Data from "Locomotives for the Waterford, Limerick and Western Railway", Engineer, Volume 84 (13 August 1897), p 154.
Locomotive superintendent John G Robinson designed the "Bernard" class to handle the railway's Limerick-Waterford main line passenger traffic with an emphasis on Great Western boat sailings. The lower -numbered engines were named Jubilee and Kilkennee; the balance of the planned cohort of ten locomotives was not produced.
Their coal consumption averaged 23 lb/mile (6.48 kg/km).
Engineer's article noted that "all details as far as is practicable and necessary should be made duplicates of one another." This passenger trio and the three goods locomotives in Locobase 20252 shared "boilers and mountings, coupled axles, boxes for coupled and trailing wheels, springs for coupled wheels, all the working gear, [and] valve motion."
In January 1901, the Great Southern & Western acquired both the WL&W and the Waterford & Central Ireland.
All were rebuilt with slightly larger boilers in 1923 and 1927. 297 was retired in 1928 while 296 and 298 served until 1949.
| Principal Dimensions by Steve Llanso of Middle Run Media | |
|---|---|
| Class | 53/296/D15 |
| Locobase ID | 20251 |
| Railroad | Waterford, Limerick, & Western |
| Country | Ireland |
| Whyte | 4-4-0 |
| Number in Class | 3 |
| Road Numbers | 53-55/296-298 |
| Gauge | 5'3" |
| Number Built | 3 |
| Builder | Kitson & Co |
| Year | 1896 |
| Valve Gear | Stephenson |
| Locomotive Length and Weight | |
| Driver Wheelbase (ft / m) | 8.25 / 2.51 |
| Engine Wheelbase (ft / m) | 20.58 / 6.27 |
| Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheelbase | 0.40 |
| Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) (ft / m) | 39 / 11.89 |
| Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) (lbs / kg) | 30,240 / 13,717 |
| Weight on Drivers (lbs / kg) | 59,360 / 26,925 |
| Engine Weight (lbs / kg) | 90,944 / 41,252 |
| Tender Loaded Weight (lbs / kg) | 61,376 / 27,840 |
| Total Engine and Tender Weight (lbs / kg) | 152,320 / 69,092 |
| Tender Water Capacity (gals / ML) | 2400 / 9.09 |
| Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) (gals/tons / Liters/MT) | 4.40 / 4 |
| Minimum weight of rail (calculated) (lb/yd / kg/m) | 49 / 24.50 |
| Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort | |
| Driver Diameter (in / mm) | 72 / 1829 |
| Boiler Pressure (psi / kPa) | 150 / 1030 |
| High Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm) | 17" x 24" / 432x610 |
| Tractive Effort (lbs / kg) | 12,283 / 5571.48 |
| Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) | 4.83 |
| Heating Ability | |
| Tubes (number - dia) (in / mm) | |
| Flues (number - dia) (in / mm) | |
| Flue/Tube length (ft / m) | |
| Firebox Area (sq ft / m2) | 107 / 9.94 |
| Grate Area (sq ft / m2) | 17.80 / 1.65 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 994 / 92.35 |
| Superheating Surface (sq ft / m2) | |
| Combined Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 994 / 92.35 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume | 157.65 |
| Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information) | |
| Robert LeMassena's Power Computation | 2670 |
| Same as above plus superheater percentage | 2670 |
| Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area | 16,050 |
| Power L1 | 4365 |
| Power MT | 324.23 |