FC Argentine Great Western 2-10-0 Locomotives in Argentina

Class unknown (Locobase 8945)

Data from "Heavy 'Decapod' Freight Engines for Argentina", The Railway Times,Volume 93 (11 January 1908), p 37-38; and Albert H Bone, "Some Recent Designs of Locomotives for Service on Continental Railways", Cassier's Magazine, 1910, pp. 561-609.

These rather small Decapods went into service in Argentina in the first decade of the 20th century. They were the heaviest locomotives buillt in Great Britain up to that point. To move it from the Darlington Works to Liverpool, Stephensons broke down the completed locomotive to pieces that would fit on a railway flat wagon (North American flatcar). Even then, the "Decapods Special" claimed both tracks because some elements (e.g. the tender) couldn't clear the loading gauge on one track. Running on a Sunday morning at a maximum speed of 20 mph (32 kph), the special train reached Liverpool without incident.

The design did have a Belpaire firebox, a long wheelbase, and a good amount of adhesion. Small drivers under a low running board, a noticeable gap between the running board and the boiler, thick-collared smokebox, and notional cab easily reveal the British origins of this engine.

After trials on the AGW, the railway ordered five more.