NZR D class (1929)

The NZR D class of 1929 comprised one 0-4-0 tank locomotive that was built for the New Zealand Railways Department by the Clayton Wagons Ltd in Lincoln, England.

History
Originally, D 1 was purchased for railcar type service but it was not successful. It had a White-Forster type boiler designed for a working pressure of 300 psi, had four vertical cylinders housed in the rear of the cab and was high geared. At a normal engine speed of 400 rpm, the unit was calculated to develop 200 hp. The engine drove a central transverse jackshaft through reduction gearing, the drive from the jackshaft being transmitted to the wheels through conventional side rods.

Working Life
On arrival in New Zealand, D 1 was found to be more than 25 percent heavier than the specified maximum of 20 LT and after trials in Wellington was allocated for use as a shunting engine at the Ōtāhuhu workshops. However it never proved satisfactory and was written off in 1936 and scrapped and D 1 did not survive to be preserved.