The Class G 3/4 H was a

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...

of the

Royal Bavarian State Railways The Royal Bavarian State Railways (''Königliche Bayerische Staats-Eisenbahnen'' or ''K.Bay.Sts.B.'') was the state railway company for the Kingdom of Bavaria. It was founded in 1844. The organisation grew into the second largest of the German ...

(''Königlich Bayerische Staatsbahn'') built between 1919 and 1923.

Description and employment

Its striking features in comparison with the G 3/4 N were its

superheater A superheater is a device used to convert saturated steam or wet steam into superheated steam or dry steam. Superheated steam is used in steam turbines for electricity generation, in some steam engines, and in processes such as steam reforming. ...

system, the

feedwater preheater A feedwater heater is a power plant component used to pre-heat water delivered to a steam generating boiler. Preheating the feedwater reduces the irreversibilities involved in steam generation and therefore improves the thermodynamic efficiency o ...

, the larger and higher-positioned

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centra ...

and its

Adams axle The Adams axle is a form of radial axle for rail locomotives that enable them to negotiate curves more easily. It was invented by William Bridges Adams and patented in 1865. The invention uses axle boxes that slide on an arc in shaped horn bloc ...

. In addition, they were more powerful and efficient than their predecessors. All 225 examples that were built were taken over by the

Bavarian Group Administration {{unreferenced, date=October 2024 The Bavarian Group Administration or ''Gruppenverwaltung Bayern'' was a largely autonomous railway administration within the Deutsche Reichsbahn (German Imperial Railways) between the two world wars. It was formed ...

within the

Reichsbahn The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'' (), also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the re ...

and were initially operated under their old numbers. Later they were given operating numbers 54 1501–1725 following the final renumbering plan issued by the DRG. The majority of locomotives also survived the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The last engine (with operating number 54 1632) was not retired until 1966. Dampflok Baureihe 54

Numbers 54.1534, 1548, 1550, 1559, 1589 and 1663 remained in Austria after the war. The

ÖBB The Austrian Federal Railways ( , formally or () and formerly the or ''BBÖ'' ), now commonly known as ÖBB (), is the national railway company of Austria, and the administrator of Liechtenstein's railways. The ÖBB group i ...

added them to their fleet and ran them as ÖBB Class 654. All engines in this class were retired by 1957. Number 654.1663 was reassigned in 1956 as an industrial locomotive in the main workshop at

Simmering Simmering is a food preparation technique by which foods are cooked in hot liquids kept just below the boiling point of water (lower than ) and above poaching temperature (higher than ). To create a steady simmer, a liquid is brought to a boil, ...

, where it received the number 913.502. The engines were equipped with a Bavarian 3 T 18,2 tender.

Surviving locomotives

In 2004 the remains of a G 3/4 with works number 5395 was discovered during construction work in

Treuchtlingen Treuchtlingen () is a town in the Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen district, in Bavaria, Germany. It has a population of around 12,000. History The spot where the town is situated was first settled by Celts, Roman Empire, Romans and Franks. The town prope ...

Station. The locomotive from the fleet based at the Munich

shed A shed is typically a simple, single-storey (though some sheds may have two or more stories and or a loft) roofed structure, often used for storage, for hobby, hobbies, or as a workshop, and typically serving as outbuilding, such as in a bac ...

was destroyed during an air raid on 11 April 1945 and buried in a bomb crater during clear up work. The remains of the locomotive – part of the tender, the

feedwater heater A feedwater heater is a power plant component used to pre-heat water delivered to a steam generating boiler. Preheating the feedwater reduces the irreversibilities involved in steam generation and therefore improves the thermodynamic efficiency o ...

and pressure vessel and the first and second axles – area displayed in the

Bavarian Railway Museum The Bavarian Railway Museum (''Bayerisches Eisenbahnmuseum'' or BEM) is a railway museum based in the old locomotive sheds at Nördlingen station in Bavaria, Germany. It is home to more than 100 original railway vehicles and has been locate ...

References

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Description and employment

Surviving locomotives

References

See also