Magyar Allamvasutak 4-4-0 Locomotives in Hungary


Class Details by Steve Llanso of Sweat House Media

Class 159/I/259 (Locobase 1550)

Data from A[nthony] E[dward] Durrant, The Steam Locomotives of Eastern Europe (Newton Abbot:David & Charles, 1966); "MAV I" in Wikipedia at [link], last accessed 25 December 2021; and P[eter] M[ichael] Kalla-Bishop, Hungarian Locomotives (NY: Drake Publishers, 1973).

Durrant wrote that these outside-framed locomotives had their valve gear eccentrics outside the frames, but inside the main and side rods, which put the cylinders well off the centerline, "partially nullifying the steadying influence of the bogie."

They hit a maximum of 46 1/2 mph on the Budapest-Miskolc expresses. Kalla-Bishop remarked that they were a conservative design, outdated even as they were introduced and "in any case, it's probable that they were under-boilered."


Class Ia/220 (Locobase 1545)

Data from A[nthony] E[dward] Durrant, The Steam Locomotives of Eastern Europe (Newton Abbot, Devonshire: David & Charles, 1966), pp. 30-31;; and Skice I Glavni , pp. 29. P[eter] M[ichael] Kalla-Bishop, Hungarian , and [link] . Also see

[link]

Also known as the Ia class and built between 1881 and 1905. These engines had their Stephenson eccentrics outside, mounting on the Hall crank bosses on the drivers. They were based on the 1877 Austrian eight-wheelers, and had inside-frame bogies with a sliding pivot for better guiding through curves. Max speed was 56 mph. Kalla-Bishop notes that the leading bogie axle was located under the centerline of the stack, considerably farther back than British (or American) practice. The purpose was to equalize the axle loading, he says, and adds that most Hungarian designs had a similar layout.

The first six were the lightest, had underslung springs on the drivers, and the Hardy vacuum brake. Later versions carried the springs over the drivers and used an air brake. One (220.051) received a Brotan boiler, another (220.193) was superheated and fitted with piston valves.

After the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, 79 were transferred to Romania, 47 to Yugoslavia, 6 to Czechoslovakia, and 1 to Italy. 68 remained in Hungary, the last leaving service in 1952.


Class Id/221 (Locobase 1546)

Data from A[nthony] E[dward] Durrant, The Steam Locomotives of Eastern Europe (Newton Abbot: David & Charles, 1966); "MAV Id" in Wikipedia at [link], last accessed 25 December 2021; and P[eter] M[ichael] Kalla-Bishop, Hungarian Locomotives (NY: Drake Publishers, 1973).

Similar to the successful 220s, but with smaller drivers and a lighter axle load for the Hungarian North Eastern routes. Like the 220s, these engines wore their Stephenson eccentrics outside on the Hall crank bosses. The last five delivered presented extended smokeboxes and boilers pressed to 11.5 atm (167 psi). Tube count dropped by 2, which reduced total evaporative heating surface commensurately.

NB: Heating surface area as given in the sources uses the inside (fire side) diameter for the tubes. This choice yields 111.4 sq m (1,199 sq ft) and 120 sq m (1,292 sq ft) total. Locobase uses the external (water side) diameter.

After the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, 9 were transferred to Romania, 4 to Yugoslavia, and 2 to Czechoslovakia. 17 remained in Hungary.


Class Ie/222 (Locobase 1547)

Data from "Compound Locomotive - Hungarian State Railways", Railway Review, Volume XXXIII [33], No. 49 (9 December 1893), p.734. See also A[nthony] E[dward] Durrant, The Steam Locomotives of Eastern Europe (Newton Abbot:David & Charles, 1966); See also Gustav Reder (Michael Reynolds, trans), The world of steam locomotives (New York: Putnam, 1974), p. 206;and P[eter] M[ichael] Kalla-Bishop, Hungarian Locomotives (NY: Drake Publishers, 1973). (Many thanks to Alexander Blessing for his 27 April 2020 email supplying the missing link to complete data for this design.)

This tandem-compound class began as a somewhat experimental group, especially in working out the proper ratio between HP and LP cylinders. After the first four were built with four different ratios, six more were delivered with the first engine's ratio. They were all Woolf tandem compounds, arranged so that the larger LP cylinder preceded the smalle HP cylinder. The goal was to use just two cranks on the main driving axle rather than four. (Several US builders dabbled with tandem compounds but found maintenance was both difficult and expensive.)

Alexander Blessing notes that the RR report used one of the prototype's diameters for the high-pressure cylinders, but that all of the production engines used the 320 mm given here.

Finally, 83 of a slightly different ratio than any of the first four made up the remainder of the class. Compounding (of the von Borries kind) was confirmed in this class when two were converted to simple-expansion and proved less capable.

Two of them received Brotan boilers and Durrant offers a photo on page 31 of one of these Brotan-boilered, tandem-cylinder, outside-frame apparitions. See also Kalla-Bishop's Hungarian locomotives, p 96, for a drawing of 459. According to Reder, the class was rated at 160 tons up a -.7% grade at 60 kph (37.5 mph).

After the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, 25 were transferred to Romania, 4 to Yugoslavia, and 66 remained in Hungary.

Principal Dimensions by Steve Llanso of Middle Run Media
Class159/I/259Ia/220Id/221Ie/222
Locobase ID1550 1545 1546 1547
RailroadMagyar Allamvasutak (MAV)Magyar Allamvasutak (MAV)Magyar Allamvasutak (MAV)Magyar Allamvasutak (MAV)
CountryHungaryHungaryHungaryHungary
Whyte4-4-04-4-04-4-04-4-0
Number in Class62043295
Road Numbers159-164/I 1-6/259.001-259.006321-352/221.001-032
GaugeStdStdStdStd
Number Built62043295
BuilderMAVAGMAVAGMAVAG
Year1874188118901890
Valve GearStephensonStephensonStephensonWalschaert
Locomotive Length and Weight
Driver Wheelbase (ft / m) 6.89 / 2.10 5.59 / 1.70 7.55 / 2.30 7.87 / 2.40
Engine Wheelbase (ft / m)15.98 / 4.8719.19 / 5.8520.67 / 6.30
Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheelbase 0.43 0.39 0.38
Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender) (ft / m)41.50 / 12.65
Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle) (lbs / kg)
Weight on Drivers (lbs / kg)47,179 / 21,40063,392 / 28,75455,975 / 25,39062,336 / 28,275
Engine Weight (lbs / kg)83,886 / 38,050109,312 / 49,58391,051 / 41,300119,931 / 54,400
Tender Loaded Weight (lbs / kg)75,398 / 34,200
Total Engine and Tender Weight (lbs / kg)195,329 / 88,600
Tender Water Capacity (gals / ML)
Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal) (gals/tons / Liters/MT)
Minimum weight of rail (calculated) (lb/yd / kg/m)39 / 19.5053 / 26.5047 / 23.5052 / 26
Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort
Driver Diameter (in / mm)74.80 / 190071.90 / 182668 / 172778.70 / 2000
Boiler Pressure (psi / kPa)145 / 1000174 / 1200145 / 1000188.50 / 1300
High Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm)15.75" x 24.88" / 400x63217.72" x 25.6" / 450x65016.93" x 25.59" / 430x65012.6" x 25.59" / 320x650
Low Pressure Cylinders (dia x stroke) (in / mm)19.29" x 25.59" / 490x650
Tractive Effort (lbs / kg)10,169 / 4612.5916,535 / 7500.1613,294 / 6030.0611,595 / 5259.41
Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) 4.64 3.83 4.21 5.38
Heating Ability
Tubes (number - dia) (in / mm)170 - 2.047" / 52199 - 2.047" / 52188 - 2.047" / 52
Flues (number - dia) (in / mm)
Flue/Tube length (ft / m)10.37 / 3.1612.99 / 3.9613.12 / 4
Firebox Area (sq ft / m2)87.19 / 8.1092.57 / 8.60129.17 / 12
Grate Area (sq ft / m2)21.53 / 222.60 / 2.1021.53 / 232.29 / 3
Evaporative Heating Surface (sq ft / m2)1028 / 95.501459 / 135.591478 / 137.301452 / 134.90
Superheating Surface (sq ft / m2)
Combined Heating Surface (sq ft / m2)1028 / 95.501459 / 135.591478 / 137.301452 / 134.90
Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume183.23199.67221.67393.17
Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information)
Robert LeMassena's Power Computation3122393231226087
Same as above plus superheater percentage3122393231226087
Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area12,64313,42324,349
Power L1471747845992
Power MT440.84376.84423.83

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