This bizarre Russian "mallet" locomotive is actually a good idea. After high-pressure steam turns the driving wheels, some of it is still not liquefied. This re-cycled steam is then used to drive a second set of drive wheels. The second set could be in front of or behind the main drive wheels. Sometimes, the second set was on the tender.
After WW2, trying to compete with diesel, some US railroads built powerful mallet locomotives.
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