HistoryIn the late forties of the former century SBB needed a new locomotive for their Gothard route, which was served until then mainly by the Be 4/6 and the Be/Ce 6/8s.
With traffic growing on this route the need for a more powerful and versatile locomotive was born.
Around 1952 the Swiss railway industry proposed the Ae 6/6 and it was put into service by SBB around october of that year.
Technical specification The loc has a Co’Co’ axle configuration or 6/6 as it’s called in Swiss terminology.
It has 6 drive motors with a total power of 4416 kW (=6000 PS).
The weight of the loco is 124 tons and the pulling force is 18 tons at a speed of 78.5 kmh.
The locs were capable of reaching a top speed of 125 kmh however in day to day operation released for a maximum speed of 110 kmh and later 120 kmh.
One of the features of this locomotive is the clearly visible secondary spring system.
All axles of the loc are independently sprung by means of coil springs on a subframe(the bogies).
The bodyshell in turn is supported by four leaf springs which are connected to the bogies.
Furthermore the so called “Kantonsloks” have the characteristics chrome stripes.
Later “Städteloks” didn’t have these chrome stripes,and nowadays there’s a third variant with the Cargo Look.
ServiceThe loc was meant for both freight train and passenger train operation on routes with steep gradients.So one could see them regularly on the Gotthard route for instance.It may be worth mentioning that SBB discovered that the axle configuration of the Ae 6/6 lead to increased wear of the tracks on the Gotthard route.
On other routes in the “Flachland” they pulled heavy freight trains.
During the eighties of the former century the Ae 6/6 however gradually disappeared from the Gotthard and its main task from then on was pulling freight trains in the lowlands .
HO ModelsMost modeltrain manufacturers have or had a model of the Ae 6/6 in their program.As you may well know Märklin has build quite a few of them in various liveries.Also HAG has a multitude of Ae 6/6 models and collecting them may be a hobby in its own.
ReferencesLoki Spezial Nr. 19 Die Legende vom Gotthard
Loki Spezial Nr. 29 Faszination Ae 6/6
Description of the HAG 11 025-32 Ae 6/6 Uri 11402
Running number 11402
Motor type Drum collector HAG Typ 88
Decoder ESU Loksound 3.5
Lights Yellow LED 3+1 Swiss lighting
Coupler NEM front and rear
This particular Ae 6/6 is, as some of you may know one of the prototypes which differs slightly in technical respect from later production models.
As may be expected from HAG, the model is very well made and shows exeptional attention to detail.The critical modeller may protest that it hasn’t got the prototopical colour of wiring on the roof and that the door configuration resembles that of a the later models.
For most of us I think this is of minor concern.
The model has the trusted Type 88 motor which resembles a Märklin three pole drum collector motor,however the HAG motor seems to be made according to the highest MIL SPECS there are,if you know what I mean.
The model drives smoothly on both K- and C-track .
I have checked its behaviour on slim turnouts thoroughly and it passed the test with flying colours.Slim turnouts especially K-track turnouts aren’t very forgiving, even for some of Märklins own locos as you may know.
The loc is equipped with a Loksound decoder and a rather large speaker,so the sound has more “body” than the sound of a comparable Märklin locomotive.
Description of the Märklin 37362 Schwyz 11403
Running number 11403
Motortype Drum collector with 5 pole rotor
Decoder Märklin sound decoder
Lights Yellow LED 3 + 1 Swiss lighting
Coupler NEM front and rear
This particular model is part of the locomotive set 37362
The 11403 was the first production model of the Ae 6/6 and put into service in december 1955.
The Märklin model is nicely detailed as well ,although it cannot withstand comparison with the HAG model in some aspects.The windowpillars on both the rear and front windows are painted on the plastic windows rather than being part of the bodyshell.
The wiring on the roof is prototypical orange however.
The Märklin model has the proven high efficiency 5 pole drum collector motor and the driving characteristics are excellent.Although also in this respect the HAG model has the edge over Märklin.
Why a description of a HAG loc on a Märklin enthusiasts forum you may ask.As most of you may know I’m equally fond of Märklin as I am of HAG.
And HAG being a manufacturer of rolling stock only,can’t go without essential items made by others.So an HAG AC model is bound to end up on a Märklin track.
For comparison I’ve posted some photos of the Märklin Ae 6/6s and the HAG Ae 6/6.
Which one is the best, everyone has to judge by his/her own.It’s a matter of taste I presume.
Märklin loks clearly show they’re made by a larger industrial organisation with access to more complicated production methods,while the HAG loks are largely made by hand.
HAG 11 025-32 above; Märklin 37362 below
Märklin 37362 Schwyz
HAG 11 025-32 Uri
HAG Uri with "Fahrberechtigungssignal" (red light below top third headlamp)
Märklins SchwyzI hope you like the format of the loc description and that I didn’t annoy you with all the details.
The quality of the photos is not of the standard I had hoped for,too little light to begin with!. All of them have been brushed up a little with Apples Aperture.
edit: Some extra pictures of the HAG Ae 6/6: 
Kind regards
Guus
