Editing 2-8-0 (section)

{{Short description|Locomotive wheel arrangement}}
{{Infobox steam wheel arrangement
| name             = 2-8-0 (Consolidation)
| image            = WheelArrangement 2-8-0.svg
| alt              = Diagram of one small leading wheel, and four large driving wheels joined by a coupling rod
| caption          = Front of locomotive at left
| image2           = Lehigh Valley Consolidation Locomotive 1866.jpg
| caption2         = [[Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad]]'s ''Consolidation'' of 1866, the first 2-8-0 built
<!--Equivalent classifications-->
| hatnote          = 
| UIC/Germany/Italy= 1D, 1'D
| French/Spanish   = 140
| Turkish          = 45
| Swiss            = 4/5
| Russian          = 1-4-0
<!--First known tank engine version-->
| date             = 1907
| country          = German South West Africa
| locomotive       = [[South West African 2-8-0T]]
| railway          = Lüderitzbucht Eisenbahn
| designer         = [[Orenstein & Koppel]]
| builder          = Orenstein & Koppel
| mainbenefit      = 
| maindrawback     = 
<!--First known tender engine version-->
| date2            = c. 1864
| country2         = United States of America
| locomotive2      = 
| railway2         = [[Pennsylvania Railroad]]
| designer2        = John P. Laird
| builder2         = John P. Laird
| evolvedfrom2     = [[0-8-0]]
| evolvedto2       = [[2-8-2]]
| mainbenefit2     = Better stability through curves
| maindrawback2    = Poor steaming and limited speed.
<!--First known "True type" version-->
| date3            = 1866
| country3         = United States of America
| locomotive3      = ''Consolidation''
| railway3         = [[Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad]]
| designer3        = Alexander Mitchell
| builder3         = [[Baldwin Locomotive Works]]
| evolvedfrom3     = [[0-8-0]]
| evolvedto3       = [[2-8-2]]
| mainbenefit3     = 
| maindrawback3    = 
}}

Under the [[Whyte notation]] for the classification of [[steam locomotive]]s, '''{{nowrap|2-8-0}}''' represents the [[wheel arrangement]] of two [[leading wheel]]s on one [[axle]], usually in a [[leading truck]], eight powered and coupled [[driving wheel]]s on four axles, and no [[trailing wheel]]s. In the United States and elsewhere, this wheel arrangement is commonly known as a '''Consolidation''', after the [[Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad]]’s ''Consolidation'', the name of the first 2-8-0.<ref name="White">White, John H. Jr. (1968). ''A history of the American locomotive; its development: 1830-1880''. New York: Dover Publications, p. 65. {{ISBN|0-486-23818-0}}</ref>

The notation '''2-8-0T'''<!--which redirects here--> indicates a [[tank locomotive]] of this wheel arrangement, the "T" suffix indicating a locomotive on which the water is carried in side-tanks mounted on the engine rather than in an attached [[tender (rail)|tender]].

The Consolidation represented a notable advance in locomotive power. After 1875, it became "the most popular type of freight locomotive in the United States and was built in greater quantities than any other single wheel arrangement."<ref>{{cite book |last1=White |first1=John H. |title=A History of the American Locomotive: Its Development, 1830-1880 |date=1979 |publisher=Dover Publications |location=New York |isbn=0486238180 |page=65 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1A4iiGAz628C |access-date=22 July 2019}}</ref>
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