The Yorkshire Engine Company Taurus and Indus locomotives were two very similar lines of 0-8-0,

diesel-hydraulic A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving wheels ...

locomotives that weighed 58 tons and had a maximum speed of . The two Rolls-Royce C8SFL diesel engines gave a total of . The transmission of the Taurus locomotives worked on a similar principle to that of the Fell diesel tested during the early 1950s. In this case, at low speeds only one engine was used, the second being engaged between 3.5 mph and 15 mph to enable haulage of 300 - 500 ton loads at speeds of up to 36 mph. The maximum speed with one engine was while the minimum speed with both engines was . Both engines drove to a common torque converter and used a common throttle control with a separate lever being provided to engage the second engine as the need arose. It would appear that the name came from

Taurus Taurus is Latin for 'bull' and may refer to: * Taurus (astrology), the astrological sign * Taurus (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac * Taurus (mythology), one of two Greek mythological characters named Taurus * '' Bos tauru ...

the bull while maintaining the ‘….us’ theme of Yorkshire Engine Company locomotive types ( Janus, Olympus, Taurus, Indus). The first Taurus (works number 2875) was demonstrated and tested on British Railways during 1961 and 1962 and a builders sectioned elevation drawing of the machine appeared in the July 1961 issue of Trains Illustrated Magazine. Taurus was a ‘trip’ locomotive intended to carry out shunting work and hauling local (short distance) goods trains. This was the duty for which the British Rail Class 14 locomotives were built in 1964–65. When the latter started to become available on the secondhand market in 1968, the market for new heavy duty industrial locomotives was severely affected. Following the trials, the Taurus was returned to the manufacturer's works in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

and was dismantled, leaving only the chassis (which was scrapped in 1965). Two Indus locomotives were built in August 1962 – one for

Richard Thomas and Baldwins Richard Thomas and Baldwins Ltd (RTB) was a major iron, steel and tinplate producer, primarily based in Wales and formed in 1948 by the merger of Richard Thomas & Co Ltd with Baldwins Ltd. It was absorbed into British Steel Corporation in 1967. The ...

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Llanwern steelworks Llanwern steelworks is located in Llanwern, east of the City of Newport, South Wales. History Built for Richard Thomas & Baldwins Ltd, the works was originally referred to locally as "The RTB", before being called Spencer Works and later Ll ...

, the other for Stewarts & Lloyds Corby system. The main difference between the Indus and Taurus was in the type of hydraulic transmission – the Taurus used a differential compounding gearbox, while the Indus used a simple compounding gearbox. These two locomotives differed in detail; the Stewarts Lloyd locomotive (works number 2894) was still extant at the British Steel Corby site, albeit out of use, until at least 1983. A second Taurus locomotive was built for RENFE, the national

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

railway network, to a gauge of . It is possible (but not proven) that all the components from the British Rail demonstrator were transferred from the standard gauge chassis onto the wider chassis for Spain. (A works number is usually allocated to the chassis/

frame A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

, so it is appropriate that the demonstrator No. 2875 has a different works number from the Spanish locomotive No. 2892, even if many parts were reused.) A hoped for follow-on order from RENFE did not materialise. They had experienced problems with the gearbox, so YEC changed it for the type used in the Indus, effectively making it an Indus, which changed the top speed and tractive effort, and reduced its usefulness. The Spanish Taurus locomotive survives in the '' Museo del Ferrocarril'' in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

References

* * *
The Industrial Railway Society
- Various records and publications * Yorkshire Engine Co. - Various records and publications {{British Rail Locomotives

D locomotives Industrial diesel locomotives of Great Britain Standard gauge locomotives of Great Britain 5 ft 6 in gauge locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1961 Diesel-hydraulic locomotives of Great Britain