Catalogue information
Prototype: A Württembergischen Staatsbahn freight locomotive with six drive shafts. From 1917, 44 locomotives were built for hauling heavy freight trains over the slopes in the Swabian Jura (Schwäbische Alb) and the Black Forest (Geislinger Steige). The locomotives of the Württ type. After the merger of the German railways, K were numbered in the Baureihe 59. After the electrification of the Geislinger Steige, the locomotives went to Austria ÖBB (Österreichische Bundesbahnen) where they served on the railway line over the Semmering. Then they ended up in Yugoslavia and Hungary MÁV (Magyar Államvasutak) and GySEV (Gyõr/Sopron/Ebenfurthi Vasut) . In Germany, the last locomotives were taken out of service in 1953. The stronger the locomotive, the heavier and longer the boiler, and therefore the heavier the load on the rails. By distributing the weight over more axles, the rails are prevented from being overloaded. But the number of axles cannot be increased without penalty, because the locomotive must also be able to drive through curves and points. Special measures, such as sliding axles and wheels with little or no flanges, allow the number of driving axles to be increased without having to build expensive and complicated articulated locomotives. Six drive shafts is an exception, but a locomotive with seven drive shafts was built in Russia during World War II. A world record, but not a success in practice: it damaged the rails and regularly derailed on points.
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