International Railroad Discussion > EMD SW models unique to South Africa

EMD models SW1002 and SW1003 are,  as far as I know,  unique to South Africa.   All units are Cape Gauge, i.e. 3 ft 6 in.  South African Rys.  purchased 100 SW1002s and a few industrial operators also purchased a few.  The only six SW1003s were purchased by Richards Bay Coal Terminal,  located about 100 miles north of Durban on the Indian Ocean.  All were built by GM South Africa at Port Elizabeth,  except for one ISCOR SW1002 which was built by Astarsa in Argentina in 1991.  Here are images of the units,  other than the two Kwa Zula RDC SW1002s which I never got to.  Many of these units have changed hands over the years since I was there.

1-2.   SAR SW1002 36261/62 at Johanneburg.  7/15/84

3.     ISCOR SW1002 45 at Pretoria Works   4/15/88



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/22/21 10:35 by masterphots.

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4.  Middelburg Steel SW1002 No. 1   Middelburg  6/26/92    This unit was former Bophuthatswana NDC No  1

5-6.  Richards Bay Coal Terminal SW1003 6/7.  June 6, 1984  RBCT is the huge export coal port on the Indian Ocean,  located near the town of Empagini.

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7-8.  Two more SW1003s,  including No. 10 with caboose.    One of these units would haul 120 cuts of coal hoppers through the rotary dumpers.

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Very interesting.  Some units got big porches for the C-C trucks. 

Pedro Rezende
Vespasiano MG,
https://youtube.com/c/minasgeraisrailways1

Looks like a bunch of odd balls,Alan.
Glad you got them.

Uncle Joe

Very interesting series!

Larry

"Yopu gotta get that stuff..." -- the late James J. Buckley.

Although I was responsible for noise control on EMD products at the time the SW1003 was built, I was in the same engineering group that did the underframe design and was given the design responsibility for its underframe. IIRC, these had rotary couplers on them, which are the only locos we ever built with rotaries. Several of us actually visited the power plant in Joliet, IL to see how the rotaries worked in the dumper and review the application. A neat experience I'll long remember, I never made it to SA; thanks for posting these pics.

Dave

Alco251 Wrote:
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> "Yopu gotta get that stuff..." -- the late James
> J. Buckley.

Damn doors all closed too....

bogieman Wrote:
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> Although I was responsible for noise control on
> EMD products at the time the SW1003 was built, I
> was in the same engineering group that did the
> underframe design and was given the design
> responsibility for its underframe. IIRC, these had
> rotary couplers on them, which are the only locos
> we ever built with rotaries. Several of us
> actually visited the power plant in Joliet, IL to
> see how the rotaries worked in the dumper and
> review the application. A neat experience I'll
> long remember, I never made it to SA; thanks for
> posting these pics.
>
> Dave

Interesting back story.  At last report,  those units are still going strong at Richards Bay.   Now in the colors of a contract switching outfit.   When I was there in 1984,  I drove up to the main gate where a customs officer who looked like Commander Whitehead from the old Schweppes commercials asked if he could help.  I asked if I could talk with someone about taking train pictures.  He just waved me though and told me to be careful.  I then spent an hour or so driving around access roads and found five of the units and then to the shop where the sixth one was.  Nobody said anything to me.   Probably couldn't do that these days.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 02/26/21 04:13 by masterphots.