Sri Lankan Railways - Locomotives

[sathyajithj99]

Class M1 Made in England 1000hp .Not in use

Class M4 Made in Canada 1750hp

Class M3 Assembled in Sri Lanka

Edited February 25, 2015 by sathyajithj99

[sathyajithj99]

Class M2 Made in Canada 1425hp

Edited February 25, 2015 by sathyajithj99

[sathyajithj99]

Class M5 Made in Japan 1150hp

[sathyajithj99]

Class M6 Made in Germany 1650hp (mostly used in hill country)

[bycap]

Different topic

There is a saying that " ali balillai, bali balillai epa wenne na"

meaning, you can stare at an elephant for a long time. you won't get bored.

For me, locomotives are same as Ali. I used to stare at them and never bored. Still dreaming to go on a locomotive in hill country. without any "connection" it seems quite impossible.

[sathyajithj99]

Different topic

There is a saying that " ali balillai, bali balillai epa wenne na"

meaning, you can stare at an elephant for a long time. you won't get bored.

For me, locomotives are same as Ali. I used to stare at them and never bored. Still dreaming to go on a locomotive in hill country. without any "connection" it seems quite impossible.

True Bycap, but it won't be easy to go on a train which is hauled by one of these locomotives these days. Both Udarata Menike and Podi Menike are replaced by some Chinese powersets

Edited February 25, 2015 by sathyajithj99

[MasterDon]

Nice topic.I've always liked train engines.Please keep updating with more pics and info.

[Crosswind]

Looks like we go a rail enthusiast in here. There are dedicated sites on locomotives on Sri Lankan tracks. Such as this one.

Class M1 was made by Brush Locomotives, UK which is now defunct. There was one surviving engine in Sri Lanka, which was planned to be restored by a group of enthusiasts about 10 years ago but I don't know what happened to that project.

Class M2 (General Motors Canada) was imported to Sri Lanka in 1955 or so. 60 years later, those engines are still running, except for the one blown up by the LTTE ("Sasketchewan"). The running ones include the engine that was washed off in the 2004 Tsunami ("Manitoba"). If you see a train engine with a wave painted on it, that's Manitoba. Not even a tsunami can destroy these engines.

Class M3 was a failed local project. Nuff said

Class M4 (Bombardier, USA) is too long for most of Sri Lankan tracks. They run mostly down south and to Puttalam

Class M5 is quite common on the upcountry track because of its shorter wheelbase.

Class M6 has two types. Ones with and without electric traction. Most of those are now re-engined with Mercedes-Benz (Adtranz) engines.

Class M7 was imported when Queen Elizabeth visited Sri Lanka in early 80s. Hideously noisy, underpowered and smoky engines.

Class M8 and M10 were imported from India.

Class M9 (Alstom) was the worst blunder ever made by the railway authorities in Sri Lanka. There's a lot of criticism about these but the biggest problem was they were too advanced for our railway people. If you compare an M9 with an M2, its like comparing a Morris Minor with a modern Mercedes. And our railway staff simply didnt want to upgrade their skills. For example, when the M9 senses a derailment, it automatically brakes and stops the engine, saving thousands of lives. Our retards didnt appreciate its features and said its having 'electronic problems'.

Edited February 25, 2015 by Crosswind

[sathyajithj99]

Class M7 Made in England 1000hp

[sathyajithj99]

Looks like we go a rail enthusiast in here. There are dedicated sites on locomotives on Sri Lankan tracks. Such as this one.

Class M1 was made by Brush Locomotives, UK which is now defunct. There was one surviving engine in Sri Lanka, which was planned to be restored by a group of enthusiasts about 10 years ago but I don't know what happened to that project.

Class M2 (General Motors Canada) was imported to Sri Lanka in 1955 or so. 60 years later, those engines are still running, except for the one blown up by the LTTE ("Sasketchewan"). The running ones include the engine that was washed off in the 2004 Tsunami ("Manitoba"). If you see a train engine with a wave painted on it, that's Manitoba. Not even a tsunami can destroy these engines.

Class M3 was a failed local project. Nuff said

Class M4 (Bombardier, USA) is too long for most of Sri Lankan tracks. They run mostly down south and to Puttalam

Class M5 is quite common on the upcountry track because of its shorter wheelbase.

Class M6 has two types. Ones with and without electric traction. Most of those are now re-engined with Mercedes-Benz (Adtranz) engines.

Class M7 was imported when Queen Elizabeth visited Sri Lanka in early 80s. Hideously noisy, underpowered and smoky engines.

Class M8 and M10 were imported from India.

Class M9 (Alstom) was the worst blunder ever made by the railway authorities in Sri Lanka. There's a lot of criticism about these but the biggest problem was they were too advanced for our railway people. If you compare an M9 with an M2, its like comparing a Morris Minor with a modern Mercedes. And our railway staff simply didnt want to upgrade their skills. For example, when the M9 senses a derailment, it automatically brakes and stops the engine, saving thousands of lives. Our retards didnt appreciate its features and said its having 'electronic problems'.

Thanks for the explanation Crosswind

Nice topic.I've always liked train engines.Please keep updating with more pics and info.

Sure MasterDon

[sathyajithj99]

Class M8 Made in India (looks cheap, isn't it? lol) but 2800hp

[Crosswind]

I dont think we will have anymore M-class locomotives because the current tendency is to go for powersets, due to their quick turnaround, quick acceleration, short stopping distance and cost of course. My personal favourite is the S10 powerset (made by China Southern Railway). I was a frequent railway commuter about 6-7 years ago. There was one non-stop S10 plying from Ragama to Colombo Fort, which took less than 10 minutes to get from Ragama to Dematagoda.

@Sathyajithj99 - M8 is a copy of ALCO Bombardier. Indian Railways made it under license from ALCO

And one more interesting piece of information. All the S9, S10 and S12 can be readily converted to electric because they anyway work with electric traction. A bit similar to our hybrid cars but without the battery bank. In this case, the engine powers a generator, which powers a number of traction motors. But the trouble is, our railway network has very low tunnels and overhead bridges. So sadly, we might not see electric trains on our existing lines anytime soon.

Edited February 25, 2015 by Crosswind

[sathyajithj99]

Class M9 Made in France Imported due to one of our CBK madam's ideas. Few are operational due to lack of facilities and knowledge to repair. 1800hp derated from 3220hp

[tuner88]

keep it up nice thread, i also prefer Mathara train starting from Kandy, 5:10 AM , even there are Intercity Buses and also another Intercity Train around 6am something , i'll upload some pics later which i took near Mount-Lavinia

Edited February 25, 2015 by tuner88

[sathyajithj99]

Class M10 Latest loco in CGR Made in India 2300hp

[sathyajithj99]

I dont think we will have anymore M-class locomotives because the current tendency is to go for powersets, due to their quick turnaround, quick acceleration, short stopping distance and cost of course. My personal favourite is the S10 powerset (made by China Southern Railway). I was a frequent railway commuter about 6-7 years ago. There was one non-stop S10 plying from Ragama to Colombo Fort, which took approximately 10 minutes to get from Ragama to Dematagoda.

@Sathyajithj99 - M8 is a copy of ALCO Bombardier. Indian Railways made it under license from ALCO

S10 Chinese powerset-

[Ruslan]

Class M7 Made in England 1000hp

Interesting Topic, Always had a Soft spot on for Locos. This M7 is originally for Shunting works (to Move carriages here and there in a Rail yard) now using for Hauling trains as well.

[tuner88]

[bycap]

are all the engines have a plate mentioning its class ?

and what is the "Power Set" ? is it a full train including Loco and compartments.

I remember there were some arguments about newly imported engines and compartments. claiming they are bit high and not match to SL platforms.

Donno about the durability of Chinese ones, but their seat are comfy compared to old ones.

I used to argue with others whether Express ways are worth to have. Of course they are, but after some time. I think, if a very good, punctual public transport specially a comfortable, train system is introduced that'd be more beneficial.

Edited February 25, 2015 by bycap

[Ruslan]

Looks like we go a rail enthusiast in here. There are dedicated sites on locomotives on Sri Lankan tracks. Such as this one.

Class M1 was made by Brush Locomotives, UK which is now defunct. There was one surviving engine in Sri Lanka, which was planned to be restored by a group of enthusiasts about 10 years ago but I don't know what happened to that project.

Class M2 (General Motors Canada) was imported to Sri Lanka in 1955 or so. 60 years later, those engines are still running, except for the one blown up by the LTTE ("Sasketchewan"). The running ones include the engine that was washed off in the 2004 Tsunami ("Manitoba"). If you see a train engine with a wave painted on it, that's Manitoba. Not even a tsunami can destroy these engines.

Class M3 was a failed local project. Nuff said

Class M4 (Bombardier, USA) is too long for most of Sri Lankan tracks. They run mostly down south and to Puttalam

Class M5 is quite common on the upcountry track because of its shorter wheelbase.

Class M6 has two types. Ones with and without electric traction. Most of those are now re-engined with Mercedes-Benz (Adtranz) engines.

Class M7 was imported when Queen Elizabeth visited Sri Lanka in early 80s. Hideously noisy, underpowered and smoky engines.

Class M8 and M10 were imported from India.

Class M9 (Alstom) was the worst blunder ever made by the railway authorities in Sri Lanka. There's a lot of criticism about these but the biggest problem was they were too advanced for our railway people. If you compare an M9 with an M2, its like comparing a Morris Minor with a modern Mercedes. And our railway staff simply didnt want to upgrade their skills. For example, when the M9 senses a derailment, it automatically brakes and stops the engine, saving thousands of lives. Our retards didnt appreciate its features and said its having 'electronic problems'.

100% True regarding M9,

In fact they removed most these sensors and Deleted (Arthur C Clarke Centre did the changes). as i herd these came with Air-conditioned cabins to safeguard the complex electronics and later they were also removed. and most of the Controls were operated under Windows CE.

[Crosswind]

This is Manitoba, the engine that a tsunami couldn't destroy.

Note the tsunami wave painted on it...

on tsunami day...

few years later...

Edited February 25, 2015 by Crosswind

[sathyajithj99]

are all the engines have a plate mentioning its class ?

and what is the "Power Set" ? is it a full train including Loco and compartments.

I remember there were some arguments about newly imported engines and compartments. claiming they are bit high and not match to SL platforms.

Donno about the durability of Chinese ones, but their seat are comfy compared to old ones.

I used to argue with others whether Express ways are worth to have. Of course they are, but after some time. I think, if a very good, punctual public transport specially a comfortable, train system is introduced that'd be more beneficial.

Yes they do have a plate mentioning its class in front (both sides)

A powerset is a train with an engine in oneside and some compartments and another control room at the other end which is known as the dummy where you can control the engine at the other end. So it makes possible for the train to go both ways without turning the engine having to disconnect it and fix it at the other end.

New powersets are bit high and made it difficult to get in and out. That's why they reconstructed most of the platforms to make them few inches higher in last few months

Edited February 25, 2015 by sathyajithj99

[Reckless]

Nice topic, I also love locos, do keep us updated.

[Crosswind]

A powerset is a train with an engine in oneside and some compartments and another control room at the other end which is known as the dummy where you can control the engine at the other end. So it makes possible for the train to go both ways without turning the engine having to disconnect it and fix it at the other end.

There's one more thing lot of people don't know about powersets. There are individual traction motors connected to each set of wheels (bogies) in a powerset. Also the brakes are connected to each wheel. When a train starts moving, all wheels start moving and when the train starts braking, all wheels similarly brake. So the acceleration and stopping is much superior than the conventional engined-trains. These are perfect for stop-and-go operations. Sri Lanka has a very small rail network so powersets are ideal for the country.

[hrm]

There are 2 versions of S12 power sets depending on geographical usage.

1. Powerset used in up country line have two engines in both sides. Front one is in pull configuration and rear one in push configuration. Combined they produce around 4000 HP which is required to negotiate steep grade in that line. This could be the most powerful train operated in SL.

2. Powerset used in Keleni Valley line has only one engine in one side and the other side has a dummy having control panel. From exterior both sets look same but this one have light blue color opposed to up country one.

Though they are Chinese these one's have pretty modern controls with touch sensitive displays etc. (Images belong to their respective owners)

Edited February 25, 2015 by hrm