Maker: PS (Bernhard Pinter)
Availability: Type 1 – Common (esp. in the 600mm version), Type 2 and Type 3 – Rare
- Type 1 – Standard (refer below)
- Type 2 – RZA 3 and BLN designation marking on wing rather than body
- Type 3 – Makers mark, Material designation (with a 51 instead of Si) and the “ELLOK” marking on right wing (from back) followed by the size (600) and RZA.BLN marking on left wing
The main PS eagles (Type 1) have two sets of markers on them. The makers mark is located on the left wing (from the back). Note there are other variations – refer to below for details.
A – Wing markings (Type 1)
These marking were all indented.
1 – Makers Mark – A “P” on top of an “S” surrounded by a circle. The “P” has two different versions: one with a long “belly” and one with a rounded “belly”
2 – Known designations: This describes where the eagle was attached to the train.
- “LOK” (Lokomotiv Reichsbahn Zug – Locomotive National train) – the locomotive/engine
- “WAGEN” – Attached to the Wagon/Passenger compartments.
3 – Known sizes:
Unclear if PS made “LOK 720mm“, “LOK 900mm“, “WAGEN 600mm”, “WAGEN 680mm”
4 – Material: GAL Mg Si (The composition of the material used to make the alloy – Aluminium, Magnesium, Silicon). Note the dash between GAL and Mg and Si.
B – Body markings (Type 1)
LOK/Nothing This describes where the eagle was attached to the train.
- “LOK” (Lokomotiv Reichsbahn Zug – Locomotive National train) – the engine
- Nothing – If the eagle is a “WAGEN” – Attached to the Wagon/Passenger compartments there will be no designation on this part of the eagle.
RZA – Reichsbahn-Zentralamt organisation – The RDB department that issued order about eagles and supplied the molding jigs. Note the purpose and meaning of the number after the RZA text is not currently known. There is a known exception to the location for the RZA marking – refer to the Unusual Markings page for more details.
BLN (sometimes BERL) – stands for Berlin (The location of the RZA). Munich also had a RZA however no known examples exist on eagles.
Known sizes
The following sizes are known:
It is unclear if PS made “LOK 720mm“, “LOK 900mm“, “WAGEN 600mm“, “WAGEN 680mm”
Studs/Bolts (Refer to the bolts for more details)
The following sizes had 3 studs:
The following sizes had 4 studs:
The following combinations have been observed:
Variations:
There are two additional main variations on the Type 1 PS eagle observed – both rare with few samples.
- Type 2 – RZA 3 and BLN designation marking on wing rather than body
- Type 3 – Makers mark, Material designation (with a 51 instead of Si) and the “ELLOK” marking on right wing (from back) followed by the size (600) and RZA.BLN marking on left wing (one example known)
Type 2 examples:
The green example below is a PS made WAGEN 600 (24″). It was found with a family in France and it is in an untouched condition (Never cleaned or polished). The unusual aspect about this eagle is the location of the “RZA 3” marking. Normally this is located on the centre of the body in the location indicated by the black circle (first pic). In this example the marking is located in the pink circle (first pic). Additionally it is painted green however the period picture below indicates that at time the eagles were painted. Additional examples of a wing located RZA marking are also shown.
An additional Type 2 example (painted Gold) is also found here.
Type 3 examples:
The type 3 ELLOK 600 (used on electric engines -“Elektrische Lokomotive “) eagles were very low quality on the back and the unthreaded bolts indicate they may not have been used. It is possible that this was a prototype and there is only one known example. The size is 600mm (24″). There is two letters obscured by the left bolt (“GE”). This could be the remnants of “WAGEN” used on other PS eagles. There is potentially also remnants of the “Gal Mg Si” designation on the left wing, although very difficult to determine. This eagle has a number of unusual and unique markings. It is almost as if it has been made from a number of different molds. It is also unthreaded, adding more weight to the prototype theory as it was unused.
Note: There is also a Ellok 720, although it does not have a makers mark. It is speculated this is also a PS eagle although there is no confirmation.
Points of note
- Original versions of this eagle sometimes have a letter and number stamped on the threaded tap – not visible on reproductions.
- A number of the PS eagles were made with errors in the makers marks. The “Si” in the GAL-Mg-Si is sometimes a “51” instead of a “Si”. This was most likely due to a mix up in the mold setup. Refer below for examples.
- Not all the PS eagles had a dash between the Mg and Si/51 in the material designation. Refer below for examples.
- Some PS eagles (and other makers) have a manufacturing flaw on the body that creates a line streaking between the legs – refer here for more details and pics.
- Some of the bolts on PS eagles have been stamped with letters and numbers. Refer to the “Bolts” page for more details.
- There are examples of unthreaded eagles with this maker
- Additionally the above bolt stamping markings have been found on some eagles (PS) heads as shown below.
Additional pictures:
Note:
- Further examples of PS eagles can be found here – Page 1
- Further examples of PS eagles can be found here – Page 2
Reproductions:
Although not the most reproduced of the railway eagles there still exists many copies of the PS eagles. These are easily distinguished as reproductions as the quality does not match the real ones in many respects. Refer here for more details