Paris-Lyon-Mediterrannee 4-6-0 Locomotives in France


Class Details by Steve Llanso of Sweat House Media

Class 2 431/230 C (Locobase 20029)

Data from "New Locomotives, Paris, Lyons and Mediterranean Railway", Locomotive Magazine, Volume XVII (15 March 1911), pp. 65-66, supplemented by data from [link],_puis_230_C_1_%C3%A0_170_du_PLM, last accessed 8 November 2015. Schneider built 25 (2515-2539) and Henschel & Sohn produced 60 (2540-2599) in 1910. PLM Arles manufactured 10 (2 431-2 440), SA Franco-Belge produced 20 (2 441-2 464), and Cail finished with 50 (2 465-2 514) , all in 1913.

The LM report said that the 2 515s were based on the 2 601 class (Locobase 9134), but had more cylinder volume, a bigger boiler, and smaller drivers. Obviously such a combination produced considerably more tractive effort. Like the earlier engines, the 2 515s used a Belpaire firebox and a boiler that combined 96 "lisse" (smooth[bore]) tubes with 50 internally finned ("aillettes") Serve tubes.

The PLM information was prepared in 1925


Class 2 601/230 B (Locobase 9134)

Data from Maurice Demoulin, Locomotive Actuelle ... (Paris: Librairie Polytechnique Ch.Beranger, 1906) and Military Railway Service supplied in April 2004 by Allen Stanley from his extensive Rail Data Exchange. See also "Four Cylinder Compound Passenger Engine+ Paris, Lyons, Mediterranean", Railway Master Mechanic, Vol XXX, # 3 (March 1906), pp. 77-79; See also Ernest Graham, "Express Passenger Locomotives; Paris, Lyons and Mediterranean Railway", Railroad Age Gazette, Volume XLVIII [48], No. 1 (7 January 1910), pp. 23-27; and Dr. R. Sanzin, "Die Lokomotiven auf der Intertionalen Austellung in Mailand 1906, 11. 3/5 gekuppelte vierzylindrige Verbund-Schnellzuglokomotive der Paris-Lyon-Mittelmeerbahn ...", Zeitschrift des Oesterreichischen Ingenieur- und Architeckten-Vereines, Vol LVIII Nr. 50 (14 December 1906), pp. 704-705.

As was found in most French locomotives of the time, the Belpaire firebox in this class had a sharply raked grate. Note too the continuing preference in many French classes for the Serve finned tubes, each of which had a greater diameter than the more common smooth tube and consequently fewer tubes in the boiler.

Demoulin (p. 125) noted that unlike many of the other French compounds, the four cylinders under this design's boiler were arranged "in battery", that is, side-by-side-by-side-by-side. The piston valves for the HP cylinders measured 200 mm (7.9") while those for the LP cylinders were 280 mm (11") in diameter. As in other de Glehn compound layouts, to reduce the loads on any axle, the HP cylinders drove the middle axle while the LP cylinders drove the leading axle. The LP cranks were set at 180 deg opposite the related HP cylinder such that when both LP cylinders were at the back ends of their cylinders, the HP cylinders would be at the front of theirs.

In 1905, Schneider, at Le Creusot, supplied the first 10, Franco Belge the next 30, and Fives-Lille the 20 after that. For some reason, the French National Museum at Mulhouse does not know the builder of the next 30 nor when they were delivered or those that had the road numbers 2730-2760.. Henschel added 10 - 2691-2700 -- in 1909 that had superheaters, the same year that Schneider produced 2716-2730. Couillet finished off the class with 15 in 1912.

Only a few engines in this class were superheated.


Class 2 691/230 B - superheater (Locobase 13404)

Data from Wiki PLM [link], last accessed on 8 November 2011. See also Ernest Graham, "Express Passenger Locomotives; Paris, Lyons and Mediterranean Railway", Railroad Age Gazette, Volume XLVIII [48], No. 1 (7 January 1910), pp. 23-27.

Ten Ten-wheelers in the large 2 601 class (Locobase 9134) were delivered with a small superheater. The boiler now held 64 internally finned Serve firetubes of 70 mm (2.76"), 19 smoothbore firetubes of the 50 mm (1.97"), and 21 superheater flues. They retained the class's square-shouldered Belpaire firebox and most of the other dimensions remained approximately the same as the saturated boiler locomotives.

In 1928, five more of the 2 601 class (2 601-2 605) were fitted with a different superheater design. Of the 138 70-mm tubes in the boiler, 110 were Serve tubes, 28 were smoothbore. The 110 tubes held small superheater elements that together offered 57.89 sq m (623 sq ft) of superheating area.


Class 3 261 / 230 D 1 (Locobase 3911)

Data taken from Edouard Sauvage, "Four-Cylinder Compound Locomotives in France", Railroad Gazette, Volume XXXII [32], No.39 (28 September 1900), pp.629-631 using information compiled through direct communications with the various designers. Also see MRS French Locomotive Diagrams supplied in April 2004 by Allen Stanley from his extensive Rail Data Exchange. PLM-Arles converted 23 and PLM-Oullins made over the other 17.

It's difficult to see what Baudry gained by converting the 0-8-0 freight haulers into these ten-wheelers. Obviously his factor of adhesion dropped precipitously. If he was accommodating higher freight train speeds, this might explain why he didn't increase the driver size. According to a February 1900 account in The Locomotive Magazine, Vol V, p.18, there were several reasons: "...to allow of a slight increase in speed, to diminish the resistance due to the coupling of the leading axle, and at the same time to render the engine more flexible by the employment of the bogie."

"These compound locomotives are of singular appearance," Locomotive Magazine understated, "but are very powerful and do excellent work either on goods or passenger service." Indeed, the squared-off Belpaire firebox, sometimes topped by two long air reservoirs, was behind a coned boiler segment that held a tall dome over the leading driven axle. Ahead of the dome was a large saddle-bag sander, and the tall stack. Like most French locomotives of the time, these engines had internally finned Serve fire tubes, whose surface area included the fins and added substantially to the total.


Class 3 401 / 230 A (Locobase 3919)

Data taken from Edouard Sauvage, "Four-Cylinder Compound Locomotives in France", Railroad Gazette, Volume XXXII [32], No.39 (28 September 1900), pp.629-631 using information compiled through direct communications with the various designers. See also WikiPLM at [link], last accessed 8 November 2011. Although most of the engines came from French companies, Austrian State Railways' Floridsdorf Works supplied a batch as did the German firm Borsig. Wiki PLM summarizes the builders and their locomotives during this 8-year run as follows:

Fives-Lille 1900-1901 : 3 401-3 420, 1901 :3 501-3 510, 3 531-3 540, and 1901-1902 : 3 591-3 620

Creusot 1900-1901: 3 421-3 435, 1901-1902 :3 571-3 590

Franco-Belge 1900-1902: 3 436-3 455, 1901 : 3 511-3 520, 1901-1902 : 3 541-3 550, 1907-1908 : 3 651, 3 654, 3 656, 3 658-3 670

SociTtT Frantaise de Constructions MTcaniques (SFCM) (Cail) 1900-1901 3 456-3 470, 1900-1901 : 3 521-3 530, 1901-1902 : 3 551-3 570

Cockerill 1900-1901 : 3 471-3 500

Floridsdorf 1901 : 3 621-3 650

Batignolles 1906-1908 : 3 671-3 690

Borsig 1908-1909 : 3 691-3 735 (Locobase 8958).

Like most other Paris, Lyons & Mediterranean engines, these ten-wheelers had the wedge-shaped cab face. They were a staple of the PLM's mixed traffic motive power. They were relatively low-drivered, had Serve internally finned boiler tubes and a Belpaire firebox. In comparison to many of the other French Ten-wheelers, however, these had a relatively long wheelbase.


Class 3 401 Borsig (Locobase 8958)

Data from Albert H Bone, "Some Recent Designs of Locomotives for Service on Continental Railways", Cassier's Magazine, Volume 37 (1910), pp. 561-609.

This batch of German-built Ten-wheelers formed part of the 327-locomotive 3401 class (Locobase 3919).

The low drivers reflect the service into which these locomotives were placed, as did the "wind-cutter" streamlining. The latter were an effort to reduce the locomotives' resistnace to the frequent high winds that swept the tracks on the North Africa rail network.

HP cylinders drove on the second axle and were supplied through piston valves actuated by Walschaert radial gear. Inside LP cylinders drove the first axle, had slide valves and Gooch valve gear. The boiler tubes were 65-mm (2.56") Serve tubes, which had internal ribs. One of the class was Borsig's 7,000th locomotive.


Class 3 513 / 230 B (Locobase 5321)

Data taken from table published in RME (May 1916) by Edouard Sauvage and information from Albert H Bone, "Some Recent Designs of Locomotives for Service on Continental Railways", Cassier's Magazine, 1910, pp. 561-609. Like the Est locomotive shown in the same table, the firetubes came in two sizes. 19 x 1.97" and 64 x 2.76". The latter were Serve ribbed tubes. Henschel & Sohn supplied the first 3 locomotives.

After World War II, a guide to French locomotives by the Military Railway Service (provided in April 2004 from Allen Stanley's extension collection). It appears that the 15 superheated locomotives in this class included the 10 superheated by Henschel &

Sohn in 1909 and the 5 later fitted with a Type E superheater later.

Principal Dimensions by Steve Llanso of Middle Run Media
Class2 431/230 C2 601/230 B2 691/230 B - superheater3 261 / 230 D 13 401 / 230 A
Locobase ID20029 9134 13404 3911 3919
RailroadParis-Lyon-Mediterrannee (PLM)Paris-Lyon-Mediterrannee (PLM)Paris-Lyon-Mediterrannee (PLM)Paris-Lyon-Mediterrannee (PLM)Paris-Lyon-Mediterrannee (PLM)
CountryFranceFranceFranceFranceFrance
Whyte4-6-04-6-04-6-04-6-04-6-0
Number in Class1651601040335
Road Numbers2515-2599, 2431-25142 601-2 690, 2 701-2 7602 691-2 7003 261-3 300 / 230 D 1-403 401-3 735 / 230 A 1-327
GaugeStdStdStdStdStd
Number Built165160335
BuilderseveralseveralPLMPLMseveral
Year19101905191118971898
Valve GearWalschaertWalschaertWalschaertWalschaertWalschaert
Locomotive Length and Weight
Driver Wheelbase (ft / m)15.09 / 4.6015.91 / 4.8515.85 / 4.8312.60 / 3.8412.89 / 3.93
Engine Wheelbase (ft / m)28 / 8.5428.05 / 8.5528.05 / 8.5525.84 / 7.8825.87 / 7.88
Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheelbase 0.54 0.57 0.57 0.49 0.50
Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) (ft / m)53.97 / 16.4553.64 / 16.3553.64 / 16.35
Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) (lbs / kg)37,456 / 16,99036,817 / 16,70037,479 / 17,00032,452 / 14,72031,967 / 14,500
Weight on Drivers (lbs / kg)112,347 / 50,960112,436 / 51,000112,436 / 51,00097,334 / 44,15095,901 / 43,500
Engine Weight (lbs / kg)162,613 / 73,760159,835 / 72,500161,268 / 73,150128,419 / 58,250133,997 / 60,780
Tender Loaded Weight (lbs / kg)99,649 / 45,20095,240 / 43,20099,614 / 45,184
Total Engine and Tender Weight (lbs / kg)262,262 / 118,960255,075 / 115,700260,882 / 118,334
Tender Water Capacity (gals / ML)5306 / 20.105306 / 20.1010,571 / 40.04
Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) (gals/tons / Liters/MT) 3.90 / 4 3.90 / 4 3.60 / 3
Minimum weight of rail (calculated) (lb/yd / kg/m)62 / 3162 / 3162 / 3154 / 2753 / 26.50
Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort
Driver Diameter (in / mm)70.90 / 180078.70 / 199978.70 / 200059.10 / 150065 / 1651
Boiler Pressure (psi / kPa)232.10 / 1600224.80 / 1550224.80 / 1550213.20 / 1470213.20 / 1470
High Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm)14.57" x 25.59" / 370x65013.39" x 25.59" / 340x65014.57" x 25.59" / 370x65014.17" x 25.59" / 360x65013.39" x 25.59" / 340x650
Low Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm)23.23" x 25.59" / 590x65021.26" x 25.59" / 540x65021.26" x 25.59" / 540x65023.23" x 25.59" / 590x65021.26" x 25.59" / 540x650
Tractive Effort (lbs / kg)21,697 / 9841.6115,952 / 7235.7117,949 / 8141.5422,966 / 10417.2118,317 / 8308.46
Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) 5.18 7.05 6.26 4.24 5.24
Heating Ability
Tubes (number - dia) (in / mm)146 - 2.756" / 70138 - 2.756" / 70139 - 2.559" / 65150 - 2.559" / 65
Flues (number - dia) (in / mm)21 - 5" / 127
Flue/Tube length (ft / m)13.94 / 4.2513.12 / 413.12 / 4 9.84 / 311.15 / 3.40
Firebox Area (sq ft / m2)172.22 / 16165.98 / 15.42165.98 / 15.42110.65 / 10.28134.87 / 12.53
Grate Area (sq ft / m2)33.15 / 3.0832.08 / 2.9832.08 / 2.9826.37 / 2.4526.69 / 2.48
Evaporative Heating Surface (sq ft / m2)1889 / 175.472307 / 214.331612 / 149.751666 / 154.742040 / 189.51
Superheating Surface (sq ft / m2)670 / 62.24362 / 33.63
Combined Heating Surface (sq ft / m2)2559 / 237.712307 / 214.331974 / 183.381666 / 154.742040 / 189.51
Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume382.53553.15326.44356.69489.13
Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information)
Robert LeMassena's Power Computation76947212721256225690
Same as above plus superheater percentage96957212851056225690
Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area50,36537,31244,02923,59128,754
Power L119,183879715,98537135963
Power MT1129.30517.47940.29252.30411.24

Principal Dimensions by Steve Llanso of Middle Run Media
Class3 401 Borsig3 513 / 230 B
Locobase ID8958 5321
RailroadParis-Lyon-Mediterrannee (PLM) AlgerienParis-Lyon-Mediterrannee (PLM)
CountryFranceFrance
Whyte4-6-04-6-0
Number in Class4049
Road Numbers3 696-7 3753 513-3 537 / 230 B 1-5,91-100
GaugeStdStd
Number Built4049
BuilderBorsig
Year19081908
Valve GearvariousWalschaert
Locomotive Length and Weight
Driver Wheelbase (ft / m)12.80 / 3.9015.85 / 4.83
Engine Wheelbase (ft / m)25.92 / 7.9028.06 / 8.55
Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheelbase 0.49 0.56
Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) (ft / m)53.65 / 16.35
Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) (lbs / kg)
Weight on Drivers (lbs / kg)112,448 / 51,000
Engine Weight (lbs / kg)137,760 / 62,487161,280 / 73,155
Tender Loaded Weight (lbs / kg)
Total Engine and Tender Weight (lbs / kg)
Tender Water Capacity (gals / ML)5839 / 22.12
Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) (gals/tons / Liters/MT) 6.60 / 6
Minimum weight of rail (calculated) (lb/yd / kg/m)62 / 31
Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort
Driver Diameter (in / mm)65.40 / 166179 / 2007
Boiler Pressure (psi / kPa)213.20 / 1470232.10 / 1600
High Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm)13.39" x 25.59" / 340x65014.57" x 24" / 370x610
Low Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm)21.26" x 25.59" / 540x65021.27" x 24" / 540x610
Tractive Effort (lbs / kg)18,205 / 8257.6617,320 / 7856.23
Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) 6.49
Heating Ability
Tubes (number - dia) (in / mm)150 - 2.559" / 65138 - 2.75" / 70
Flues (number - dia) (in / mm)21 - 4.99" / 127
Flue/Tube length (ft / m)11.15 / 3.4013.08 / 4
Firebox Area (sq ft / m2)134.01 / 12.45167 / 15.52
Grate Area (sq ft / m2)26.69 / 2.4832.07 / 2.98
Evaporative Heating Surface (sq ft / m2)2041 / 189.601617 / 150.28
Superheating Surface (sq ft / m2)362 / 33.64
Combined Heating Surface (sq ft / m2)2041 / 189.601979 / 183.92
Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume489.37349.14
Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information)
Robert LeMassena's Power Computation56907443
Same as above plus superheater percentage56908783
Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area28,57145,738
Power L1599217,679
Power MT1039.83

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