# 2-6-8-0

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Articulated locomotive wheel arrangement

GN #1951 at [Skykomish, Washington](/source/Skykomish%2C_Washington) in 1924.

A **2-6-8-0** [steam locomotive](/source/Steam_locomotive), in the [Whyte notation](/source/Whyte_notation) for describing [locomotive](/source/Locomotive) [wheel arrangements](/source/Wheel_arrangement), has two [leading wheels](/source/Leading_wheel), a set of six [driving wheels](/source/Driving_wheel), a set of eight driving wheels, and no [trailing wheels](/source/Trailing_wheel). These locomotives usually employ the [Mallet](/source/Mallet_locomotive) principle of articulation, with a swinging front engine and a rigidly attached rear engine.

## Equivalent classifications

Other equivalent classifications are: [UIC classification](/source/UIC_classification): **1CD** (also known as German classification and [Italian classification](/source/Italian_classification)) [French classification](/source/French_classification): **130+040** [Turkish classification](/source/Turkish_classification): **34+44** [Swiss classification](/source/Swiss_classification): **3/4+4/4**

The [UIC classification](/source/UIC_classification) is refined to **(1'C)D** for Mallet locomotives.

## Examples

This type of [articulated locomotive](/source/Articulated_locomotive) is unusual in having different numbers of driving axles in each set, and was only found in the United States of America and Germany. The [Great Northern Railway](/source/Great_Northern_Railway_(U.S.)) and the [Alabama Great Southern](/source/Alabama_Great_Southern), a predecessor of the [Southern Railway](/source/Southern_Railway_(U.S.)), both in the [United States](/source/United_States), were the sole long-term users of this type of locomotive.

Great Northern received 35 from [Baldwin](/source/Baldwin_Locomotive_Works) in 1910, numbered 1950–1984, designated class [M-1](/source/GN_M-1). The M1s were rebuilt to use simple expansion In 1926 and 1927 and were redesignated class M-2. Most of the M-2s did not last long, being converted to class [O-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=GN_O-7&action=edit&redlink=1) [2-8-2s](/source/2-8-2) between 1929 and 1931; the thirteen exceptions remained in service until 1949–1954.[1] The AGS had a single example in this wheel arrangement, number 300.[2] It went to the [Southern Railway](/source/Southern_Railway_(U.S.)) and was later joined by two other 2-6-8-0 types numbered 4002 and 4003.[3][4]

This unusual wheel arrangement was the subject of some experimentation. The [Erie Railroad](/source/Erie_Railroad) briefly had a locomotive of this type numbered 2900, but it was rebuilt to a 2-8-0 in 1916 after only six years. The [Baldwin Locomotive Works](/source/Baldwin_Locomotive_Works) marketed a front end "kit" whereby conventional 2-8-0 locomotives could be converted to 2-6-8-0 types. None of this type locomotive have been preserved.

Baltimore & Ohio Railroad had some 2-6-8-0 steam locomotives in their KL-1 class.

In Germany, during [World War II](/source/World_War_II), [Deutsche Reichsbahn](/source/Deutsche_Reichsbahn) started work on a condensing 2-6-8-0 mallet locomotive built by [Borsig](/source/Borsig). These were to have dual smoke stacks and had smoke deflectors to help with the driver's visibility while driving the locomotive. The locomotive would have been the largest on the German rail network, but as it was nearing completion in Borsig Werke it was destroyed in an [RAF](/source/Royal_Air_Force) bombing raid.

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Keyes, Norman C.; Middleton, Kenneth R. (Autumn 1980). "The Great Northern Railway Company: All-Time Locomotive Roster, 1861–1970". *[Railroad History](/source/Railroad_History)*. **143** (143). Railway and Locomotive Historical Society: 95–96. [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [43523930](https://www.jstor.org/stable/43523930).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Alabama Great Southern Railroad"](http://railga.com/ags.html). *railga.com*. Retrieved 2019-07-21.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Great Northern Railway's odd-ball steam locomotive The M Class 2-6-8-0. | Model Railroad Hobbyist magazine"](https://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/28271). *model-railroad-hobbyist.com*. Retrieved 2019-07-21.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Untitled Photo"](https://web.archive.org/web/20190721093305/http://railga.com/srmallet4002.jpg). *Railga.com*. July 21, 2019. Archived from [the original](http://railga.com/srmallet4002.jpg) on July 21, 2019. Retrieved July 21, 2019.

## External links

- [Alabama Great Southern / Southern Other Articulated Locomotives](https://www.steamlocomotive.com/locobase.php?country=USA&wheel=Articulated&railroad=srs#293)

- [Great Northern Other Articulated Locomotives](https://www.steamlocomotive.com/locobase.php?country=USA&wheel=Articulated&railroad=gn#352)

- [GN Steam Locos](http://www.gngoat.org/gn_steam_locomotives.htm)

- [Erie Condensed Steam Locomotive Roster](https://web.archive.org/web/20070822221229/http://www.erielackhs.org/Erie/prototype/ErieCondensedSteamRoster.html)

- [Alabama Great Southern 300](https://ngdiscussion.net/phorum/read.php?1,363464,363464)

v t e Steam locomotive wheel arrangements (Whyte notation) Single engine types 0-2-2 0-2-4 2-2-0 2-2-2 2-2-4T 4-2-0 4-2-2 4-2-4T 6-2-0 0-3-0 (monorail) 0-4-0 0-4-0+4 0-4-2 0-4-4T 0-4-6T 2-4-0 2-4-2 2-4-4T 2-4-6T 4-4-0 4-4-2 4-4-4 4-4-6 0-6-0 0-6-2 0-6-4T 0-6-6T 2-6-0 2-6-2 2-6-4 2-6-6T 4-6-0 4-6-2 4-6-4 0-8-0 0-8-2 0-8-4T 0-8-6T 2-8-0 2-8-2 2-8-4 2-8-6 4-8-0 4-8-2 4-8-4 4-8-6 6-8-6 0-10-0 0-10-2 2-10-0 2-10-2 2-10-4 4-10-0 4-10-2 0-12-0 2-12-0 2-12-2 2-12-4T 4-12-2 4-14-4 Divided drive and duplex engine types 0-2-2-0 2-2-2-0 2-2-2-2 2-2-4-0T 4-2-2-0 2-4-6-2 4-4-4-4 6-4-4-6 4-4-6-4 4-6-4-4 Articulated locomotives Fairlie, Meyer and Garratt types 0-4-0+0-4-0 2-4-0+0-4-2 2-4-2+2-4-2 4-4-2+2-4-4 0-6-0+0-6-0 0-6-2+2-6-0 2-6-0+0-6-2 2-6-2+2-6-2 4-6-0+0-6-4 4-6-2+2-6-4 4-6-4+4-6-4 0-8-0+0-6-0T 2-8-0+0-8-2 2-8-2+2-8-2 4-8-0+0-8-4 4-8-2+2-8-4 4-8-4+4-8-4 Articulated locomotives Mallet types 0-4-4-0 0-4-4-2 2-4-4-0 2-4-4-2 0-6-6-0 2-6-6-0 2-6-6-2 2-6-6-4 2-6-6-6 2-6-8-0 4-4-6-2 4-6-6-2 4-6-6-4 0-8-8-0 2-8-8-0 2-8-8-2 2-8-8-4 4-8-8-2 4-8-8-4 2-10-10-2 Articulated locomotives Triplex and other multiplex types 2-8-8-8-2 2-8-8-8-4 2-8-8-8-8-2 0-6-2+2-4-2-4-2+2-6-0 2-6-6-2+2-6-6-2 2-8-8-8-8-8-2 2-10-10-10-10-10-2 2-4-4-2+2-8-8-2+2-4-4-2 Articulated locomotives Engerth types 0-4-4T 0-4-6T 2-6-4 0-6-4T 0-6-4-0 0-8-4T 0-8-6T Geared locomotives Shay Climax Heisler Willamette Other notation forms: AAR Swiss UIC

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [2-6-8-0](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2-6-8-0) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2-6-8-0?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.