FS Class E.326
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| Type and origin | |
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| Power type | Electric |
| Builder | Società Italiana Ernesto Breda |
| Build date | 1930-1933 |
| Specifications | |
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| Configuration: |
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| • AAR | 2-C-2 |
| • UIC | 2'Co2' |
| • Commonwealth | 2-Co-2 |
| Gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
| Wheel diameter | 2.050 m (80.71 in) (driving wheels) |
| Wheelbase | 5 m (16 ft 5 in) between outer axles |
| Length | 16.300 m (53 ft 6 in) Units 1 and 2 were 16 m (52 ft 6 in) long |
| Loco weight | 114.4 tonnes (112.6 long tons; 126.1 short tons) |
| Electric system/s | 3000 V DC Catenary |
| Current pickup(s) | Pantograph |
| Traction motors | DC series |
| Transmission | 29/103 gear ratio |
| Performance figures | |
|---|---|
| Maximum speed | 130 km/h (81 mph), later limited to 90 km/h (56 mph) |
| Power output | 2,100 kW (2,800 hp) |
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Operators | Ferrovie dello Stato |
| Number in class | 12 |
| First run | 1930 |
| Disposition | Decommissioned in December 1982 |
The FS E.326 was a class of Italian railways electric locomotives. Designed in 1929, they were introduced in the early 1930s, for hauling light express passenger trains at then high speed.
The E.326 was part of family of locomotives designed under engineer Giuseppe Bianchi in the 1920s and in 1930s for Italy's state railways, which, through the use of a great number of standardized components, would mean benefits such as reduced maintenance costs, easier repairs and more familiarity of the personnel. These included the E.428, designed for heavy passenger trains, the E.626, for heavy freight and passenger trains on secondary lines, and the E.326, for hauling light, fast passenger trains. The design reflected contemporary steam engines practices, with three large driving wheels and two bogies; the concept of the locomotive may also have been inspired somewhat by Vincent Raven's NER No. 13 prototype. As the E.326 had six engines like the E.626, it was designed and built before the eight-engined E.428.
The FS ordered first two prototypes to Società Italiana Ernesto Breda on 5 March 1929, which were outshopped respectively in July and December 1930; after the first successful trials on the Foggia-Benevento line (then the only FS line electrified with the 3kV DC method), a series of 10 production locomotives were ordered in December 1930, and were outshopped from November 1932 to January 1933, with some minor improvements. In 1933 the FS designed another series of E.326, which would have sported smaller driving wheels (identical to those of the E.428) and modified auxiliaries, but the better performance of the E.428 and the ETR.200 project meant that they were not built.
During the tests on the Bologna-Florence line (then being completed), one of the locomotives, having a nominal maximum output of 2,100 kW (2,800 hp), managed to reach once a top speed of 140 km/h (87 mph), although the certified top speed was set at 130 km/h (81 mph) (and in practical terms, the top speed admitted by any line was still 120 km/h). The E.326 worked on the Bologna-Florence line from its opening on 22 April 1934, hauling express trains.
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