Deutsches Reichsbahn 4-6-0 Locomotives in Germany
Class Details by Steve Llanso of Sweat House Media
Class BR 17.4 - superheated (Locobase 5990)
Data from US Military Railway Service Equipment Data Book -- German Locomotives supplied from the extensive collection of Allen Stanley (March 2004); Christian Lindecke's website [
] (visited 11 April 2004; no longer available) and "Baureihe 17 405/420" on Albert Gieseler's Dampfmaschinen und Lokomotiven website at [], last accessed 20 October 2022. (NB: The MRS data appear to be exact English equivalents of metric measurements (to the 64th of an inch) but they differ to some extent from the heating surfaces shown in Lindecke and in this entry.)
These were Bavarian engines originally supplied by Maffei in 1903; see Locobase 5991. In 1924-1925, the class was converted to a superheated design. 401-404's boilers remained set at 14 bar (203 psi); the rest of the class upgraded to 16-bar boilers.
After their reconfiguration, the entire class remained in service for the next 20 years. But, Wikipedia points out, by the end of World War II, they were worn out. The last to retire left in 1948.
| Principal Dimensions by Steve Llanso of Middle Run Media | |
|---|---|
| Class | BR 17.4 - superheated |
| Locobase ID | 5990 |
| Railroad | Deutsches Reichsbahn |
| Country | Germany |
| Whyte | 4-6-0 |
| Number in Class | 20 |
| Road Numbers | 17 401 - 17 420 |
| Gauge | Std |
| Number Built | |
| Builder | Maffei |
| Year | 1925 |
| Valve Gear | Heusinger |
| Locomotive Length and Weight | |
| Driver Wheelbase (ft / m) | 14.76 / 4.50 |
| Engine Wheelbase (ft / m) | 29.04 / 8.85 |
| Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheelbase | 0.51 |
| Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) (ft / m) | 54.82 / 16.71 |
| Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) (lbs / kg) | 34,833 / 15,800 |
| Weight on Drivers (lbs / kg) | 104,499 / 47,400 |
| Engine Weight (lbs / kg) | 158,512 / 71,900 |
| Tender Loaded Weight (lbs / kg) | 112,859 / 51,192 |
| Total Engine and Tender Weight (lbs / kg) | 271,371 / 123,092 |
| Tender Water Capacity (gals / ML) | 5544 / 21 |
| Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) (gals/tons / Liters/MT) | 7.70 / 7 |
| Minimum weight of rail (calculated) (lb/yd / kg/m) | 58 / 29 |
| Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort | |
| Driver Diameter (in / mm) | 73.60 / 1870 |
| Boiler Pressure (psi / kPa) | 232.10 / 1600 |
| High Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm) | 13.39" x 25.2" / 340x640 |
| Low Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm) | 22.44" x 25.2" / 570x640 |
| Tractive Effort (lbs / kg) | 17,862 / 8102.08 |
| Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) | 5.85 |
| Heating Ability | |
| Tubes (number - dia) (in / mm) | 169 - 2.008" / 51 |
| Flues (number - dia) (in / mm) | 18 - 5.236" / 133 |
| Flue/Tube length (ft / m) | 14.93 / 4.55 |
| Firebox Area (sq ft / m2) | 158.98 / 14.77 |
| Grate Area (sq ft / m2) | 35.20 / 3.27 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 1733 / 160.98 |
| Superheating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 396 / 36.76 |
| Combined Heating Surface (sq ft / m2) | 2129 / 197.74 |
| Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume | 421.95 |
| Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information) | |
| Robert LeMassena's Power Computation | 8170 |
| Same as above plus superheater percentage | 9722 |
| Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area | 43,910 |
| Power L1 | 15,036 |
| Power MT | 951.65 |