Bachmann Europe Plc
6
H0 1:87
Operating Manual
L13156x
Freight train locomotive with tender,
Class 56
2-8
and Austrian Type 656
Note on original:
The Prussian freight train locomotive type G8
1
, subsequent class 55
25-56
, hot steam locomotive without
pusher axle (D h2), with approximately 5,000 units, was the most frequently built regional railway loco-
motive in general. The Deutsche Reichsbahn (German State Railways) had 3,122 of these in its inventory.
However, due to its lack of a pusher axle, it could only reach a top speed of 55 km/h and the heavy axle
load of 17.6 tons made it unsuitable for use on secondary lines. To eliminate these disadvantages, the DRG
decided to convert the machine. The locomotive was given a pusher axle in front, and the boiler and chas-
sis were adapted so that the maximum speed was increased to 70 km/h and the locomotive could also be
used for passenger trains.
Between 1934 and 1941, 691 of these machines were converted in this way and, to distinguish them from
the original design, were reclassified as type 56
2-8
(Pruss. G 8
1
with pusher axle).
The Deutsche Bundesbahn (German Federal Railways) had 386 of these units in inventory.
Taking Your Model into Operation
Remove your locomotive – encased in the blister pack – carefully from the box. Open the blister pack
according to the illustration in
Fig. 1a / 1b, remove the locomotive, and place it on the track. The DC ver-
sion is designed for a maximum of 14 volts, and the AC model can be operated in analog mode with up to
16 volts, or digitally. First, allow the locomotive to drive forward and backward for a few minutes at about
half the voltage, and then it is ready for operation.
Fig. 1a
Fig. 1b
