EL 1007 was the first diesel rail crane used in New Zealand (originally No.

It was built in 1943 by Ransomes & Rapier, and is currently stored at the Weka Pass Railway.

Two 60 tonne Cowan Sheldon diesel rail cranes were built in 1979, after an initial tender in 1976.

Both weighing 134 tonnes with a configuration of two 3-axle bogies and two relieving bogies,[3] EL 6019 (nicknamed "Speedy") and EL 6002 (nicknamed "Tweety") accompanied by appropriate cartoon iconography entered service in 1980.

In 2005, one of the two cranes sent to Wairoa as part of a work train, and two wagons, ended up falling into the Nuhaka River as two spans of the bridge it was intended to repair collapsed under the weight of the train.