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FS Class 680
The Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS; Italian State Railways) Class 680 (Italian: Gruppo 680) is a 2-6-2 express steam locomotive; it was the direct ancestor of the very successful and appreciated Class 685.
The Class 680 was designed as the "normalized" successor of the famous Class 500 (reclassified by the Ferrovie dello Stato as Class 670) fast locomotives of the Rete Adriatica; in fact, even before the RA ended up being nationalized in the Ferrovie dello Stato in 1905, there was already a project (with the projected classification RA 550 for a fast 2-6-2 locomotive) which shared several similarities with what would end up becoming, under the FS ownership, the Class 680.
The Class featured the widespread Italian bogie, and the same Plancher compound engine of the Class 500, an arrangement in which the two high pressure (HP) and the two low pressure (LP) cylinders were paired together respectively on the left and the right side of the locomotive, with each pair being served by a single piston valve via crossed ports. This ingenious arrangement was simple, but it made the locomotive somewhat unbalanced and unstable, especially at higher speed.
The Class 680 was built from 1907 to 1909 in 151 units by Ernesto Breda, Gio. Ansaldo & C. and Berliner Maschinenbau, with the last two locomotives being built by the former company respectively in 1909 and 1911.
Initially, the Class 680 was fitted with a three-axle tender with a water capacity of 20,000 litres (4,400 imp gal; 5,300 US gal), but it proved prone to derail at high speeds (especially on the Genoa-Ventimiglia line); therefore, those were swapped with the bogie tenders of the Class 625, with a higher capacity of 22,000 litres (4,800 imp gal; 5,800 US gal).
The first locomotive, when outshopped from the Ernesto Breda factory in 1907, was initially assigned the classification FS 6401, but a few days later it was reclassified FS 6801. Over the next years, new classifications with five and eventually six numbers (with the class and the running numbers separated by a full stop) were adopted, the class ending up as 680.XXX.
The Class 680 proved to be a thoroughly good locomotive, replacing the Class 670 from the most important services on the Rome-Naples and Florence-Rome railways. During a trial run, the locomotive 6801 (later 680.001) pulled from Parma to Piacenza a special train weighing 210 tonnes (210 long tons; 230 short tons), reaching a top speed of 118 km/h (73 mph).
However, its success was relatively brief, as in 1912 the Class 685, basically its simple-expansion and superheated version, entered service; the new locomotive was more powerful and had smoother riding qualities, and thus the recent Class 680 locomotives ended up obsolete.
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FS Class 680
The Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS; Italian State Railways) Class 680 (Italian: Gruppo 680) is a 2-6-2 express steam locomotive; it was the direct ancestor of the very successful and appreciated Class 685.
The Class 680 was designed as the "normalized" successor of the famous Class 500 (reclassified by the Ferrovie dello Stato as Class 670) fast locomotives of the Rete Adriatica; in fact, even before the RA ended up being nationalized in the Ferrovie dello Stato in 1905, there was already a project (with the projected classification RA 550 for a fast 2-6-2 locomotive) which shared several similarities with what would end up becoming, under the FS ownership, the Class 680.
The Class featured the widespread Italian bogie, and the same Plancher compound engine of the Class 500, an arrangement in which the two high pressure (HP) and the two low pressure (LP) cylinders were paired together respectively on the left and the right side of the locomotive, with each pair being served by a single piston valve via crossed ports. This ingenious arrangement was simple, but it made the locomotive somewhat unbalanced and unstable, especially at higher speed.
The Class 680 was built from 1907 to 1909 in 151 units by Ernesto Breda, Gio. Ansaldo & C. and Berliner Maschinenbau, with the last two locomotives being built by the former company respectively in 1909 and 1911.
Initially, the Class 680 was fitted with a three-axle tender with a water capacity of 20,000 litres (4,400 imp gal; 5,300 US gal), but it proved prone to derail at high speeds (especially on the Genoa-Ventimiglia line); therefore, those were swapped with the bogie tenders of the Class 625, with a higher capacity of 22,000 litres (4,800 imp gal; 5,800 US gal).
The first locomotive, when outshopped from the Ernesto Breda factory in 1907, was initially assigned the classification FS 6401, but a few days later it was reclassified FS 6801. Over the next years, new classifications with five and eventually six numbers (with the class and the running numbers separated by a full stop) were adopted, the class ending up as 680.XXX.
The Class 680 proved to be a thoroughly good locomotive, replacing the Class 670 from the most important services on the Rome-Naples and Florence-Rome railways. During a trial run, the locomotive 6801 (later 680.001) pulled from Parma to Piacenza a special train weighing 210 tonnes (210 long tons; 230 short tons), reaching a top speed of 118 km/h (73 mph).
However, its success was relatively brief, as in 1912 the Class 685, basically its simple-expansion and superheated version, entered service; the new locomotive was more powerful and had smoother riding qualities, and thus the recent Class 680 locomotives ended up obsolete.