China Railways SY

SY
上游

SY1658m built for use in America

Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Tangshan Railway Vehicle Build date 1960–1999 Total produced 1820

Specifications Configuration 2-8-2 UIC class 1′D1′ Gauge mostly 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in), some 1,520 mm (4 ft 11 ^27⁄32 in) Driver dia. 1,370 mm (53.94 in)* Length 21.6 m (70 ft 10 in) Loco weight 142 tonnes (140 long tons; 157 short tons) Fuel type Coal Water cap 25,000 l (6,600 US gal) Boiler pressure 200 PSI Heating surface:  • Firebox 4.5 m (14.76 ft) Cylinders 2 Cylinder size 580 mm × 710 mm (22.83 in × 27.95 in) Valve gear Walschearts Valve type Piston

Performance figures Maximum speed 80 km/h (50 mph)* Tractive effort 207.66 kN (46,680 lbf)

The SY (Chinese: 上游; pinyin: Shàng Yóu; literally: "Aiming High or Reaching Upstream") class 2-8-2 Mikado is one of the main industrial locomotives used by China Railways built mostly by Tangshan Railway Vehicle between 1960 and 1999.

History and design

The SY class was the last major class of steam locomotives to be produced anywhere in the world with last being built in 1999.^[1] The design however is based on the earlier Japanese-built JF6 Class 2-8-2s which itself was based on a locomotive type built by the American Locomotive Company in the 1920s for use in Korea.^[1]

The SY is one of the few steam locomotives still found in active service in the 21st Century, mostly working in coal and steel industries but can also be found heading commuter trains from time to time.

The last steam locomotive built in China is SY1772, completed in 1999.^[2]

Export

The SY class were also among the few Chinese steam locomotives to be exported. In 1989 and 1991, three SYs were constructed for tourist railroads in the United States, SY1647m for the Valley Railroad, SY1658m for the Knox and Kane Railroad were built in 1989 at a cost of $300,000^[3] with a third being built in 1991 for the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway. This third one was lost at sea during shipment in the Indian Ocean when the ship it was on sunk.^[4][5][6]

The Susquehanna later purchased SY1647m from the Valley Railroad renumbering it 142. The 142 ran throughout the NYS&W system until its transfer to the New York Susquehanna & Western Technical & Historical Society in 2003 and now operates on the Belvidere and Delaware River Railway in Phillipsburg, New Jersey. SY1658m was renumbered 58 in the mid to late 1990s. After the main draw of the Knox and Kane Railroad, the Kinzua Bridge collapsed in mid 2003, the 58 was withdrawn from service and moved with other equipment to an enginehouse in Kane, Pennsylvania. On the morning of 16 March 2008, the 58 was damaged when the enginehouse it was stored in was burned by arson. The 58 was purchased later that year by the Valley Railroad at an auction.^[7] Upon purchase, the 58 was renumbered 3025 and was given a complete rebuild which included cosmetic alterations to make it resemble a New Haven 2-8-2.

Preservation

SY 368 in front of the restaurant Gourmet Mansion in Nanjing.

China Railways SY 0652 at Dalian Modern Museum

SY 1000 at Liuzhou Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works.

SY 1504 at Liuzhou Industrial Museum.

SY 1702 at Guilin University of Aerospace Technology.

• SY-0017: is preserved at Fangzi Coal Mine Heritage Park, Weifang.^[8]
• SY-0024: is preserved at Maanshan Iron & Steel Co.,Ltd.^[9]
• SY-0051: is preserved at Hubei Huangshi National Mine park.
• SY-0053: is preserved at Maanshan Iron & Steel Co.,Ltd.
• SY-0057: is preserved at Dalian Software Park.
• SY-0072: is preserved at Lingyuan Iron and Steel Group Corporation.
• SY-0192: is preserved at the Former Guizhou-Guangxi Railway Bridge, Chengbei New District, Duyun.
• SY-0194: is preserved at Lanzhou JiaoTong University.
• SY-0223: is preserved at Changchun Park.
• SY-0232: is preserved at Yakeshi Railway Station.
• SY-0309: is preserved at Dashanzi Art District, Beijing.
• SY-0320: is preserved at Panzhihua Third-line Construction Museum.
• SY-0359: is preserved at Shanghai Junior College of Tourism^[10]
• SY-0368: is preserved at Gourmet Mansion in Nanjing
• SY-0381: is preserved at Discovery Park, Hengyang^[11]
• SY-0388: is preserved at Yunnan Railway Museum.
• SY-0405: is preserved at Liupanshui Third-line Construction Museum.
• SY-0427: is preserved at Tianjin Haijin Bridge Park
• SY-0452: is preserved at Mudanjiang Railway Station.
• SY-0465: is preserved at Sichuan International Tourism Trade Fair Center
• SY-0477: is preserved at Hengdaohezi Locomotive Depot, Mudanjiang
• SY-0514: is preserved at Xiaoyutuo Railway Station, Chongqing.
• SY-0516: is preserved at Jiayang National Mine Park Museum
• SY-0590: is preserved at Suifenhe Great Railway House.
• SY-0590: is preserved at Jiangyue Road No. 1500, Minhang District, Shanghai.^[12]
• SY-0652: is preserved at Dalian Modern Museum
• SY-0862: is preserved at Shanghai Chedun Film Base.^[13]
• SY-1000: is preserved at Liuzhou Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works.
• SY-1004: is preserved at Shandong Jiaotong University.
• SY-1034: is preserved at Lintong Longhai Railway Park(Now renamed SY-1088).
• SY-1085: is preserved at China Academy of Railway Sciences.
• SY-1096: is preserved at Shenyang Railway Museum.
• SY-1504: is preserved at Liuzhou Industrial Museum.^[14]
• SY-1670: is preserved at Shanghai Institute of Technology.^[10]
• SY-1701: is preserved at Hangzhou Baita Park
• SY-1702: is preserved at Guilin University of Aerospace Technology.^[15]
• SY-1748: is preserved at Shanghai Youth Square.^[16]

See also

KORAIL 901

• List of locomotives in China
• China Railways JF6
• Connecticut Valley Railroad 3025
• KORAIL 901

References

1. "SY Class 2-8-2s". Railography.
2. "Smorgasbord of Steam (Lazy Susan Style)". Archived from the original on February 22, 2014.
3. "Steam Rides Again! Chinese Engines, U.S. Rails". The New York Times. Dec 25, 1989.
4. "Susie Q 141". Trains Magazine Forum. November 19, 2011.
5. Hudson, Mike; Atkins, Philip (September 2007). "Locos lost at sea. The all-time definitive record". The Railway Magazine. IPC Media Ltd. 153 (1277): 14–19. ISSN 0033-8923.
6. "The Business Times". Singapore. June 10, 1991. p. 30.
7. "Steam in China - News". SY-Country.
8. "蒸汽机车展示". 潍坊坊子炭矿遗址文化园 (in Chinese). April 26, 2016.
9. "马鞍山两所新建爱国主义教育基地揭牌运行_中国未成年人网". Kids 21 (in Chinese). May 7, 2012.
10. 寻访上海十六台火车头⑬⑭--大学校园里的珍藏
11. "愉景新城那列开往温暖的火车". Travel.Sohu.com (in Chinese). November 28, 2015.
12. 寻访上海之十六台火车头②～⑤--主题餐饮的王牌
13. 寻访上海十六台火车头⑫--驶往老上海滩的怀旧列车
14. Sources:
    • 柳钢捐赠（柳州）市工业博物馆的SY1504#蒸汽机车(已更新), home.lznews.gov.cn (in Chinese)
    • 又见蒸汽机车, gx.sina.com.cn (in Chinese)
15. Sources:
    • 蒸汽机车及其附属设施拆装、运输、翻新及新建铁轨（重）采购中标公告, departs.glcat.edu.cn (in Chinese)
    • Yemao Nylon Works (e of Jinchengjiang), railography.co.uk
16. 寻访上海之十六台火车头①--承载知青回忆的青年号