Imperial Government Railways / Japanese Government 2-6-2 Locomotives in Japan

Class 3200 (Locobase 10949)

Data from "German Locomotives for Japan," Railroad Gazette, Volume 37 (28 August 1904), p. 69. See also [].

Unadorned Six-coupled double-ender tank (except for the capped stack) delivered by one of three German builders. By way of context, the RG report said that the "Japanese are becoming more accustomed to the American pattern [of locomotives] and prefer it to the British types, particularly because of the ease of making repairs. With this order, however, Germany was "a third competitor in the field".

Hannover and Henschel & Sohn each produced nine locomotives while BMAG (Berlin Machine Company) turned out twelve. Hannover's offer asked for $9,666 for each completed locomotive and $3,426 for a spare boiler and wheels. BMAG's offer was $9,695. An English company's bid of $9,760 was not accepted.

A photo and data of one of the Hannover engines served for the others. The design had short water tanks flanking a Belpaire firebox. The cylinders were served by piston valves.

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Class 3300 (Locobase 10950)

Data from [] and from Baldwin Locomotive Works Specification for Engines, as digitized by the DeGolyer Library of Southern Methodist University, Volume 19, p. 251. Works numbers were 14034-14035 in June 1894; 14037 in July; 14061-14063 in August; 14108-14109 in October; and 14388-14389 in September 1895.

Nationalized in 1906, renumbered 3600-3602. 3600 and 3602 scrapped in 1934 when 3601 was sold to the Okayama Rinko Railway, where it ran until 1951.

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Class AB/B5/3080 (Locobase 11027)

Data from [] and the Japanese-language blogging site [] . Works numbers were 336-337 in 1887.

The train loadings were 284 tons on a 1% grade at 20 miles an hour and 142 tons up a 2 1/2% at 20 miles an hour.

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Class B7/3150 (Locobase 20866)

Data from "Six-Wheels-Coupled Radial Tank-Engines; Japanese State Railways". Railway Engineer, Volume 27, No 12 (December 1906), pp. 383-385. (See diagrams in the September 1906) issue on pp. 290-294).

Only four locomotives ever occupied Japanese class B7, a minute number compared to the 528 locomotives of the long-built and long-lasting B6 0-6-2T radial tanks (Locobases 4792, 5491, 10520,10983).

RE's report explained that the quartet responded to two basic criticisms of the B6: excessive wear on the leading coupled axle when being run "chimney" ("stack") first, and and the "difficult--almost impossible" task of getting to the motion (i.e., drive train) when not at JGR shops.. Just before he departed after 16 1/2 years as advisor to the JGR, Richard Trevithick added a leading truck and tinkered with some of the heating surface proportions. While adhesive wheeled base remained the same, engine wheelbase increased by 7 1/2 feet (2.286 mm).

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Class C12 (Locobase 3826)

Data from Hiroshi Takagi, both from his website ([]) and personal communication August 2000. His indispensable assistance is gratefully acknowledged. See also A Profile of Japanese Steam Locomotives website put up in 2007 by "Toki S." at [], last accessed 27 September 2015.

Branch-line passenger engine that was junior partner to the C11 2-6-4Ts built during the same period. The class nickname was "Tiny Stars", reflecting a high opinion of their performance and relatively small size. See C56 for the tender-engine Mogul that used the same frame and boiler.

The first 37 were completed without arch tubes in the firebox; the arch tubes added 9.7 sq ft (0.9 sq m) of heating surface. The slightly modified firebox in the 38th and later engines increased engine weight by 110 lb (49.9 kg). 66 were dispatched to Indochina, Northern China, and the Sakhalin Islands during World War II.

Information from Ejii Nozawa's web site ([]) notes that C12s were built from 1932-1947 by Hitachi, Kawasaki, KSK, Mitsubishi, and Nippon

A direct comparison with tube & flue heating surface areas of North American and British locomotives requires adding approximately 6-10% to the figures shown.

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Class C58/1 (Locobase 3828)

Data from Hiroshi Takagi, both from his website ([]) and personal communication August 2000. His indispensable assistance is gratefully acknowledged.

The C58 mixed-traffic Prairies appeared in two subclasses with minor differences in weight, most likely because of metals changes during wartime production. Toki S's website summarizes the goal of this design, which was "a modern standard engine which combined the good performance of the passenger model 8620's high-speed and the freight model 9600's high-power. C58 was the first to adopt the 1,520 mm driving wheel diameter as a domestic model in order to shorten its length." Unfortunately, one result was a shortened main rod and that led to vibration at higher speeds. Its very low factor of adhesion led to its virtual exclusion from freight service.

Beginning with 383, adhesive weight was 90,345 lb, engine weight was 129,764 lb, and maximum axle loading reached 30,115.

Information from Ejii Nozawa's web site ([]) notes that these were built from 1938 to 1947 by Kawasaki and KSK.

Because the measurements above represent the fire side of tubes and flues, a direct comparison with tube & flue heating surface areas of North American and British locomotives requires adding approximately 6-10% to the figures shown.

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Class unknown (Locobase 21137)

Data from [] and from Baldwin Locomotive Works Specification for Engines, as digitized by the DeGolyer Library of Southern Methodist University, Volume 19, p. 251. Works numbers were 14034-14035 in June 1894; 14037 in July; 14061-14063 in August; 14108-14109 in October; and 14388-14389 in September 1895.

Nationalized in 1906, renumbered 3600-3602. 3600 and 3602 scrapped in 1934 when 3601 was sold to the Okayama Rinko Railway, where it ran until 1951.