#2129

South African Class 17 4-8-0TT

🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by Dübs and Company· from 1926· 1926 design of steam locomotive

1 photo from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. Class 17 1432 (4-8-0T+T) Playing Cards: SAR Museum· Public domain

what is it?

The South African Railways Class 17 4-8-0TT of 1926 was a steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Natal Colony. Between 1926 and 1929, to address a shortage of suitable shunting locomotives, the South African Railways rebuilt twenty-one Class A 4-8-2 Mountain type tank steam locomotives to Class 17 4-8-0 Mastodon type tank-and-tender locomotives.

who runs it

South African Railways

base stats

built 21made in total

Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.

fun facts

First built 100 years ago, in 1926.
Served for 35 years (1926–1961).

steam locomotive: Burns coal, wood or oil to boil water; the steam drives pistons that turn the wheels.

spec sheet

built: 1926–1929
in service from: 1926
retired: 1961
status: retired
number built: 21
kind: Steam
traction: steam
origin: 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
builders: Dübs and Company, Transnet Freight Rail
designer: Natal Government Railways, (William Milne)
operators: South African Railways
top speed: —
power: —
gauge: 1,067 mm Cape gauge
wheel arrangement: 4-8-0TT (Mastodon)

From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q2204875, Wikipedia: South African Class 17 4-8-0TT (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.