides on operating days won a Weta Workshops award for Creativity in Restoration.  A second more ornate Chevvie truck required a more extensive restoration https://www.bushtramwayclub.com/locoimages/indexbushjiggers.html