Information | |
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Number built: | 10 |
Built: | 1958-60 (Electric locomotives) 1967-68 (Rebuilds) |
Builder: | BR Doncaster, rebuilds at BR Crewe |
Engine: | 4 EE532A traction motors (750v DC third rail) Paxman 6YJXL diesel |
Power: | 2, 300 hp (1, 715 kW) electric 650 hp (485 kW) diesel |
Wheel arrangement: | Bo-Bo |
While the Class 74 seemed a great idea the execution let it down. The conversions were not simple with a lot of modifications and strengthening needed to fit the additional equipment [2]. Reliability in the early days was poor, the Paxman diesel not being as reliable as the English Electric unit in the Class 73, there were numerous problems with the complicated control equipment (the Class 74s were test beds for new thyristor controls [3]) and crews disliked the noise of the engine due to the location of the engine silencer near the cab.
By the late 1970s SR saw it had enough Class 33s and 73s to cover traffic requirements and the Class 74s were withdrawn by 1977 as non-standard. All have been scrapped though a Class 71 has been preserved.
74 009, location unknown (KD Collection) |
[1] Brian Haresnape, Electric Locomotives (Ian Allan, 1983) p. 78
[2] David Brown, Southern Electric Vol 2 (Capital Transport, 2010) p. 220
[3] R.L. Vickers, DC Electric Trains and Locomotives in the British Isles (David & Charles, 1983) p. 81