Brawa German Steam Locomotive BR 01 of the DRG (AC Digital Extra w/Sound)  
    

In 1925 the Deutsche Reichsbahn (DRG) unified all the (Länderbahn) German state-owned railroads. After the founding of the DRG, the DRG made an inventory of the old Länderbahn locomotives. Apparently, there was a large need for new and (standardized locomotives. Standardized locomotives had many similar interchangeable parts in common, which made production and maintenance cost much more economical. In May 1921, the commission for standardized locomotives decided to build a new steam engine for express trains. As a result, the 12 new standardized steam engines were heavily influenced by the designs of Prussian steam engines. The first locomotive contained a wheel configuration of 2’C’1 also known as 4-6-2 Pacific with an axle load of 20 tons. The specifications for the locomotive required pulling a train with a weight of 800 t and to maintain a speed of 100 km/h. Furthermore, the locomotive had to pull a train with a weight of 500 tons at a speed of 50 km/h at a 10% grade. The top speed of this locomotive had to be 120 km/h. Manufacturers including Borsig, Henschel, and Maffei were assigned the challenge to create these abstract locomotives with the best designs. The proposals from Borsig, Henschel and Maffei included two cylinder and four-cylinder steam engines with one and two axles being powered. In 1925, the DRG purchased ten steam engines of both designs. The BR 01’s underwent extensive performance tests to analysis what locomotive designs met the DRG requirements. The two-cylinder locomotives were built by Borsig and received the numbers: 01, 001, to 008. The numbers from AEG included: 01, 009 and 010. Henschel built the four-cylinder locomotives 02, 001, up to 008 while Maffei built locomotives 02, 009 and 010. After the locomotives were built and the test program was completed, the DRG choose the two cylinder versions.  The steam engines of Class BR 01 were the first built steam engines in the standardized program. These steam engines were built to haul heavy express trains. The essence of Class BR 01 was a simple steam engine, but the BR 01 was equipped with many devices and instruments. A total of five series or batches were delivered, each with minor variations: 01 001–010 (1926), 01 112–076 (1927–28), 01 077–101 (1930–31), 01 102–190 (1934–1936), 01 191–232 (1937–1938). 01 102 and onward had leading wheels with a diameter of 1000 mm and included a top speed of 120-130 km/h. The air pump was originally placed behind the large smoke deflectors but was later moved to the middle of the steam engine. In 1927, the mass-production of the BR 01 began. The second series was not delivered until 1928. The steam engines from this series had larger ‘Wagner” smoke deflectors as well as a boiler with a length of 5’8 meters. The third series delivered steam engines with numbers 01 077 up to 01 101. The boiler of these steam engines was lengthened to 6’80 meters and had a closed front skirt under the door of the smoke box. The diameter of the cylinder was reduced from 65 centimeters to 60 centimeters. From 1934 to 1936, the fourth series was delivered with steam engines 01 102 up to 01 190. These locomotives were built by the Berliner Maschinenbau AG, Henschel, and Krupp. The diameter of the wheels was extended from 85 centimeters to 1 meter with improved brakes. The top speed of these engines reached 130 km/h. The fifth and last series was delivered in 1937/38 with steam engines 01 191 up to 01 232. These steam engines included a few modifications. The BR 01 locomotives remained in service with the Deutsche Bundesbahn until 1973. In the DR, they were still working up to the early 1980s, largely in their original state with large smoke deflectors. They were legendary in their last years for hauling the D-Zug services on the Berlin-Dresden route up to autumn 1977. Only when the large GDR Class 132 diesel locomotives arrived, the Class 01 express train locomotives were finally forced out of scheduled services in the GDR after almost 50 years of service.

Altogether, 231 steam engines type BR 01 were produced between the years 1925-1938.The BR 01 is one of the most iconic German steam locomotives adored by steam enthusiasts from all over the globe. Today there are still a few in operation owned by museums and private clubs.