4-6-2 Steam Locomotives in Argentina

Class XII (Locobase 3744)

Data from Carlos Alberto Fernandez Priotti in Bryan Attewell ([] Steam Locomotive simulator program (April 2000). See also Carlos A. Perez Darnaud, "La Clase Duodecima del Ferrocarril Provincial de Santa Fe", archived on [], last accessed 18 April 2010; and Andres J Bilstein, "Breves de Vapor: las duodecimas de FC Santa Fe", posted 16 enero 2016 on the Portal de Trenes at [], last accessed 22 October 2022. Works numbers were 61444-61463 in 1919 and 62925-62934 in 1921.

Fernandez notes that although these Pacifics had a relatively low axle loading, they were very successful. Perez commented that although the Santa Fe normally assigned even numbers to its passenger-service classes and odd-number class IDs to its freight engines, the duodecimals pulled as much freight as passenger trains in their long careers. Considered among the most attractive steam locomotives to graced Argentine narrow-gauge rails, this relatively small group of locomotives could be seen almost anywhere performing almost any kind of service.

Bumped from service area to service area as electrification and dieselization proceeded, the class nevertheless continued in service until the 1970s. To the very end, the 12s remained the classic iron-horse-of-all-trades as Perez's listing of its 1970s duties indicates:

Local passenger service between Santa Fe and Laguna Paiva 1

Mixed-train operation from Santa Fe through Tostado and Avia Terai to Resistencia and between Santa Fe and Villa, Maria and San Francisco, and Buenos Aires and Pergamino

Switching services in the Santa Fe zone

* Carga y hacienda (not sure what "hacienda" would mean here) entre Tapiales y Carhue

And occasional service on ex Compania General lines.