As everywhere in Central Europe, the amount of goods transported in Bavaria increased sharply at the beginning of the century. Since one also had to contend with many topographically demanding routes, the newly procured mainline freight locomotive had to be very powerful. The first 15 examples were delivered by Maffei in 1911 and were ten-coupled locomotives without a carrying axle. 

Power was provided by a four-cylinder compound engine of the Von Borries design, which was particularly popular in Bavaria, onto the third coupled axle. As with the prestigious Bavarian express train locomotives, a bar frame was also used here. The running characteristics of the five coupled axles was ensured by designing the first and fifth axle to be laterally displaceable by 20 mm each and by weakening the wheel flanges of the third axle by 7 mm.

When, after the First World War, a maximum axle load of 16 tonnes was not longer a limit, the only seven remaining locomotives were supplemented by 80 new ones, which were reinforced. They were the most powerful ten-coupled steam locomotives developed by any Länderbahn and were put into service between 1920 and 1924 by the Reichsbahn, which was still known as the “Deutsche Reichseisenbahnen” at that time.

Sectional drawing with dimensions

Die Lokomotive, October 1911

This reinforced variant was able to tow 1,050 tonnes on a gradient of 0.5 percent at up to 40 km/h. It achieved better performance than the later manufactured classes 50 and 52 with a 2-10-0 wheel arrangement, but only 15 tonnes axle load. The indicated power was about the same for all of them, but the G 5/5, with its smaller wheels and thus a maximum speed of only 60 km/h, was able to develop greater traction.

At the Reichsbahn, the locomotives of the first batch were given the numbers 57 501 to 57 507 and those of the second series became 57 511 to 57 590. Despite their high power, they suffered a fate like that of many four-cylinder locomotives. Since the Head of Design, Wagner, preferred simpler designs such as the Prussian two- and three-cylinder locomotives that existed in large numbers, a large number were decommissioned around 1930 and replaced with newly built machines.

After the Second World War, about 20 machines were still available and most of them were damaged. These were decommissioned before 1947 and the remaining numbers were so small that the Bundesbahn parted with them by 1950.