Red Racer

I have very few class 111 shots in my gallery, which is typical of German railfans. This loco just never had any prominent role, unlike the legendary 110 on which it was based. It's very versatile, also suitable for freight trains, but now that all of them are owned by the DB Regio, their field of activity has been narrowed down to regional commuters. This means that you either see it in front of old n-type carriages (Silberlinge) or in front of double deckers, as seen here.

Not much to say about the photo as such, the sun just disappeared as the train approached, so I panned along. Thought it came out quite nice, and as an added bonus, this loco still sports the old diamond pantograph, about which I have babbled a bit here. Furthermore, it's squeaky clean, reinforcing the stereotype that all German non-high speed trains are flawless in their appearance.

Other interesting facts about the loco: It was realized after production of the 110 had stopped that there was still a demand for fast running electric engines. The Bundesbahn decided to play it safe, so many proven and tested components and methods of construction from the 110 were re-used for the 111. The one flaw of the 110 was that it had a very bumpy ride at higher speeds, which lead to her top speed being reduced to 140kph/88mph. This they sought to correct with the 111, so all new trucks were built, keeping the innovative rubber-ring transmission system, adding flexicoil springs and selfsteering wheelsets with lemniscate suspension. As a result, the top speed could be set at 160kph/100mph.

Other improvements over the 110 include better working conditions for the driver, thanks to the (at that time) brand new and ergonomic standard cab layout that the Bundesbahn had developed. It is now used on all German locomotives, cab cars and multiple units. Of course, the cabs also received better noise insulation and more comfy seats, but sadly, no air conditioning. As a result, it's not very popular with drivers when summers get hot.

Furthermore, while the 110's cooling fans just sucked air in from the engine room, requiring the entire lenght of the engine to have ventilation gratings, the 111 now has ventilation ducts. The air intakes are directly connected to the fans, meaning that it now only needs two intakes on either side, with the engine room being cleaner, as no dirt can get inside directly.

The engine room itself was also completely redesigned, the cabs now being connected through a central walkway. The 110 had all the components in the middle, with a narrow walkway on either side. If you've seen the video where I climb into a 110, you might remember that it's a rather tight squeeze.

Appearance wise, it got more boring, not having a striking or characteristic front like the 110. It looks pretty standard so to speak, but at least it's not ugly. 227 units were built, more than there was demand for, due to political reasons. Only two have been scrapped till now, following crashes at level crossings.

And there's this ever so slight hint of a ridge down the middle, like the Bügelfalte had...