European Railroad Discussion > SBB Be 4/4 761

I'm hoping one of our European members can help me out with this one.

I was standing on the platform in Flüelen, Switzerland, in early September. I was waiting for a train headed back to Luzern and shooting the various freights working up the Gotthard line when this peculiarity pulled up and dropped its pantograph. I've managed to figure out this is a Bern-Neuchatel EMU, class Be 4/4, #761, that now belongs to BLS. That much I've got. Built in the 1950s, it was about the last thing I expected to see out roaming the rails in Switzerland. Does anybody know why this was out running around? Is it still in regular service, or did I wander across some sort of fan trip?

Nathan

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What a cool find! This EMU/electric railcar power coach is beautifully preserved. Must be enjoyable for the hobby group / company employee club to run this around the Swiss standard gauge network. Could this actually be a SOB vintage BDe 4/4 or a model close by it?

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/SBB_BDe_4/4

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datei:Bde_4-4_biberbrugg.jpg

I see acquaintances at Alpine Railways club running these in H0 scale.

McKey Wrote:
> Could this actually be a SOB vintage BDe 4/4 or a
> model close by it?
>
> http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datei:Bde_4-4_biberbr
> ugg.jpg

Did you read the "Swiss High Power TW" site referred to on that page ?
I don't think BN 761 ever had a number or ownership change* [ which sometimes has happened to BLS-Gruppe motive power ].

SZ

*well, in the pre-computer number era anyway

This Be 4/4 761 (Wellensittich) is a part of the BLS historic fleet. It was built as BN Ce 4/4 761 (Bern-Neuenburg Bahn). Last year I had the opportunity to operate it for a few runs between Olten and Lucerne.
For people who are able to understand german take a look at http://schienenfahrzeuge.netshadow.at/db/details.php?image_id=90410&sessionid=4c0b3c0f8bd80dbf4d58092db4854c75

Regards Stefan
http://www.hdsrr.ch

Be 4/4 =>

- Swiss registered passenger equipment
- B for second class
- e for electric
- 4/4 four axles powered out of four

Correct me if I'm wrong on classification.


Another question: since there must be a whole lot of railcars with similar technical features, how do you make difference between these? Be441 > Be442 > Be443 > ... would seem so much more simple system and ease always challenging Swiss reference searches. But of course this is part of the Swiss culture and must seem very comfortable to Swiss people used to this. Just like the sometimes the very curious French classifications probably seem comfortable to French people. And French must be uncomfortable with like German, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Russian, Estonian, etc, classification.

McKey Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Another question: since there must be a whole lot
> of railcars with similar technical features, how
> do you make difference between these? Be441 >
> Be442 > Be443 > ...

I think the class distinction goes something like this:

Be 4/4 I (roman numeral)
Be 4/4 II
Be 4/4 III
etc.

Ray

Looks like then there is both a coded description of usage and running model numbers at the end.

Except I think the current generation like Re 4/4 are now classified as Re420, Re421, ...

McKey Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Be 4/4 =>
>
> - Swiss registered passenger equipment
> - B for second class
> - e for electric
> - 4/4 four axles powered out of four
>
> Correct me if I'm wrong on classification.

The letter B stands for the maximum speed 70 - 75 km/h

Stefan
http://www.hdsrr.ch

Aha, so where does it say it is a passenger equipment?

Well, the swiss system ( now rendered obsolete by adopting th EU system) was confusing in that for engines the capital letter at the begining indicated the maximum allowed speed and the fraction the number of powered axles over the total number of axles, different engine types with same letter and fraction were distingushed by adding a roman numeral, the highest numeral was " achieved" withe the class Re4/4 IV.

Now what really is confusing, is that MU classes used also a combination of letters and fraction, but in this case the capital letter indicated the class and type of the MU. A indicated first class, B second class ( as in the MU discussed above), D baggage compartement, F postal compartment, these letters were combined to reflect that particulars MUs configuration, generally there was no speed indication, except for R for top speed of 125km/h.

As far as i remember, there are only few cases where an engine class and MU class had the same designation such as the Be4/6 ( e stands for electric).

Thomas Eckhardt

WS Wrote:

> The letter B stands for the maximum speed 70 - 75
> km/h

I`m sorry but I was wrong with the "B". It stands for second class as McKey wrote
For my apology, I am a cargo locomotive engineer and my training was 1990 and it seems I have forgotten a lot :-((

Stefan
http://www.hdsrr.ch

No worries, it is good to find the logic back to using these letters.

Thanks for recommenting!

Stefan,

Phenomenal movie of your cab tide over the Gottard pass on your websit! Amazing smooth ride, love the superelevated tracks. Your N- scale SP/UP looks superb!

Thomas Eckhardt

Krokodil Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Stefan,
>
> Phenomenal movie of your cab tide over the Gottard
> pass on your websit! Amazing smooth ride, love the
> superelevated tracks. Your N- scale SP/UP looks
> superb!
>
> Thomas Eckhardt

Thank you. The N scale layout is not mine.

Stefan