DRB Class 50

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DRB Class 50
Deutsche Bundesbahn (DB) 052 740-8 in Mayen, May 2006
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Henschel & Sohn (650) Berliner Maschinenbau (370) Lokomotivfabrik Floridsdorf (368) Krupp (324) Krauss-Maffei (317) Borsig (179) Maschienenbau und Bahnbedarf AG (170) Schichau-Werke (135) Arnold Jung Lokomotivfabrik (105) Maschinenfabrik Esslingen (69) Škoda Works (140) ČKD (35) Deutsche Waffen- und Munitionsfabriken (72) Ostrowiece (26) SA des Usines Métallurgiques du Hainaut (24) SA la Métallurgique, Tubize (38) John Cockerill (42) Ateliers de construction de La Meuse (26) Forges Usines et Fonderies Haine-Saint-Pierre (28) Anglo-Franco-Belge (26) SA l'Énergie (16) Build date 1939–1948 Total produced 3160
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-10-0  • UIC 1′E h2  • German G 56.15 Gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) Leading dia. 0,850 mm (33+1⁄2 in) Driver dia. 1,400 mm (55+1⁄8 in) Tender wheels 1,000 mm (39+3⁄8 in) Wheelbase: ​  • Axle spacing (Asymmetrical) 2,600 mm (8 ft 6+3⁄8 in) + 1,650 mm (5 ft 5 in) + 1,650 mm (5 ft 5 in) + 1,650 mm (5 ft 5 in) + 1,650 mm (5 ft 5 in) =  • Engine 9,200 mm (30 ft 2+1⁄4 in)  • Tender 1,900 mm (6 ft 2+3⁄4 in) + 1,900 mm (6 ft 2+3⁄4 in) + 1,900 mm (6 ft 2+3⁄4 in) = 5,700 mm (18 ft 8+3⁄8 in)  • incl. tender 18,890 mm (61 ft 11+3⁄4 in) Length: ​  • Over headstocks 21,640 mm (71 ft 0 in)  • Over buffers 22,940 mm (75 ft 3+1⁄8 in) Height 4,500 mm (14 ft 9+1⁄8 in) Axle load 15.3 t (15.1 long tons; 16.9 short tons) Adhesive weight 76.6 t (75.4 long tons; 84.4 short tons) Empty weight 78.6 t (77.4 long tons; 86.6 short tons) Service weight 88.1 t (86.7 long tons; 97.1 short tons) Tender type 2′2′ T 26 Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 8 t (7.9 long tons; 8.8 short tons) Water cap. 26 m3 (5,720 imp gal; 6,870 US gal) Firebox: ​  • Grate area 3.9 m2 (42 sq ft) Boiler: ​  • Pitch 3,050 mm (10 ft 1⁄8 in)  • Tube plates 5,200 mm (17 ft 3⁄4 in)  • Small tubes 54 mm (2+1⁄8 in), 113 off  • Large tubes 133 mm (5+1⁄4 in), 35 off Boiler pressure 16 bar (16.3 kgf/cm2; 232 psi) Heating surface: ​  • Firebox 15.9 m2 (171 sq ft)  • Tubes 90.4 m2 (973 sq ft)  • Flues 71.3 m2 (767 sq ft)  • Total surface 177.6 m2 (1,912 sq ft) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 64.1 m2 (690 sq ft) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 600 mm × 660 mm (23+5⁄8 in × 26 in) Valve gear Heusinger (Walschaerts) with lifting links Train heating Steam
Performance figures Maximum speed 80 km/h (50 mph) (both directions) Indicated power 1,625 PS (1,200 kW; 1,600 hp)
Career Numbers 50 001 – 50 3171 with gaps Retired 1987

The DRB Class 50^[1] is a German class of 2-10-0 locomotive, built from 1939 as a standard locomotive (Einheitsdampflokomotive) for hauling goods trains. It had one leading axle and five coupled axles and was one of the most successful designs produced for the Deutsche Reichsbahn.

This class was procured in Germany as part of the Nazi Party's preparations for war that led to the Second World War (1939-1945). As late as 1948, 3,164 Class 50 engines were built by many European locomotive factories – towards the war's end as "provisional war locomotives" (Übergangskriegslokomotiven) and classified as 50 ÜK.

At the end of the steam locomotive era, they became virtually a universal class of mixed-traffic steam engine that, thanks to their low axle load, could even be employed on branch lines with light track beds. The Deutsche Bundesbahn grouped the locomotives into Classes 050, 051, 052 and 053 from 1968 so that the numbers were computer-compatible.

Some of the class were used by the Polish State Railways as type Ty5.