Friends of the Rail Forum

Posted on behalf of the photographer, Dennis Mitchell:
12A Nr 1244 on the coalstage at Germiston, May 1977

This is a scene that Rich would be very familiar with!! 12A Nr 1244 defies gravity on the Germiston coalstage in May 1977. The bulk of the South African coalstages impressed us Our [Australian] coalstages were generally shunted by ancient (1870s) 0-6-0s that were only crewed by blokes that had their life insurance policies paid up!!)

I note she's going up stack first. I'm told that was also the normal practice at CPK. The water in the boiler thus safely covers the top of the firebox. At CPK nowadays the FOTR and Rovos Rail locos are usually stabled with the stack facing in the opposite direction, for operational reasons, so the loco has to go up the coal stage tender first. The fireman thus has to ensure a full boiler before commencing the climb.

What a great pic, we discussed the whole coal stage operation a few weeks ago and IMHO this pic is the punctuation mark on that discussion. It must be quite a scarey trip up there, all that distance to the bottom and no soft landing at all.
Its ironic too that Germiston still has a class 12AR even though the stage is long gone.
Oh, check out that guards van in the background, now thats a wagon I would love to see once again, they were beautiful old classics.

Derek, there are still a few of these guardsvans around. Whether any have been preserved is unknown. At some stage preservation will focus on freight rolling stock, before that also disappears.

Witbank Coalstage still stands. Maybe it should be dismantled and taken elsewhere for preservation.

Witbank deserves preservation ahead of many others. It is a genuine CSAR original, not a later SAR model.

And I'm sure FOTR would be very happy to give the Witbank coal stage a new home at our Hermanstad site - if someone can get permission from TFR and provide the necessary funds to dismantle, transport and reassemble it...

Good idea. Can someone confirm that its still at Witbank?

John Ashworth wrote:I note she's going up stack first. I'm told that was also the normal practice at CPK. The water in the boiler thus safely covers the top of the firebox. At CPK nowadays the FOTR and Rovos Rail locos are usually stabled with the stack facing in the opposite direction, for operational reasons, so the loco has to go up the coal stage tender first. The fireman thus has to ensure a full boiler before commencing the climb.

What's the gradient up the coal stage? Tender first running up a steep grade does take a steady nerve.

No-one's mentioned the common trick of getting to the top of the coalstage and then casually asking the new trainee fireman to go and fetch a can of oil or some such item - Driver and fireman watch very carefully to see that he doesn't actually jump off the footplate but nevertheless roar with laughter if he looks like taking them seriously.

Martin, (whose first day at Sydenham began with the loco disposal crew proposing to teach me Afrikaans, "Right, well we'd better start with the swear words. They're essential." As a result one or two still come out occasionally even thirty-plus years later and back in the UK.)

This is a 12R.

The Witbank stage still stands. It is one of the aims of HRASA/SIA to save it.

Brendon, I don't know what the gradient is, but I'd be interested to hear from somebody who does know. You're right, it does take a steady nerve! The water in the gauge glass just keeps going down and down and you're afraid it will never stop. It's especially difficult with our domeless Dolly, as you try not to overfill her boiler to avoid priming. On the 24 it's a little easier.

Martin, the first Afrikaans words I was taught on the footplate were, "Fokken Engelsman is kak" (am I allowed to say that on the forum?). After that they started teaching me the bad words...

Just for interest sake, did you all know that the forma Germiston Depot coal-stage was a double track coal stage! Our dear friend Rich, would of course confirm this with one of his outlandish Germiston Depot rail-tales!!!

The ramp up the coal stage was a single line, but as the line crested the coal-stage at the top, as set of points was located, just on the start of the level - which of courses was set by the coal stage staff and determine where the AY's, AZ's, DZ's or B-Bogie wagons would be stopped for off-loading of the necessary coal supplies!

It's a pity that a few years back, it was decided by a high authority to have the coal stage cut-down for scrap, and the near-by ash-pit lines lifted!

Derek Walker wrote;

Oh, check out that guards van in the background, now thats a wagon I would love to see once again, they were beautiful old classics.

I could not agree more with you Derek - I too seem to have some small affection for those vans, the short bogie and long bogie ones!

Dylan wrote:

Derek, there are still a few of these guardsvans around. Whether any have been preserved is unknown. At some stage preservation will focus on freight rolling stock, before that also disappears.

I think that freight rolling stock also need to come into the spot light of saving as well and pretty soon too! We all know Geoff Pethic has done marvellous work in this particular field in the past, and I would ask him again, if he could assist the "Heritage" / Rail Tourism groups is preserving more freight and other passenger rolling stock, obviously to the benefit of groups at are within the HRASA & SIA alliance!
These preserved fright vehicles and other passenger rolling stock would be beneficial if fully restored to mainline condition, and more than likely be used by both local and international photographic charters groups to re-create period looking train loads for a particular railway line or section!

In previous postings by Derek, Dylan and I, we made mention of Guards vans!

I recently recieved a request in a personal e-mail for detail photographs of the different types of wooden bodied guards vans. I have looked around on the net, and have found a few, unfortunitly most of them taken from a distance and thus shows very little "real" detail!If anybody has pictures of these vehicles, detailed pics, and you don't mind sharing your pictures with us all, please place your pictures on the forum, within the correct sub-forum, kindly please.

Does anybody know of wooden bodied Guards vans, that are still left from days gone by in the Gauteng area? It would be appreciated if you could also supply deatailed location/s of these vehicles?
I may need to photograph the remains of what is left!

Thank you!

There are a few for sale at bid or buy at the moment, Lima models that is, not the real thing. The Lima model was slightly out of proportion though.

Thanks Derek! Did come across those adverts, during my searching of the net! They certainly won't help! I'm in need of the real one's, or at least decent pictures of them (ie. front, back and sides).

Thanks - anyaway!