Where was it built?
Heisler Locomotive Works, Erie, Pennsylvania.
The museum dates locomotive D to 1939.
United States · Steam trains
PP&L D Fireless
0-8-0
This Pennsylvania Power & Light engine used steam without lighting its own fire. A plant filled its pressure vessel with hot water and steam. Avoiding an onboard fire was useful around hazardous materials.
- Speed
- Still researchingHistorical maximum not verified
- Year
- 1939Reference year
- Maker
- See the train file below
- Job
- Industrial yard work
Turn it. Take it apart. Discover.
Explore your train
Interactive model loads here. Read the train guide below while it gets ready.
3D modelDrag to turn · Pinch to zoom · Tap a number to explore
How does steam make a train move?
Hot water and steam from an external plant are stored in a reservoir. Steam pushes pistons, and rods turn the wheels. This engine has no onboard fire.
- 1The stored-steam vesselThe large front vessel
This insulated vessel holds hot water and steam supplied by an outside plant. There is no ordinary firebox or smokebox.
Look deeper
This locomotive stored steam supplied from an external plant. It did not burn fuel in its own firebox: useful where sparks would be dangerous.
- 2The driver’s cabBehind the boiler
The crew works here. On a conventional steam locomotive, the fireman tends the fire and the driver controls the engine.
Look deeper
A locomotive’s cab is a workplace, not a passenger compartment. Some early engines had little shelter for their crews.
- 3A stored-steam engineAbove the boiler
This engine carries steam made somewhere else, so it has no ordinary coal fire.
Look deeper
Steam and smoke are different: steam is water vapour, while smoke comes from burning fuel. Equipment varies by locomotive.
- 4Wheels, pistons and coupling rodsBelow and beside the boiler
Steam pushes pistons. Rods transfer that motion to the driving wheels, and coupling rods link driving wheels together.
Look deeper
Large wheels suit faster running; smaller wheels and a short wheelbase can suit tight curves and heavy work. Watch the fixed-length connecting rod turn while the crosshead slides in a straight line. This illustrates the outside mechanism; exact cylinder and valve-gear layouts differ between engines.
- 5Steam reservoirInside the pressure vessel
A large insulated vessel stores hot water and steam from an external source.
Look deeper
The model shows the general storage area. Tender and tank capacities are not reproduced to engineering dimensions.
Get to know PP&L D Fireless
How does it move — and what is its job?
Stored steam pushes pistons, which turn the wheels through rods.
This kind of engine is charged with hot water and steam from a plant. It does not need an onboard fire. Its job is useful yard work, rather than high speed.
When was it built?
Retired in 1969.
Before working for Pennsylvania Power & Light, it worked for Hammermill Paper.
What are we still researching?
We leave gaps visible instead of guessing. The original catalogue and our learning model do not establish every real-world specification.
What is it made from?
A train uses different materials for different jobs: metals for strength, glass for windows and insulating materials around wires. Paint colour cannot tell us whether the body underneath is steel or aluminium.
Where does it run — or where did it run?
Known background: United States. Its job: industrial yard work. A country name alone does not tell us which line it used.
Is it still running today?
Old photographs and launch announcements do not prove that a train still runs. A whole class may still work even after one member retires. We need a recent operator or museum source.
How power reaches the wheels
Follow these steps, then find the matching sections in the model above.
- 1
Steam supply
A plant makes the steam.
- 2
Reservoir
Hot water and steam are stored onboard.
- 3
Pistons & rods
Steam pushes the mechanism.
- 4
Driving wheels
The rods make the wheels turn.
Read the wheels
0-8-0 uses wheel counts: 0 leading wheels, 8 driving wheels and 0 trailing wheels. Count both sides together. A T means tank engine; ST means saddle tank and WT means well tank.
What does its speed really mean?
Historical maximum not verified
The driving game uses an approximate simulation speed. It is not a measured or documented speed for this locomotive.
A fast train is a whole system: vehicle, track, electricity or fuel, brakes, signalling and trained people. A race in the game is a simplified comparison.
What curious kids ask
Where is the fire?
There is no onboard fire on this engine! It receives hot water and steam from a separate plant. It can work until the stored supply needs replenishing.
Does the driver steer like a car?
No steering wheel is needed to choose a direction. The rails guide the wheelsets. At a junction, movable sections of rail called points or switches guide the train onto another track. The driver controls speed and braking.
Why can’t it stop straight away?
A moving train has energy. Brakes must remove that energy to slow it down. A heavy train travelling fast needs room to stop, so railway signals help keep trains safely separated.
Meet these trains next
Compare how they look, what they carry and where their power comes from.
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BR Class 08 Phantom 
PRR B1 Little railway dictionary
Bogie / truck
A frame holding wheelsets beneath a vehicle. It can turn relative to the body to help the train follow curves.
Gauge
The distance between the inside faces of the two running rails. Narrow gauge means closer rails; loading gauge describes the space a train may occupy.
Pantograph
A folding roof collector that stays in contact with an overhead power wire.
Traction
The force used to pull or propel the train. Grip between wheels and rails limits how much force can be used.
Multiple unit
A train with propulsion equipment within its passenger vehicles, operated together from one cab.
Locomotive
A powered vehicle whose main job is to move other railway vehicles.
Shunting / switching
Moving and arranging vehicles in a yard, often at low speed.
Livery
The colours, stripes, logos and other markings painted or applied to a train.
Service speed
The permitted speed for passenger or freight operation on a suitable section. It is not the journey average.
Record speed
A speed achieved on a particular test or record attempt, sometimes with special equipment and conditions.
Tender
A vehicle coupled to a steam locomotive to carry extra water and fuel. A tank engine carries water on the locomotive itself.
Prototype
An early vehicle built to develop and test a design before a production fleet.
Sources & reading
Follow the operator, builder and museum references below for more detail. Links beside an answer show which source supports that answer.
Edition 2026-09-27. Catalogue background is carried forward from the original collection; it is not a new independent verification. Engineering explanations describe principles. Portraits and 3D models are illustrations, with simplified parts and proportions. This is an independent learning guide, not an operator’s timetable.