Re: The Great Little Trains of Wales

I am reliably informed by someone familiar with the SAR Garratts that the front engines were considered slippery, since as water was used there would be less weight on drivers. Also, on the NG13 class, the front sanders were steam-operated, and in colder and wetter climates, condensation in the lines would foul the lines. The rear sanders, by contrast, were operated by a mechanical linkage through the rear window of the cab. Altogether, a bit of a squirrely arrangement. On No. 129, the NGG16 at the Puffing Billy Railway in Australia, the sanders are air-operated, which was a bit of a trial for the engineering folks to route the piping from the cab.