The Córas Iompair Éireann 421 Class was a railway

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the Power (physics), motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, Motor coach (rail), motor ...

, built by the CIÉ at

Inchicore Works Inchicore railway works, also known locally as 'Inchicore' or 'The Works', was founded by the Great Southern and Western Railway in 1846 and emerged to become the major engineering centre for railways in Ireland. Located west of Dublin city ...

between 1962–1963 and designed for branch line traffic use and shunting. The 421 Class was a larger development of the earlier 401 Class, and were fitted with a Maybach MD220 engine of with diesel hydraulic transmission via a

Mekydro A torque converter is a type of fluid coupling that transfers rotating power from a prime mover, like an internal combustion engine, to a rotating driven load. In a vehicle with an automatic transmission, the torque converter connects the power ...

KL64U transmission. Unlike the earlier E401 class, these locomotives were fitted for multiple operation. They were of C

wheel arrangement In rail transport, a wheel arrangement or wheel configuration is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed under a locomotive. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and c ...

The first of the class made its debut in early October 1962 on pilot duties in the Dublin area and although they had a design maximum speed of , experience (notably the derailment of a trial train hauled by E421) showed that they did not ride well when travelling at speeds over and so henceforth were limited to that speed and used simply for shunting duties instead. They were numbered E421–E434, and were withdrawn from service between 1979 and 1983. Three of these locomotives have been preserved, as follows: * E421 and E432: Owned by and based at the

Downpatrick and County Down Railway The Downpatrick and County Down Railway (DCDR) is a five-foot, three-inch (1,600 mm) gauge heritage railway in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is operated by volunteers and runs passenger trains using steam and diesel locomotives, diese ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. Both locos are currently stored out of traffic. * E428 had recently moved from Inchicore Works to Dunsandle, County Galway under private ownership.

Model

The E421 was available as a resin model from "Q Kits", but this company is no longer trading as the owner has retired.

References

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External links

Eiretrains - Irish Locomotives

E428 at Dunsandle
{{Ireland Diesel Locomotives Iarnród Éireann locomotives Diesel-hydraulic locomotives C locomotives 5 ft 3 in gauge locomotives Diesel locomotives of Ireland Railway locomotives introduced in 1962