0-6-0
Encyclopedia
Under the Whyte notation
for the classification of steam locomotive
s, 0-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement
of no leading wheel
s, six powered and coupled driving wheel
s on three axles, and no trailing wheel
s. This was the most common wheel arrangement used on both tender and tank locomotive
s, in versions with both inside and outside cylinders.
Other equivalent classifications are:
In the UIC classification
popular in Europe
, the same arrangement is written as C (if the wheels are coupled with rods or gears) or Co (if they are independently driven).
for both tender and tank
steam locomotives. The type was also widely used for diesel switchers (shunters)
. Because they lack leading
and trailing wheels
locomotives of this type have all their weight pressing down on their driving wheel
s, and consequently have a high tractive effort
and factors of adhesion
, making them comparatively strong engines for their size, weight and fuel consumption. One the other hand, 0-6-0 locomotives are less stable at speed, so are mostly used on trains where high speed is unnecessary.
Since 0-6-0 tender engines can pull fairly heavy trains, albeit slowly, the type was commonly used to pull short and medium distance freight trains such as pickup goods trains along both main
and branch line
s. The tank engine versions were widely used as switching
(shunting) locomotives, as the smaller 0-4-0
type were not large enough to be versatile in this job, while 0-8-0
and larger switching locomotives were too big to be economical or even usable on lightly built railways such as dockyards and goods yards, precisely the sorts of places where switching locomotives were most needed.
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for the Stockton and Darlington Railway
in 1825. Other early examples included the 'Vulcan', the first inside-cylinder type, built by Charles Tayleur and Company 1835 for the Leicester and Swannington Railway
and 'Hector' Long Boiler locomotive
built by Kitson and Company in 1845 for the York and North Midland Railway
. Derwent
built in 1845 by William and Alfred Kitching
for the Stockton and Darlington Railway is preserved at Darlington Railway Centre and Museum
.
Tank engine versions of the type began to be built in the mid-1850s and by the mid 1860s had become very common.
class was a tender type with this arrangement.
-built M class of 1874 and Y class of 1923 provided 7 examples, however the F class
built between 1872 and 1888 was the most prolific, with 88 examples, with 8 preserved examples.
railways used 0-6-0s of one sort or another, though usually not in the proportions used in the United Kingdom. As in the United States, European 0-6-0 locomotives were largely restricted to switching and station pilot duties, though they were also widely used on short branch line
s to pull passenger and freight trains. On most branch lines though, larger, more powerful tank engines tended to be favoured.
The 0-6-0 tender locomotive type was extremely common in Britain for more than a century and was still being built in large numbers during the 1940s. 943 examples of the John Ramsbottom
DX goods class were built by the London and North Western Railway
and the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
between 1858 and 1872, and this was the earliest example of standardisation and mass production of locomotives. Of the total stock of standard-gauge locomotives operating on British railways in 1900 (around 20,000 engines) over a third were 0-6-0 tender types.
The ultimate British 0-6-0 was the Q1 "Austerity"
type developed by the Southern Railway
during the Second World War to haul very heavy freight trains. It was the most powerful steam 0-6-0 design produced in Europe.
Similarly the 0-6-0 tank locomotive
s became the most common locomotive type on all railways throughout the twentieth century. All of the Big Four companies
to emerge from the Grouping
used them in vast numbers. The Great Western Railway
in particular had many of the type, most characteristically in the form of the pannier tank locomotive that remained in production well past Nationalisation
in 1948.
When diesel shunters began to be introduced, the 0-6-0 type became the most common. Many of the British Railways shunter types were 0-6-0s, including Class 03
, the standard 'light' shunter, and Class 08
and Class 09
, the standard heavier shunters.
, huge numbers of 0-6-0 locomotives were produced, the majority of them being used as switchers. The USRA 0-6-0
was the smallest of the USRA Standard classes designed and produced during the brief government control of the railroads through the USRA
during World War I
. 255 of them were built and ended up in the hands of about two dozen US railroads; in addition, many of them (and others) built numerous copies after the war. The Pennsylvania Railroad
rostered over 1,200 0-6-0 types over the years, which were classed as type B on that system. US 0-6-0s were generally tender locomotive
s.
0-6-0 tank engines were built by the Davenport Locomotive Works
for use by the United States Army Transportation Corps in both Europe and North Africa. Some of these remained in service long after the war, having been purchased or otherwise adopted by the countries where they were used, including Austria, Egypt, France, Iraq, the United Kingdom and Yugoslavia. The fourteen engines
purchased by the Southern Railway in 1946 remained in service well into the 1960s. Designed to be extremely strong but easy to maintain, these engines had a very short wheelbase
that allowed them to operate on dockyard railways. During the war, Switzerland
converted some 0-6-0 shunting engines into electric-steam locomotive
s.
-Windhoek
State Railway) in Deutsch-Südwest-Afrika (DSWA, now Namibia
).
Zwillinge locomotives were a class of small 600 millimetres (23.6 in) "Schmalspur" (narrow gauge
) 0-6-0T tank steam locomotives that were built in Germany in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. They were built by six manufacturers, those being Krauss and Company, Henschel and Son
, L. Schwartzkopff
, Egestorf, MBA Breslau and Arnold Jung
. These so-called "Feldbahn" locomotives, built for the military, were also used in other German colonies.
As indicated by their name "Zwillinge" (twins), they were designed to be used in pairs, semi-permanently coupled back-to-back at the cabs, allowing a single footplate crew to fire and control both locomotives. The pairs of locomotives shared a common manufacturer’s works number and running number, with the units being designated as A and B. The A locomotives had higher cabin roofs than the B locomotives so that the roofs could overlap while coupled, to provide better protection for the crew. They were designed so that they could also be used separately, each having a full set of controls. When run in single mode they were commonly referred to as "Illinge".
By 1922, when the South African Railways (SAR) took control of all railway operations in South West Africa (SWA), only one single Illinge locomotive survived to be absorbed onto the roster of the South African Railways.
, there are five steam locomotives and four diesel locomotives that have this configuration: Thomas
, Toby
, Duck
, Donald and Douglas, Diesel, and Mavis (as well as Arry, Bert and Stanley in the television series).
Whyte notation
The Whyte notation for classifying steam locomotives by wheel arrangement was devised by Frederick Methvan Whyte and came into use in the early twentieth century encouraged by an editorial in American Engineer and Railroad Journal...
for the classification of steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s, 0-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement
Wheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
of no leading wheel
Leading wheel
The leading wheel or leading axle of a steam locomotive is an unpowered wheel or axle located in front of the driving wheels. The axle or axles of the leading wheels are normally located in a truck...
s, six powered and coupled driving wheel
Driving wheel
On a steam locomotive, a driving wheel is a powered wheel which is driven by the locomotive's pistons...
s on three axles, and no trailing wheel
Trailing wheel
On a steam locomotive, a trailing wheel or trailing axle is generally an unpowered wheel or axle located behind the driving wheels. The axle of the trailing wheels was usually located on a trailing truck...
s. This was the most common wheel arrangement used on both tender and tank locomotive
Tank locomotive
A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of pulling it behind it in a tender. It will most likely also have some kind of bunker to hold the fuel. There are several different types of tank locomotive dependent upon...
s, in versions with both inside and outside cylinders.
Other equivalent classifications are:
- UIC classificationUIC classificationThe UIC classification of locomotive axle arrangements describes the wheel arrangement of locomotives, multiple units and trams. It is set out in the International Union of Railways "Leaflet 650 - Standard designation of axle arrangement on locomotives and multiple-unit sets". It is used in much...
: C (also known as German classification and Italian classification) - French classification: 030
- Turkish classificationTurkish classificationIn the Turkish classification system for railway locomotives, the number of powered axles are followed by the total number of axles. It is identical to the Swiss system except that the latter places a slash between the two numbers.Thus0-6-0 becomes 33...
: 33 - Swiss classification: 3/3
- Russian classification: 0-3-0
In the UIC classification
UIC classification
The UIC classification of locomotive axle arrangements describes the wheel arrangement of locomotives, multiple units and trams. It is set out in the International Union of Railways "Leaflet 650 - Standard designation of axle arrangement on locomotives and multiple-unit sets". It is used in much...
popular in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, the same arrangement is written as C (if the wheels are coupled with rods or gears) or Co (if they are independently driven).
Overview
The 0-6-0 configuration was the most widely used wheel arrangementWheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
for both tender and tank
Tank locomotive
A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of pulling it behind it in a tender. It will most likely also have some kind of bunker to hold the fuel. There are several different types of tank locomotive dependent upon...
steam locomotives. The type was also widely used for diesel switchers (shunters)
Switcher
A switcher or shunter is a small railroad locomotive intended not for moving trains over long distances but rather for assembling trains ready for a road locomotive to take over, disassembling a train that has been...
. Because they lack leading
Leading wheel
The leading wheel or leading axle of a steam locomotive is an unpowered wheel or axle located in front of the driving wheels. The axle or axles of the leading wheels are normally located in a truck...
and trailing wheels
Trailing wheel
On a steam locomotive, a trailing wheel or trailing axle is generally an unpowered wheel or axle located behind the driving wheels. The axle of the trailing wheels was usually located on a trailing truck...
locomotives of this type have all their weight pressing down on their driving wheel
Driving wheel
On a steam locomotive, a driving wheel is a powered wheel which is driven by the locomotive's pistons...
s, and consequently have a high tractive effort
Tractive effort
As used in mechanical engineering, the term tractive force is the pulling or pushing force exerted by a vehicle on another vehicle or object. The term tractive effort is synonymous with tractive force, and is often used in railway engineering to describe the pulling or pushing capability of a...
and factors of adhesion
Factor of adhesion
In railroad engineering, the factor of adhesion of a locomotive is the weight on the driving wheels divided by the starting tractive effort.A common rule is that for a steam locomotive a good factor of adhesion equals or exceeds 4, but not by too much...
, making them comparatively strong engines for their size, weight and fuel consumption. One the other hand, 0-6-0 locomotives are less stable at speed, so are mostly used on trains where high speed is unnecessary.
Since 0-6-0 tender engines can pull fairly heavy trains, albeit slowly, the type was commonly used to pull short and medium distance freight trains such as pickup goods trains along both main
Main line (railway)
The Mainline or Main line of a railway is a track that is used for through trains or is the principal artery of the system from which branch lines, yards, sidings and spurs are connected....
and branch line
Branch line
A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...
s. The tank engine versions were widely used as switching
Switcher
A switcher or shunter is a small railroad locomotive intended not for moving trains over long distances but rather for assembling trains ready for a road locomotive to take over, disassembling a train that has been...
(shunting) locomotives, as the smaller 0-4-0
0-4-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-4-0 represents one of the simplest possible types, that with two axles and four coupled wheels, all of which are driven...
type were not large enough to be versatile in this job, while 0-8-0
0-8-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-8-0 represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and no trailing wheels...
and larger switching locomotives were too big to be economical or even usable on lightly built railways such as dockyards and goods yards, precisely the sorts of places where switching locomotives were most needed.
Inside cylinders
The earliest 0-6-0 locomotives had outside cylinders, as these were simpler to construct and maintain. However, once designers began to overcome the problem of the breakage of the crank axles, inside cylinder versions were found to be more stable. Thereafter this pattern was widely adopted, particularly in the UK, although outside cylinder versions were also widely used.History
0-6-0 locomotives were among the first types to be used. The earliest recorded examples was the 'Royal George' built by Timothy HackworthTimothy Hackworth
Timothy Hackworth was a steam locomotive engineer who lived in Shildon, County Durham, England and was the first locomotive superintendent of the Stockton and Darlington Railway.- Youth and early work :...
for the Stockton and Darlington Railway
Stockton and Darlington Railway
The Stockton and Darlington Railway , which opened in 1825, was the world's first publicly subscribed passenger railway. It was 26 miles long, and was built in north-eastern England between Witton Park and Stockton-on-Tees via Darlington, and connected to several collieries near Shildon...
in 1825. Other early examples included the 'Vulcan', the first inside-cylinder type, built by Charles Tayleur and Company 1835 for the Leicester and Swannington Railway
Leicester and Swannington Railway
The Leicester and Swannington Railway was one of England's first railways, being opened on 17 July 1832 to bring coal from collieries in west Leicestershire to Leicester.-Overview:...
and 'Hector' Long Boiler locomotive
Long Boiler locomotive
The Long Boiler locomotive was the object of a patent by Robert Stephenson and the name became synonymous with the pattern.-History:It is generally perceived that it arose out of attempts to match the power of broad gauge locomotives within the limitations of the loading gauge of Stephenson railways...
built by Kitson and Company in 1845 for the York and North Midland Railway
York and North Midland Railway
The York and North Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which opened in 1839, connecting York, with the Leeds and Selby Railway and in 1840 with the North Midland Railway at Normanton near Leeds.-Origins:...
. Derwent
Derwent (locomotive)
Derwent is an 0-6-0 steam locomotive built in 1845 by William and Alfred Kitching for the Stockton and Darlington Railway . It is preserved at Darlington Railway Centre and Museum.-Design:...
built in 1845 by William and Alfred Kitching
William and Alfred Kitching
William and Alfred Kitching built steam locomotives at Darlington, England, in the 19th century. It is believed that their workshop was on, or near, the site of Hopetown Carriage Works.-Preservation:...
for the Stockton and Darlington Railway is preserved at Darlington Railway Centre and Museum
Darlington Railway Centre and Museum
Darlington Railway Centre and Museum, also known as Head of Steam, is located on the 1825 route of the Stockton and Darlington Railway which was the world's first steam powered passenger railway. Run by Darlington Borough Council the museum is located in the northern suburbs of Darlington in the...
.
Tank engine versions of the type began to be built in the mid-1850s and by the mid 1860s had become very common.
Australia
In New South Wales, the Z19New South Wales Z19 class locomotive
The Z19 class is a class of steam locomotive built for and operated by the New South Wales Government Railways of Australia.- History :...
class was a tender type with this arrangement.
New Zealand
The 0-6-0 design was restricted to tank engines. The HunsletHunslet
Hunslet is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is south east of the city centre and has an industrial past.Hunslet had many engineering companies based in the district, such as John Fowler & Co...
-built M class of 1874 and Y class of 1923 provided 7 examples, however the F class
NZR F class
The NZR F class was the first important class of steam locomotive built to operate on New Zealand's railway network after the national gauge of 1067 millimetres was adopted. The first locomotives built for the new 1067 mm railways were two E class double Fairlies for the Dunedin and Port Chalmers...
built between 1872 and 1888 was the most prolific, with 88 examples, with 8 preserved examples.
Continental Europe
All the major continental EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
railways used 0-6-0s of one sort or another, though usually not in the proportions used in the United Kingdom. As in the United States, European 0-6-0 locomotives were largely restricted to switching and station pilot duties, though they were also widely used on short branch line
Branch line
A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...
s to pull passenger and freight trains. On most branch lines though, larger, more powerful tank engines tended to be favoured.
United Kingdom
John Ramsbottom (engineer)
John Ramsbottom was an English mechanical engineer who created many inventions for railways, including the piston ring, the Ramsbottom safety valve, the displacement lubricator, and the water trough.- Biography :...
DX goods class were built by the London and North Western Railway
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
and the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways...
between 1858 and 1872, and this was the earliest example of standardisation and mass production of locomotives. Of the total stock of standard-gauge locomotives operating on British railways in 1900 (around 20,000 engines) over a third were 0-6-0 tender types.
The ultimate British 0-6-0 was the Q1 "Austerity"
SR Class Q1
The SR Q1 class is a type of austerity steam locomotive constructed during the Second World War. The class was designed by Oliver Bulleid for use on the intensive freight turns experienced during wartime on the Southern Railway network. A total of 40 locomotives were built. Bulleid...
type developed by the Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
during the Second World War to haul very heavy freight trains. It was the most powerful steam 0-6-0 design produced in Europe.
Similarly the 0-6-0 tank locomotive
Tank locomotive
A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of pulling it behind it in a tender. It will most likely also have some kind of bunker to hold the fuel. There are several different types of tank locomotive dependent upon...
s became the most common locomotive type on all railways throughout the twentieth century. All of the Big Four companies
Big Four British railway companies
The Big Four was a name used to describe the four largest railway companies in the United Kingdom in the period 1923-1947. The name was coined by the Railway Magazine in its issue of February 1923: "The Big Four of the New Railway Era".The Big Four were:...
to emerge from the Grouping
Railways Act 1921
The Railways Act 1921, also known as the Grouping Act, was an enactment by the British government of David Lloyd George intended to stem the losses being made by many of the country's 120 railway companies, move the railways away from internal competition, and to retain some of the benefits which...
used them in vast numbers. The Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
in particular had many of the type, most characteristically in the form of the pannier tank locomotive that remained in production well past Nationalisation
Nationalization
Nationalisation, also spelled nationalization, is the process of taking an industry or assets into government ownership by a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being...
in 1948.
When diesel shunters began to be introduced, the 0-6-0 type became the most common. Many of the British Railways shunter types were 0-6-0s, including Class 03
British Rail Class 03
The British Rail Class 03 locomotive is, together with Class 04, one of BR's most successful smaller 0-6-0 diesel-mechanical shunters. The class, numbering 230 examples, was built by British Railways' Swindon and Doncaster works in 1957-1962 and numbered D2000-D2199 and D2370-D2399...
, the standard 'light' shunter, and Class 08
British Rail Class 08
The British Rail Class 08 is a class of diesel-electric shunting locomotive. From 1953 to 1962, 996 locomotives were produced, making it the most numerous of all British locomotive classes....
and Class 09
British Rail Class 09
The British Rail Class 09 is a class of 0-6-0 diesel locomotive designed primarily for shunting and also short distance freight trips along branch lines....
, the standard heavier shunters.
United States
In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, huge numbers of 0-6-0 locomotives were produced, the majority of them being used as switchers. The USRA 0-6-0
USRA 0-6-0
The USRA 0-6-0 was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I...
was the smallest of the USRA Standard classes designed and produced during the brief government control of the railroads through the USRA
United States Railroad Administration
The United States Railroad Administration was the name of the nationalized railroad system of the United States between 1917 and 1920. It was possibly the largest American experiment with nationalization, and was undertaken against a background of war emergency.- Background :On April 6, 1917, the...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. 255 of them were built and ended up in the hands of about two dozen US railroads; in addition, many of them (and others) built numerous copies after the war. The Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
rostered over 1,200 0-6-0 types over the years, which were classed as type B on that system. US 0-6-0s were generally tender locomotive
Tender locomotive
A tender or coal-car is a special rail vehicle hauled by a steam locomotive containing the locomotive's fuel and water. Steam locomotives consume large quantities of water compared to the quantity of fuel, so tenders are necessary to keep the locomotive running over long distances. A locomotive...
s.
Military usage during the Second World War
During the Second World War no fewer than 514 USATC S100 ClassUSATC S100 Class
The United States Army Transportation Corps S100 Class is a 0-6-0 steam locomotive that was designed for switching duties in Europe and North Africa during World War II...
0-6-0 tank engines were built by the Davenport Locomotive Works
Davenport Locomotive Works
The Davenport Locomotive Works, of Davenport, Iowa, USA built locomotives from 1902 until 1956. The company acquired the locomotive business of H. K...
for use by the United States Army Transportation Corps in both Europe and North Africa. Some of these remained in service long after the war, having been purchased or otherwise adopted by the countries where they were used, including Austria, Egypt, France, Iraq, the United Kingdom and Yugoslavia. The fourteen engines
SR USA Class
The SR USA class were ex-United States Army Transportation Corps S100 Class steam locomotives purchased by the Southern Railway after the end of the Second World War.- Construction history :...
purchased by the Southern Railway in 1946 remained in service well into the 1960s. Designed to be extremely strong but easy to maintain, these engines had a very short wheelbase
Wheelbase
In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels.- Road :In automobiles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the center of the front wheel and the center of the rear wheel...
that allowed them to operate on dockyard railways. During the war, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
converted some 0-6-0 shunting engines into electric-steam locomotive
Electric-steam locomotive
An electric-steam locomotive is a steam locomotive that uses electricity to heat the water in the boiler to create steam. This is a highly unusual type of locomotive that only makes economic sense under specific conditions. Normally it would be much more efficient to build and use an electric...
s.
South West Africa
Between 1898 and 1905 more than fifty pairs of Zwillinge twin tank steam locomotives were acquired by the Swakopmund-Windhuk Staatsbahn (SwakopmundSwakopmund
Swakopmund is a city on the coast of northwestern Namibia, west of Windhoek, Namibia's capital. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. As a seaside resort, the weather is cooler here in December to January so the territorial administration moves to Swakopmund for these months...
-Windhoek
Windhoek
Windhoek is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level. The 2001 census determined Windhoek's population was 233,529...
State Railway) in Deutsch-Südwest-Afrika (DSWA, now Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
).
Zwillinge locomotives were a class of small 600 millimetres (23.6 in) "Schmalspur" (narrow gauge
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
) 0-6-0T tank steam locomotives that were built in Germany in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. They were built by six manufacturers, those being Krauss and Company, Henschel and Son
Henschel & Son
Henschel & Son was a German company, situated in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment, including locomotives, trucks, buses and trolleybuses, and armoured fighting vehicles and weapons....
, L. Schwartzkopff
Berliner Maschinenbau
Berliner Maschinenbau AG was a German manufacturer of locomotives.The factory was founded by Louis Victor Robert Schwartzkopff on 3 October 1852 as Eisengießerei und Maschinen-Fabrik von L. Schwartzkopff in Berlin ....
, Egestorf, MBA Breslau and Arnold Jung
Arnold Jung Lokomotivfabrik
The Arnold Jung Lokomotivfabrik was a locomotive manufacturer, in particular of Feldbahn locomotives, in Kirchen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany....
. These so-called "Feldbahn" locomotives, built for the military, were also used in other German colonies.
As indicated by their name "Zwillinge" (twins), they were designed to be used in pairs, semi-permanently coupled back-to-back at the cabs, allowing a single footplate crew to fire and control both locomotives. The pairs of locomotives shared a common manufacturer’s works number and running number, with the units being designated as A and B. The A locomotives had higher cabin roofs than the B locomotives so that the roofs could overlap while coupled, to provide better protection for the crew. They were designed so that they could also be used separately, each having a full set of controls. When run in single mode they were commonly referred to as "Illinge".
By 1922, when the South African Railways (SAR) took control of all railway operations in South West Africa (SWA), only one single Illinge locomotive survived to be absorbed onto the roster of the South African Railways.
In fiction
In The Railway SeriesThe Railway Series
The Railway Series is a set of story books about a railway system located on the fictional Island of Sodor. There are 42 books in the series, the first being published in 1945. Twenty-six were written by the Rev. W. Awdry, up to 1972. A further 16 were written by his son, Christopher Awdry; 14...
, there are five steam locomotives and four diesel locomotives that have this configuration: Thomas
Thomas the Tank Engine
Thomas the Tank Engine is a fictional steam locomotive in The Railway Series books by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry and his son, Christopher. He became the most popular character in the series, and the accompanying television spin-off series, Thomas and Friends.Thomas is a tank engine, painted blue...
, Toby
Toby the Tram Engine
Toby the Tram Engine is a fictional anthropomorphic tram engine in The Railway Series by the Rev. W. Awdry and his son, Christopher; he also appears in the spin-off television series Thomas and Friends...
, Duck
Duck the Great Western Engine
Duck the Great Western Engine is a fictional steam engine from The Railway Series by the Rev. W. Awdry and the spin-off television series Thomas and Friends. He is a green 0-6-0 pannier tank locomotive and lives and works on the Island of Sodor....
, Donald and Douglas, Diesel, and Mavis (as well as Arry, Bert and Stanley in the television series).
External links
- Building a 1/8 scale Live Steam 0-6-0 locomotive This site includes a full 1914 factory drawing of a Finnish 0-6-0 switcher.