Republican Steelworks "Starker Junge" RSE-4001/6

The shriveled engineer ascended the steps, too numerous for his age and his pace, while all the workers of the line waited with reverent patience. Down the center of the broad, limestone plaza, was a single line of track, specially designed to preserve the stonework of the rally grounds and evenly distribute the weight of something. The track ran the length of the plaza and meandered into the receiving gates of Rheinwald Hauptbahnhof. At last, the man's knobby head emerged behind a podium. There was a moment of silent anticipation. All the citizens of Rheinwald had taken today to assemble in the Kaiserlicher Exerzierplatz.
Johann Liebermann looked out over the people of his city, the people he served all his life, and took a deep breath.
"This is our legacy," he began, "The heart and soul of the Rheinlander people made manifest. Efficiency unsurpassed, strength unrivaled, vision never-ending."
On that cue, the entire grounds shook, as something crept slowly down the line.

Power Generation

The steam engine of the Republican Steelworks "Starker Junge" locomotives is the pinnacle of Rheinlander engineering. It is the latest in a series of reciprocating heat engines designed by Kruger Engineering. This latest iteration has been improved with vapor re-uptake drains within the cylinders, allowing used steam to be partially recollected and drained back into the boiler rather than being vented as exhaust via the steam chest's sliding valve. This, in addition to more precise cylinder cutoffs, drastically reduces the Starker Junge's water consumption (and consequently fuel consumption).
This engine can produce greater amounts of work at the expense of fewer resources, under full load and at full steam, than any other steam engine in the Commonwealth.

Propulsion

The work generated from the engine is translated into propulsion via two cylinders (which fit the pistons) near the driving wheels on either side of the locomotive. When steam is admitted to the cylinders via the steam chest, pressure forces the piston forward until the cutoff point. The piston, attached to the driving wheel, then turns the wheel and propels the locomotive forward.

Cutoff and Reversing Lever

In previous models, the pistons were fixed at a 50% cutoff, relying on expansion of the saturated steam to drive the piston the remaining 50% of the way forward. The result was wasted water, fuel, energy, and time. Locomotives at a dead stop took longer to get up to speed, and vehicles in motion across the heartland plains expended more steam than necessary.
In the Starker Junge, however, chief engineer Johann Liebermann installed a reversing level, which created a variable cutoff point inside the cylinder. If a train were at a dead stop, this lever would allow a cutoff point as high at 80%, while a vehicle traversing flatland might efficiently cruise at a cutoff point of 10%. This allows for judicious use of resources and gives the vehicle engineers a greater level of control over the locomotive's movement.

Nickname

Iron Giant

Manufacturer

Republican Steelworks

Owning Organization

Reichsstadtbahn Aktiengesellschaft

Price

₰ 270,000

Length

41.53 m

Height

5.29 m

Weight

581,000 kg

Speed

178 km/h

Complement / Crew

1 engineer, 1 fireman, 1-3 conductors, 2-12 brakemen, 5-20 service staff (if passenger)

Cargo & Passenger Capacity

6000 tons of cargo; up to 840 passengers.