1172 – Restoration of an early branchine diesel electric locomotive
1172
1172 Drayton Belle is powered by a Cooper Bessemer FWL-6-T Engine that developed 710 Hp with a wheel arrangement of AIA x AIA and were heavily involved in the construction of the Queensland coal lines.
Originally numbered 1502 she was renumbered 1172 in June 1965 and had covered 1.641,522 Kms. On 31/3/1989 she was withdrawn from service pending disposal and condemned on 3/5/1989. Disposed of to Mt. Morgan Shire in April 1991 on solds to Wambo shire in 1998. She arrived in Bell on the 17/4/1998. She arrived at DownsSteam in 2010. DownsSteam acknowledges the generosity of Western Downs Shire Council in making this locomotive available.
1170 Class Background
The 1170 class (initially numbered the 1500 class, and before that, the 1270 class) were a class of diesel locomotive built by Walkers Limited, Maryborough for Queensland Railways between 1956 and 1958. The 1170 class were intended as a replacement for the PB15 class steam locomotives on branch lines. They were built by Walkers Limited in Maryborough under licence from GE Transportation. The class were popularly known as 'Paw Paws' after a racehorse, which in turn was named after a character in a contemporary cartoon strip. They spent most of their working lives based at Townsville but in later years were used around Brisbane and the southern region of the state as shunters.
