W5 Class 792 entered service in Melbourne on the 13th February 1937. 

Apart from being fitted with the multiple head and tail lights in March 1972 and at some point having its square cornered windshields replaced with curved sashes, 792 received very little modification during its time in service and avoided being modified either into the two-doorway configuration or being converted to a sliding door car.

Because of its near-original condition, 792 was chosen for preservation by the Sydney Tramway Museum (STM) in 1990.  At the time the policy in Melbourne was to retain any equipment needed for the operation of the sliding door W Class trams, as such 792 was sold with defective motors and compressor.

After some initial restoration work, 792 was moved off-site to Cessnock for storage due to space limitations at the STM’s site at Loftus.  Unfortunately while at Cessnock it suffered some vandalism and was damaged at one end by a reversing truck.

In 2006 792 was loaned to the Glenreagh Mountain Railway who had plans to operate a number of trams on their line.  That venture was not a success and 792 was again placed in storage not having turned a wheel at Glenreagh.

During 2010 W5 810 was donated to STM, resulting in 792 being surplus to their requirements.  At about the same time the MTPA was looking at acquiring a suitable W5 to preserve in original condition.  STM offered 792 to the MTPA who purchased it for a nominal sum, arriving at Haddon on 6 June 2013 and unloaded the following day.

As was initially planned by STM, the MTPA intend to restore 792 back to its original 1937 condition.

The MTPA wish to acknowledge the support of Mr Howard Clark and Mr Dale Budd in supporting the acquisition of 792 through funding its transport from Sydney to Haddon.

The following are W5 792’s current technical details and specifications:

Builder – MMTB’s Preston Workshops
Entered Service – 13 February 1937
Length – 14.17 metres (46ft, 6in)
Height – 3.15 metres (10ft, 4 ¼in)
Width – 2.74 metres (9ft, 0in)
Weight – 16.1 tonnes (15.8 tons)
Seated Passengers – 52
Trucks – MMTB No. 15, 28in disc wheels
Traction Motors – 4 x 30 kW (40HP) General Electric 247AX2
Controllers – MMTB Q2CK1
Line Breaker – English Electric Form 6
Brake Valves – Westinghouse Type “W” Self Lapping
Air Compressor – Westinghouse Type DH16
Compressor Governor – General Electric Type ML
Braking System – Compressed air and hand applied
Maximum Acceleration – 2.5 M.P.H. per second
Maximum Design Gradient – 8.5 %
Lighting Circuits – 3 circuits each with 4 x 100 volt series lamps
Trolley Bases – MMTB