Class 93

Updated: August 2026 – A small axle at the front, a small axle at the rear, three large ones in between: Class 93 is the classic branch-line locomotive of the Reichsbahn era, and its symmetrical running gear is no accident, but an answer to a very specific operational problem. This page shows you how to recognise it, why the design looks the way it does, and where you can encounter such machines today.

What is Class 93?

Class 93 is the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft’s number group for tender locomotives with wheel arrangement 1’C1’: a swivelling carrying axle at the front, three coupled driving axles in the middle, a swivelling carrying axle at the rear. This group was shaped substantially by the Prussian classes T 14 and T 14.1, which the Reichsbahn brought together under this class number.

Operationally the 93 is an all-rounder for branch-line country: local freight trains, passenger trains on secondary lines, transfer runs, shunting tasks at the termini. That makes it markedly more versatile than the pure shunting machines in the same number band – such as the three-coupled Class 89 with no carrying axles, or the four-coupled Class 94 with even more adhesive weight.

There’s been no regular service for decades. Preserved machines run as historic vehicles at heritage railways and with societies.

Why symmetrical? The operational problem behind the design

A steam locomotive runs better forwards than backwards – at least for designs whose running gear is built differently at front and rear. On main lines that wasn’t a problem: turntables and turning triangles were available. On branch lines, things looked different.

You’ll find the same design idea in the standard-design passenger locomotive of Class 64, which also uses wheel arrangement 1’C1’ – a good example of how the number band separates intended use, not the technology.

Wheel arrangements compared: where the 93 fits

Class	Wheel arrangement	Carrying axles	Typical task
89	C	none	station shunting duty
91	coupled axles plus one carrying axle	one	transfer runs, branch line
93	1’C1’	two, symmetrical	branch line in both directions
92	D	none	heavy hump-yard duty
94	E	none	heavy loads and ramps
95	1’E1’	two, symmetrical	steep gradients in main-line duty

The comparison shows the principle: coupled axles generate tractive effort, carrying axles allow speed and a smooth ride. Anyone needing both ends up with symmetrical designs like the 93 or – one size class up – with Class 91, which has only one carrying axle. The general approach to identification is described in the guide to identifying classes.

Where you’ll encounter Class 93 today

Only in museum and special-working traffic. That sounds like a limitation, but it’s plannable – if you use the right sources:

• The operating society first. Whoever maintains a machine also publishes its running days and is the only one who reliably knows whether it’s fit for service within its certification.
• Event calendars for heritage railways. Season openers, museum festivals and themed weekends bring together almost all of a year’s workings.
• Search for special workings beyond the local area. Museum locomotives are also used away from their home line. The guide to special trains and special workings shows how to find such workings systematically.
• Community reports for short-notice items. Transfer moves to the Dampflokwerk Meiningen and workshop test runs appear in no calendar.

It also helps to build the search around the line’s profile. Heritage railways such as the Dampfeisenbahn Weserbergland mostly run former secondary lines, and there a symmetrical tender locomotive is exactly the right vehicle: short enough for tight curves, powerful enough for the usual train lengths, usable with no turning facility at the terminus. Anyone searching for operations with short lines, small terminal stations and no turntable will, through that, systematically find the places where machines of this cut are actually needed at all – and with them, realistic chances of a sighting.

Photo tips for symmetrical tender locomotives

The real subject of a 93 is its running gear – and you want to be able to see it.

A side position with a clear view of the axles. Only once both carrying axles and all three coupled axles are in the frame is the wheel arrangement documented. Platform edges and vegetation are the most common flaw here.

A low viewpoint. At wheel-centre height the machine gains presence. From standing eye level, compact tender locomotives inevitably look small.

Include reverse workings. With symmetrical designs especially, running cab-first is typical – and often more interesting photographically, because you see the running gear along its full length. How to capture steam and smoke cleanly on the technical side is in the guide to steam train photography.

And the framework: on museum and society premises the owner’s house rules apply. Barriers are binding, tracks and operational installations are off-limits – even for vehicles that are obviously standing still.

Common mix-ups

Conclusion

Class 93 is a fine example of how locomotive designs grow out of operational problems. Because branch lines offered no way to turn a locomotive, a machine was needed that ran equally well forwards and backwards – and that produced the symmetrical wheel arrangement 1’C1’. Anyone who knows this pattern recognises it everywhere, from the Prussian T 14 to later standard designs. In service the 93 is history; in museum traffic it remains one of the most characteristic German tender locomotives.