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Some of us on MRF are interested in the railways of the former East Germany, the post war Deutsche Demokratische Republik or DDR. Many were drawn to the Deutsche Reichsbahn (DR) of East Germany because steam working continued (officially) until 1988, fully 20 years after the demise of steam on British Railways and 10 years after the end of West German steam. What we found in the East was a preserved railway system little changed from before WWII. An effort had been made to electrify certain routes coupled with a gradual move to diesel traction but steam persisted because of the prohibitive cost of oil and the parlous economic situation of the DDR. Much of the industrial base in the East had been badly damaged in the war and much of what was left was expropriated by Russia as war reparation. In fact, many electric locomotives and many kilometres of overhead line equipment was moved to the USSR.
Now, some twenty years after the end of the Deutsche Reichsbahn and its merger with DB (Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany) following the collapse of the Iron Curtain (over 24 years ago), there are many who still feel nostalgia for the old system. Modelling for us is a way of recapturing some of that lost atmosphere and this thread is intended as a place of discussion, both the prototype and the models needed to depict the DR with some degree of accuracy.
A BR 242 ELok hauling a rake of double decker coaches enters Dresden Hauptbanhof high level platforms. I took this photograph on Kodachrome 64.
I hope that this thread proves to be pleasurable and informative.
Best regards ..................... Greyvoices (alias John)

Now, some twenty years after the end of the Deutsche Reichsbahn and its merger with DB (Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany) following the collapse of the Iron Curtain (over 24 years ago), there are many who still feel nostalgia for the old system. Modelling for us is a way of recapturing some of that lost atmosphere and this thread is intended as a place of discussion, both the prototype and the models needed to depict the DR with some degree of accuracy.

A BR 242 ELok hauling a rake of double decker coaches enters Dresden Hauptbanhof high level platforms. I took this photograph on Kodachrome 64.
I hope that this thread proves to be pleasurable and informative.
Best regards ..................... Greyvoices (alias John)