The BR 83.10 of the DR - and the latest from Piko

[rekoboy]

Probably the least well-known of the DR new build steam locos was the 2-8-4 tank loco of BR 83.10, mostly because it was produced in relatively low numbers and was not especially successful. It had a short working life of under 20 years, and not a single one was preserved. The 83.10, which is not really the most elegant of the DR new build locos, was developed during 1955-56 and just 27 were built by VEB Lokomotivbau 'Karl Marx' in Potsdam-Babelsberg. The first locos in the production run were extensively tested by the Rail Technical Centre in Halle/Saale and quite a few modifications were made before the remaining locos of the batch were produced. Virtually simultaneously the sister locos of class 65.10 were in production - that loco has been available for a while in TT by Gützold.  The 83.10 spent its working life largely in Saxony and Thuringia, but locos were stationed at one point in BW Jerichow, near Magdeburg. So why I am writing suddenly about the BR83.10? Simply because it is the latest TT loco to be produced by Piko for which I have been waiting in eager anticipation for quite a while. She arrived yesterday after a very drawn-out journey from Hans-Gerd's model shop in Ziesar. It was, we discovered, the fault of the parcel company and not Brexit that the journey took so long. But, oh boy, the long wait was worth it. To say that the technicians at Piko have excelled themselves does not do justice to the perfection of the BR 83.10 which even possesses inspection lights for the valve gear and a realistic firebox glow. She runs beautifully at scale speeds, even on my old Piko control gear. The only thing missing is a loco crew - that issue will be attended to shortly! More photos will follow eventually. The prototype photo is by courtesy of Johannes Schmidt.