Construction
Strømmens Værksted delivered six prototypes for Oslo Sporveier in 1937, all with slightly different specifications. They were numbered 158–163. The four main types of prototypes were later designated B2 (158–159 with motors from Vickers), E4 (160 with motors from Siemens), E3 (161–162 with motors from AEG) and E2 (163 with motors from NEBB). The trams were taken into use in February 1937 on the Kjelsås Line. They were capable of 65 km/h (40 mph), compared to the maximum 35 km/h (22 mph) possible by the older trams. According to tests by J. G. Brill Co., which was a specialist on high-speed interurban railcars, streamline construction would afford a power reduction of 17% at as low speed as 32 km/h (20 mph).
Shortly after being taken into use, No. 158 lost braking power, killing one person when it landed on the sidewalk. The initial plan was to use the six trams to operate all services on the Kjelsås Line, with one vehicle in reserve, but this was not possible because of more out-of-service vehicles than estimated.
A further 40 units were ordered—20 from Strømmens Værksted and 20 license-built by Skabo Jernbanevognfabrikk. The various experimental configurations fitted to the prototype trams did not work too well; and instead a conventional motor solution was chosen. The serial units were also not equipped with regenerative brakes. The series from Strømmen and Skabo received the same motors and bogies, but the electrical equipment was different. The Skabo series had electrical equipment from AEG and was optimized for street-tram operation, while the Strømmen trams were optimized for the suburban tramways and equipped with electrical equipment from Vickers. The Strømmen series was delivered from February to June 1939 and leased to Oslo Sporveier's subsidiary Bærumsbanen, that gave them the designation Class B. They were put into service on the Østensjø–Kolsås Line, with both end stations far outside Oslo's city limits that time. The trams partially ran through a relatively rural landscape, and more than any other Norwegian tramway this line may be called an interurban. The Oslo Sporveier trams were numbered 164–183, while the Bærumsbanen trams were numbered 184–203. The tram's body was streamlined and had a tail at the end that made them look like a goldfish. They were therefore nicknamed "Gullfisk", the Norwegian term for goldfish; this later became the most common term for the class.
Read more about this topic: Gullfisk
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