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World War I

Background
Design
The first order
Second and third orders, and stranded locomotives
World War II

Background
Design
Subclasses Еа, Ем, and Емв
Post-War Tr2 Finland
China Railways DK2
Korean State Railway 데가하 (Degaha) class/8100 series
Surviving locomotives
See also
References

Sources
External links
Russian locomotive class Ye

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Russian class Е [Ye]

Еа-629 (Ел-629) as a monument in Ussuriysk (Primorsky Krai)

Type and origin
Power type Steam
Builder Baldwin Locomotive Works
American Locomotive Company
Canadian Locomotive Company
Model 12-44 F
Build date 1915–1918; 1943–1947
Total produced 3,193+
Specifications
Configuration:

• Whyte 2-10-0
• UIC 1′E h2
Gauge 5 ft (1,524 mm)
Those remaining in US or going
to China Railway, converted to
4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Driver dia. 52 in (1,321 mm)
Length 72 ft 9 in (22.17 m)
Adhesive weight 180,200 lb (81,700 kg)
Loco weight 207,700 lb (94,200 kg)
Total weight 342,500 lb (155,400 kg)
Fuel type Coal
Fuel capacity 40,000 lb (18,100 kg)
Water cap. 7,000 US gal (26,000 L; 5,800 imp gal)
Firebox:
• Grate area 64.7 sq ft (6.01 m2)
Boiler pressure 180 psi (1.24 MPa)
Heating surface 2,594 sq ft (241.0 m2)
Superheater:

• Heating area 569 sq ft (52.9 m2)

Cylinders Two
Cylinder size 25 in × 28 in (635 mm × 711 mm)
Valve gear Walschaerts
Performance figures
Maximum speed 55 mph (89 km/h)
Tractive effort 51,500 lbf (229.08 kN)
Career
Operators Imperial Russian Government; Finnish State Railways; Various American
railways.
The Russian locomotive class Ye, and subclasses Yea, Yek, Yel, Yef, Yem, Yemv and
Yes (Russian: Паровоз Е; Еа, Ек, Ел, Еф, Ем, Емв and Ес) were a series of 2-10-0
locomotives built by American builders for the Russian railways in World War I and
again in World War II. They were lightweight engines with relatively low axle
loadings.

Due to the Bolshevik revolution in 1917, 200 locomotives were stranded in the
United States so these were fitted with wider tires: locomotive driving wheels had
steel tires which were heated to expand them, then driven over the wheels so that
they shrank into place. By fitting wider tires with a deeper tread width, the
effective wheel gauge could be decreased from the Russian standard of 5 ft (1,524
mm) to 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) (the US standard) to fit the American gauge, and
could then be sent to various railroads. The locomotives were nicknamed "Russian
Decapods."

A number of locomotives were acquired by the Finnish railways (class Tr2)[1] and by
the China Railway (class DK2)

World War I
Background
When Russia entered the war in 1914, it was dependent mainly on 0-8-0 and 2-8-0
locomotives. What was needed were locomotives with high adhesive weight (and thus
tractive effort), which could only be provided by a locomotive with 10 drive
wheels, but the only model being built, the class E (Russian: Паровоз Э) 0-10-0,
was in short supply, with only 100 produced to that point. Another problem was that
the 0-10-0's were being produced only at one factory. At this time, Professor N. L.
Shchukin, head of the commission of rolling stock, the Ministry of Railways,
proposed ordering 400 2-10-0 locomotives from the United States.

Design
Although the production was to be American, the locomotive was designed by Russian
engineers. This called for 10 drive wheels, a low axle loading, a large firebox to
burn low-grade coal, and an overall similar design to the Э class 0-10-0. Because
the weight of the boiler, particularly the firebox, caused the axle load on some
axles to exceed 16 tonnes, it was decided to add a lead pony truck, thus turning it
into a 2-10-0. This also allowed a slightly bigger boiler whilst keeping the axle
loadings within acceptable limits.

Some people, including Shchukin, would have rather ordered a 2-10-2 locomotive, but
the decision was made to keep it as a 2-10-0, as its shorter length would allow it
to fit on smaller turntables. Another reason was that the small drive wheels
allowed a wide firebox above the wheels to be nearly as deep as a locomotive with a
trailing axle.

The cylinders were originally planned to be 630 mm stroke by 700 mm bore, but
because America uses inches, the designers changed it to 635 mm (25.0 in) stroke by
711.2 mm (28.00 in) bore. It was originally planned to use plate frames, but since
that would take time away from production in setting up the equipment in American
factories, it was decided to use bar frames.

At the same time, Russian designers were also planning for a tandem compound 2-10-0
and 0-10-0, and an ordinary 0-10-2 and 0-12-0 to be produced at home, but the
orders were never implemented due to the factories being at the limit of their
capacities.

Diagrams showing the basic dimensions of four models.

Еф, Ек, and Ес

Еф, Ек, and Ес

Ел
Ел

Еа
Еа

Ем and Емв
Ем and Емв
The first order
In 1915, the first 400 locomotives entered production. In Russia, they were given
the name of class "Е," with subclasses varying on the city of the manufacturer: Еф
for Baldwin built (ф=ph for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), Ес for Alco built (с=s for
Schenectady, New York), and Ек for Canadian built (к=k for Kingston, Ontario).

Locomotive Еф-1 at the Baldwin factory, before shipment.

The locomotives were manufactured without brakes. This is due to the fact that it
was determined to equip these locomotives with Westinghouse brakes, but this did
not comply with the requirements of Russian railways. Therefore, the braking
equipment was commissioned by the joint stock company of Westinghouse in Petrograd.
For this reason, upon arriving in Vladivostok, locomotives were first sent to the
main workshops of the Chinese Eastern Railway in Harbin. There, the locomotives
were equipped with brake apparatuses, and prepared to be sent to the railways of
the European part of Russia.

Second and third orders, and stranded locomotives

Locomotive Ел-884 at the Baldwin factory, before shipment.

In 1916, after satisfactory performance of the first engines, Russia decided to
order a further 475 locomotives, with minor changes. These were sub-classed as Ел.
These locomotives were slightly heavier, with an adhesive weight of 80.3 tonnes

In 1917, Russia again decided to order more locomotives. Baldwin was only able to
supply 75 at this time. However, when the United States entered the war in 1917, it
decided to aid the Allied effort by producing more 2-10-0s for Russia. About 500
locomotives were ordered. However, production was interrupted by the 1917 Bolshevik
revolution, and ultimately only 50 locomotives were delivered. This left 200
locomotives stranded in the US. At this point, the United States Railroad
Administration decided to convert them to standard gauge by fitting wider tires,
and then distribute them among American railways. The Erie Railroad received 75,
the Seaboard Air Line Railroad received 40, the St. Louis – San Francisco Railway
(SLSF) received 20 (17 directly from the government, 3 from other companies),[2]
and 22 other railways received lesser quantities. The unbuilt remainder of the
order, 200 locomotives, was canceled.

World War II
Background
After two years of war with Germany, much of the Soviet rail system was in ruins.
At the time, much effort had been put into rebuilding the track; however, the hasty
nature of the construction meant that it could not support locomotives with axle-
loadings of more than 18 tonnes. Around 16,000 engines were destroyed by the
various bombings, and the remaining intact engines were either too weak or too
heavy. The factories did not have the equipment to produce locomotives, so it was
decided to order more from America.

Design
To significantly reduce the amount of work on designing a new engine and speed up
the order, it was decided to base the project on the design of the Ел engine. To
reduce costs and accelerate production of steam cylinders, brass bushings were
used, and the cast iron dome was pressed, and the firebox was now welded. Because
of the possibility of the motion locking up, Zyablova valves were replaced with
valves of the Celler type. These valves allowed saturated steam directly into the
cylinders while preventing combustion gases from the firebox to enter.[further
explanation needed] The number of tubes for the super heater elements was increased
from 28 to 35, raising the superheater area to 76.2 m2 (820 sq ft). The evaporative
heating surface of the boiler was therefore decreased to 229.2 m2 (2,467 sq ft)
(with the number of boiler tubes reduced to 162). Due to the increase in weight the
engine, and the possible damage in transit across the ocean, the thickness of the
frame's sidewalls was increased from 114.3 to 127 mm (4.5 to 5.0 in). For supplying
coal to the firebox, tenders were equipped with an HT-1 automatic stoker. In
addition, there were a few minor improvements. Otherwise, the locomotives were
unchanged.

Subclasses Еа, Ем, and Емв

An S160 locomotive.
At the conclusion of the third protocol of Lend-Lease in the summer of 1943
(effective from 1 July of that year), the American factories ALCO and Baldwin were
given an order for production of more 2-10-0 locomotives based on the Soviet
designers' drawings. As the factories were not ready to start manufacturing these
engines until the end of the year, due to the high demand for steam locomotives,
the Soviet Union was forced to order 150 (later increased to 200) 2-8-0 S160 series
locomotives (Soviet designation Series Ша). It is noteworthy that these engines,
built between the world wars, were based on the Ел locomotives, having similar
features such as the high location of the boiler.

In 1944 the first steam engines of the Е series, which was given index "a" (for
'American'), resulting in the designation of Еа. The numbers of locomotives built
by ALCO began at #2001 and the Baldwin built locomotives at #2201. In September the
same year, the first Baldwin built locomotive (Еа-2201) was sent to the pilot ring
VNIIZhT which was tested until October. In the course of the tests, it was found
that forcing the boiler to 70 kg/m2 (0.00069 MPa; 0.100 psi), a cutoff of 60% and
at a speed of 19.6 mph (31.5 km/h), the engine could develop 36,080 lbf (160.5 kN)
of tractive effort. It was also found that the locomotive could achieve 1,920–1,950
hp (1,430–1,450 kW), which was a 20–25% increase compared to the World War I
engines (1,400 hp or 1,000 kW). The improved performance was achieved through
improved boiler and the use of mechanical stoker. The temperature of superheated
steam was typically 572–644 °F (300–340 °C), and no more than 698 °F (370 °C).

In 1945 the factories began producing steam engines of this new design, which
received the designation of Ем (modernized).

Yel 534 at the Russian Railway Museum, St. Petersburg

Although the locomotives were designed and built according to Soviet designs, the
American plants implemented some of their own technologies, as well as changes in
design of individual units. Thus, the plant Baldwin locomotives #2624 to Alco #2200
were issued with rocking grates. Most of the Еа and Ем locomotives were issued with
bar frames, but some were released with cast frames, which included not only a
sidewall with better fixtures, but cylinders integrated with the support for the
boiler, the buffer timber with support for the truck, smaller tender coupling,
brackets for balancing the spring suspension and brake support shaft. Also, the
last thirteen locomotives built by ALCO, issued in 1947, were equipped with
feedwater heaters. These 13 locomotives were given the designation Емв. In 1946, at
the Yaroslavl locomotive plant, two locomotives were weighed: one was an Еа with
bar frames, and the other was an Ем with a cast frame. It was found that the engine
Е-2001, Е-2988 and Ем-3892 have common operating weights which were, respectively,
102.8, 99.6, and 103.5 tonnes, and the adhesion weight was 91.2, 88.7 and 91.5
tonnes.

The last steam locomotive was Ем #4260 (Some sources say #4250), built by Baldwin
for Soviet railways, and delivered on August 27, 1945, and that was when Baldwin
stopped producing locomotives for the Soviets, followed by Alco in 1947. Overall,
no less than 2,047 Russian decapods were built for the Soviet Union between 1944
and 1947. However, the recorded numbers of the locomotives built and delivered
varies between US and Soviet sources. Thus, according to Vitaly Rakov, only 2,047
locomotives were built, of which 1,622 were of class Е, 412 were of class Ем, and
13 were of class Емв. Ем locomotives #3621-3634 were not delivered. Peter Klaus
pointed out that the USSR did not make engines with serial numbers USATC #4878 (Е-
2378), 5908, 5938, 5940–5942, 6734, and 10060–10086, and according to R. Tourett,
47 of the 2110 steam locomotives built were not sent to the USSR.

Post-War Tr2 Finland

ALCO No. 75214 Tr2 Truman 1319 at the Finnish Railway Museum
The State Railroads of Finland purchased 20 American Decapods after World War II -
these were originally built for the Soviet Union, but never delivered to them. Of
the 20 engines, 10 were manufactured by Baldwin, 10 by Alco. Since they were
originally built for the USSR, they had the correct gauge for Finland, too (1,524
mm (5 ft) exactly). One (Alco # 75214, 1947) is preserved at the Finnish Railway
Museum in Hyvinkää, Finland.

The locomotives had the Finnish designation Tr2 (Tavarajuna, Raskas - freight
train, Heavy) and were nicknamed Truman locomotives after US President Harry S.
Truman, as they were acquired during the Truman administration. They were delivered
in 1946 and phased out in 1968 as diesel and electricity superseded steam on
Finnish railways. The Trumans were the most powerful freight train steam engines
ever employed by the Finnish State Railways.

China Railways DK2

60 American Decapods in China became class DK2 in 1959, and numbered 71–130. DK2-
114 is preserved at Baotou West Locomotive Depot, Hohhot Railway Bureau.

Korean State Railway 데가하 (Degaha) class/8100 series

The Soviet Union sent American Decapods to North Korea as aid starting almost
immediately following the end of the Second World War, mostly of the Еа class.[3]
Originally designated 데가하 (Degaha) class by the Korean State Railway and later
renumbered in the 8100 series, number 8112 was still operational in 2007.[4]

Surviving locomotives
Seaboard Air Line No. 544, cosmetically restored at the North Carolina
Transportation Museum
Seaboard Air Line No. 544, cosmetically restored at the North Carolina
Transportation Museum
Еа-534
Еа-534
Еа-3246 near Tynda station
Еа-3246 near Tynda station
Yea 2201 built by Baldwin in 1944)
Yea 2201 built by Baldwin in 1944)
Yea-2450 at Moscow Railway Museum at Rizhsky Rail Terminal
Yea-2450 at Moscow Railway Museum at Rizhsky Rail Terminal
DK2-114 at Baotou West Locomotive Depot, Hohhot Railway Bureau.
DK2-114 at Baotou West Locomotive Depot, Hohhot Railway Bureau.
SLSF 1615 - constructed by ALCO’s Richmond Locomotive Works in the fall of 1917 &
spring of 1918; acquired by the City of Altus, Oklahoma, USA, on October 22, 1967,
and placed static display there.[2][5]
SLSF 1621 - built in 1918, on static display at the National Museum of
Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri, USA.[6]
SLSF 1625 - built in 1918 at ALCO's Schenectady Locomotive Works,[2] on static
display at the Museum of the American Railroad in Frisco, Texas, USA.[7]
SLSF 1630 - constructed by Baldwin in 1918,[2] in excursion service since 1967 at
the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Illinois, USA.[8]
SLSF 1632 - a 1918 Baldwin located since 1991 at the Belton, Grandview and Kansas
City Railroad in Belton, Missouri, USA, on static display.[2][9]
Еа-2026 - Depot Hrechany, Ukraine.
Еа-2533 - Depot Sibirtsevo, Vladivostok.
Еа-3215 - Sibirtsevo, Primorye.
Ем-3747 - Tikhoretsk, Krasnodar Krai. (Restored to operation in 2018)
Ем-3753 - Vyazemskaya, Khabarovsk Territory. (Operational as of July 2017)
Еа-4160 - Irkutsk.
Ел-266 - Railway Museum in Ulan Bator, Mongolia.
Ес-311 - Museum at Oktyabrskaya, railway station, Shushary.
Ел-345 - Brest Railway Museum.
Ел-534 and Еа-2201 - the Russian Railway Museum, Saint Petersburg
SAL 544 - North Carolina Transportation Museum, USA.
Еа-2371 - Tashkent Railway Museum.
Еа-2441 - Technical Museum of AvtoVAZ, Togliatti.
Еа-2450 - Moscow Railway Museum at Rizhsky Rail Terminal
Еа-3078 - Novosibirsk Museum of railway equipment.
Еа-3510 - Rostov Railway Museum Station Gnilovskaya.
Ем-3635 and Ел-4000 (?) - Lebyazhye Railway Museum, Lebyazhye, Lomonosovsky
District, Leningrad Oblast
Tr2-1319 - Finnish Railway Museum in Hyvinkää.
Ес-350 - Chelyabinsk.
Ел-629 - Ussuriysk.
Еа-2325 - Bishkek-I Railway Station, Kyrgyzstan[10]
Еа-2885 - Station Komsomolsk-sorting.
Еа-3070 - Circum-Baikal railway.
Еа-3220 - Station Zilov, Chita Region.
Еа-3246 - Station Tynda, Amur region.
Еа-3306 - Vladivostok railway terminal, as monument "To military feat of railway
workers in Primorye region during WWII"
Ем-3884 - Station Tommot, Yakutia.
Ем-3931 - Station Vyazemskaya, Khabarovsk Territory.
Ем-4249 - Vikhorevka, Irkutsk region.
Ел-4729 - Nizhneudinsk, Irkutsk region.
Еа-5052 (?) - Station Lena, Irkutsk region.
DK2-114 - Baotou West Locomotive Depot, Hohhot Railway Bureau.
8112 - Operational as of 2007 at the Hwanghae Iron & Steel Complex on the Songrim
Line in North Korea.[4]
Many other locomotives of this type are still stored on various reserve bases
throughout the former USSR.

See also
The Museum of the Moscow Railway
Russian Railway Museum, Saint Petersburg
Rizhsky Rail Terminal, Home of the Moscow Railway Museum
History of rail transport in Russia
Finnish Railway Museum
List of Finnish locomotives
List of locomotives in China
References
"Tr2". koti.mbnet.fi (in Finnish). Archived from the original on 2015-05-03.
Retrieved 2011-02-12.
"The Frisco Survivors" (PDF). All Aboard, The Frisco Railroad Museum, March, 1988
(accessed on CondrenRails.com). Retrieved January 20, 2021.
Kokubu, Hayato (January 2007). 将軍様の鉄道 (in Japanese). Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō. pp.
110–111. ISBN 978-4-10-303731-6.
"Nordkorea - "Amidampf und Russendiesel"". FarRail Tours (in German). Archived
from the original on July 9, 2008.
"SLSF #1615". rgusrail.com. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
"Eagle-Picher St. Louis-San Francisco Railway #1621". The National Museum of
Transportation. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
 Railroad, Museum of the American. "Steam Locomotives".
www.museumoftheamericanrailroad.org. Archived from the original on 2015-06-27.
Retrieved 2023-11-10.
"Frisco 1630's 100th birthday Celebration September 15th". Illinois Railway
Museum. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
"Locomotives". Belton, Grandview & Kansas City Railroad. Retrieved January 25,
2021.
"Паровоз-памятник Еа−2325 (Бишкек)". WikiMapia (in Russian). [unreliable source?]
Sources
Hollingsworth, Brian (2000). The Illustrated Dictionary of Trains of the World.
London: Salamander Books Ltd. pp. 136–137. ISBN 1-84065-177-6.
Rakov, V. A. (1995). Локомотивы отечественных железных дорог 1845—1955 (2 ed.).
Moscow: Транспорт. ISBN 5-277-00821-7.
Tourret, R. (1977). United States Army Transportation Corps Locomotives. Tourret
Publishing. ISBN 978-0-905878-01-0.
Sucmen Veturit. (1975). Valticnrautateichen hoyryerturit. Vol. 1. Malmö.
Макаров, Леонид (October 2005). Декаподы [Decapod] (in Russian). Техника молодёжи.
НКПС-СССР. Центральное управление паровозного хозяйства (1935). Альбом схем
паровозов и паспортов [Album schemes locomotives and passports]. Moscow: Фабрика
наглядных учебных пособий НКПС (типография «Гудок»).
External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Russian locomotive class Е.

"Suomen Rautatiemuseo - Kalustogalleria - Tr2 perustiedot" [Finnish Railway museum
- stock gallery - Tr2 locomotive]. www.rautatie.org (in Finnish). Archived from the
original on 2013-04-15.
The Museum of the Moscow Railway Photographs
Lenin's Funeral Train Photographs
Paveletsky Rail Terminal Official site Archived 2021-01-22 at the Wayback Machine
The Moscow Railway Museum at Rizhsky Rail Terminal, Moscow
Report on a visit to the Varshavsky Rail Terminal, St.Petersburg
vte
Rolling stock of former Soviet Union countries
vte
China Railway locomotives
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Korean State Railway locomotives and rolling stock
Categories: Railway locomotives introduced in 19152-10-0 locomotivesBaldwin
locomotivesALCO locomotivesSteam locomotives of the Soviet UnionSteam locomotives
of the Russian EmpireSteam locomotives of the United StatesVR locomotivesCLC
locomotivesFreight locomotives5 ft gauge locomotivesStandard-gauge locomotives of
ChinaStandard-gauge locomotives of the United StatesLocomotives of North KoreaSteam
locomotives of ChinaSteam locomotives of Finland1′E h2 locomotivesLocomotive
designs used by multiple railways
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