Breuer Type III and Type V

Breuer Type III

These two small rail tractors were built in 1929 and 1931 respectively by the works of Breuer AG at Hochst am Main in Germany and served as shunting tractors for CFF. The gearbox has three forward and three reverse gears, which gives this machine good performance. The axles are chain driven. These vehicles were equipped with a screw brake. To increase braking capacity braking jacks were fitted at the extremities of the vehicles. Sadly, these fittings have been removed from these two vehicles. The Tm 428 has an electric starter and electric lighting. The Tm 899 on the other hand must be started manually using a crank.

Like many of their colleagues, these two Breuer tractors were sold privately after being withdrawn from service by CFF. The two vehicles described here joined the Max Niederhauser works at Kloten in September 1960 (Tm 438) and December 1965 (Tm899) respectively, where they remained in service until the 1980s. The VVT received these vehicles, nicknamed "porches on wheels" with the aim of continuing their use. They arrived at St-Sulpice in February 1990. The Tm 438 being in much worse state, was stored to one side as a spare parts supply. Tm 899, which received the roof and the 6 windows of it's brother was intended to be restored eventually with the aim of giving the VVT independence over shunting within the depot. The engine was restored to service at the end of April 1990 : leaving some cosmetic work and a new paint job to be carried out.

CFF possessed two series of Breuer tractors: the first, the type III with a 4 cylinder engine (Nos. 431-465, 899), and the second the type IV with 6 cylinder engines (Tm 401-1417). Of the first series, apart from these vehicles saved by the VVT there is only one other example, Tm 464, which was on show until 1982 at the Swiss Transport Museum in Lucerne. One vehicle of the second series is still in service at Langnau in Emmental. Other machines of this kind, however, more highly powered, (type V from the 1950s), are still working in some Swiss factories. There also exists some of these tractors which were built under license by the Italian works of Badoni, which were equipped with Titan hydraulic transmission.

Breuer Type V

This tractor can be considered a development of those described above. The Type V differs from the previous vehicles not only in it's dimensions, but mainly by it's drive. The Type V is fitted with a 6 cylinder water cooled MAN diesel engine, (or air cooled Deutz), with electric starter. Transmission is via a four speed gearbox. As well as electric lighting sanders are also fitted.

The Breuer in the numbers series S 3054 was delivered in 1952 To Holzindustrie AG (HIAG) at St.Margrethen/SG by the importer Robert Aebi AG. Since 1987 it has worked in the same place for the warehouse of Port-Francs of St.Gall until 1990. The peculiarity of this Breuer, compared to many other examples, is that jack brakes are always used to increase braking capacity.

This vehicle arrived at St-Sulpice/NE at the beginning of June 1990, with a perfectly working engine, rendering the Type III superfluous. From one vehicle ready for scrapping, (No 3049 of 1952 from Von Roll at Klus) we recovered axle boxes and drive chains. The cranks have been overhauled previously. An identical vehicle has returned from Switzerland to Germany and is now on show at the Technical Transport Museum in Berlin.

On the arrival of our Köf II, we offered the three Breuers to the Betrieb Historische Schienenfahrzeuge association at Bodio.

For further information on Swiss industrial locomotives : http://www.seak.ch/lokgalerie_werk.htm

http://www.voisin.ch/vvt/ : 12.07.2006