Class C5 4-Cylinder
Tandem
Compound Passenger Locomotive
Designed by Karel
Belčamin
Built in 1897 by SACM,
Belfort, France
After the
embarrassment
of the class C4, Belčamin decided to revert to the tandem compound
layout
that had served so well in his class D5 2-8-0s. The Belfort works of
the Société
Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques supplied fifty-three
locomotives between 1897 and 1899. An innovation was the separation of
the cylinders by the bogie wheels, allowing unrestricted access to the
piston rod glands. Although the balancing was not of the best, a common
problem with tandem compounds, the C5s were to serve the RSR admirably
for almost forty years, being rebuilt in the process with three
different
types of new boiler. During the particularly severe winter of 1904, no.
C5-12 was involved in a daring rescue of stranded travellers under the
threat of avalanches in the southern highlands. After that, the C5s
enjoyed
great popularity with the general public and appeared in a variety of
publicity
material for several years.
Text and graphics © Norman Clubb 2012