Class 260, developed by Voith Turbo Lokomotivtechnik GmbH & Co KG (the German Voith locomotive works), was intended to replace ageing Class V60s and V90s. On the wish list of the DB was a modern diesel locomotive with a central cab suitable for both heavy shunting service and for longer transfer runs and it had to, of course, meet the regulations regarding exhaust emissions. The class 260 locomotives leased to the DB in 2010 did not meet the more stringent regulations in terms of emissions without additional adaptations, for which reason the DB ordered the fitting of a diesel soot particle filter in the locomotives of the series production. The pre-production locomotives 260 001 and 260 502 to 510 were returned to Voith. Voith adapted the already approved locomotives in terms of their exhaust emissions and leased them to the Hohenzollerische Landesbahn HzL (261 002 and 510) as well as to the DB. The 130 locomotives of the series production delivered as from 2010 were classified as 261 (261 011 to 140).  The last locomotive manufactured until now is listed as 261 109 and was added to the fleet of class 261 in April 2013.  Both the class 260 and 261 are powered by a MTU diesel engine 8V 4000 R 41 generating 1000 kW at 1800 revs/min. In shunting mode these locomotives reach 50 km/h, in normal mode up to 100 km/h. The starting tractive effort reaches up to 258 kN and thus exceeds the one of the class 294/295 (231 kN) and even that of class 225/218 (235 kN). All DB locomotives are equipped with the automatic intermittent train control system PZB 90. For that reason they are permitted to run on high speed lines. They are also equipped with an automatic shunting coupler. The distinctive shape with the angular arrangement of the headlights and the hoods with their chamfered front give them an unmistakable appearance on Germany’s rails. The locomotives are based at the DB Schenker depots Gremberg, Halle/Saale, Mainz-Bischofsheim, Maschen, Oberhausen-Osterfeld Süd, and Seelze amongst others. In many instances their range of operations is quite impressive.

The ESU model of the class 261 corresponds with the series production prototype. The large cab windows allow a clear view of the furnished cab interior decorated in several colours. The long hood has separately applied perforated fan grills. The chassis convinces due to its large number of separately applied pipes and armatures. The handrails are made of etched metal.
Besides its aesthetic appeal the class 261 is, of course, also convincing in terms of its comprehensive technical package: Amongst others the locomotive is equipped with a separately switched load dependent smoke generator, sensors for triggering situational sounds in curves, a LokSound V4.0 M4 decoder with a large speaker and a power storage unit assuring trouble-free uninterrupted running on dirty tracks or longer sets of points. As is the norm for shunting locomotives automatic shunting couplers are installed at both ends. Due to the close coupler kinematics the modeller may enjoy the prototypical close spacing between the locomotive and the cars on the one hand while being able to uncouple the train at any given point on the layout on the other hand. The ESU coupler is compatible with commercially available loop and hook couplers, the Märklin® close coupler as well as the Roco® universal coupler. Thanks to RailCom Plus® the locomotive automatically registers with suitable command stations (e.g.: ESU ECoS). Complete lighting including cab interior lights, illuminated driver’s consol as well as shunting headlights and illuminated steps round off the technical features.
The chassis and the housing of the model are made of metal and due to the considerable weight of 350 g facilitate prototypical driving power.  A powerful ESU coreless motor sits in the metal chassis.  Power is tamed by two flywheels and transferred to the three axles via a combined worm gear and helical gear box. The universal electronics with clip-on centre pick-up and universal wheel sets already proven on other ESU models are also installed on the class 261.  The LokSound decoder delivers original sounds of the MTU 8V 4000 R 41 diesel engine. The sounds of the 8-cylinder engines are particularly accentuated due to the perforated fan grills in the long hood.