W 1229 1914

In the early 1900s, a number of steam locomotives of various sizes were developed primarily for light passenger trains. The W locomotive was designed as a medium-sized locomotive and only five were built.

This locomotive is a tank locomotive. Instead of pulling a wagon with water and coal, the coal is stored in a coal bunker at the back of the locomotive, and the water is stored in tanks on the sides of the locomotive in front of the cab. This allows the locomotive to travel at the same speed both forward and backward, eliminating the need to turn around to change direction. The locomotive has a distinctive appearance with two driving axles at the front and one at the rear, with a bogie.

The five W locomotives were manufactured at Trollhättan Mechanical Workshop in 1914 for SJ. Two years later, the company became a joint-stock company under the name Nydqvist and Holm AB (NOHAB). The locomotive type was found in various locations across the country, from Skåne to Norrland, and was used until the 1950s. They were then set aside and later scrapped.

W 1229 is the only remaining W locomotive. The locomotive was used in Skåne between 1917 and 1934, probably based in Helsingborg, and operated on the Helsingborg-Kattarp-Hasslarp and Åstorp-Mölle lines. After 1940, it spent some time around Mjölby. When it was decommissioned in 1963, it stood parked outside Lund Faculty of Engineering (LTH) for several years.

Today, the locomotive is owned by the Railway Museum in Gävle. In 2014, there were plans to restore it to working condition, but it turned out to require too extensive and costly measures.

Length: 10.22 metres
Service weight: 43.4 tonnes
Coal capacity: 2.2 tonnes
Water capacity: 6,500 litres
Maximum allowed speed: 64 kilometres per hour