Kŭmsŏng-class locomotive
Kŭmsŏng 금성 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() 금성8002 on display at the 3 Revolutions Museum. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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* - dimensions of original M62 |
The Kŭmsŏng class (Korean: 금성, "Gold Star") locomotives are an unlicensed copy of the Soviet-made M62-type diesel locomotive,[1][page needed] built by the Kim Chong-t'ae Electric Locomotive Works in P'yŏngyang, North Korea.[2]
Description
Starting in 1967, the Voroshilovgrad Locomotive Factory in Voroshilovgrad, USSR (now Luhansk, Ukraine), began production of 64 K62-class variants of the M62 for the Korean State Railway.[3] The Kim Chong-t'ae works subsequently reverse-engineered these locomotives, along with their diesel engines and other components imported from the USSR.[4] These efforts led to the production of the Kŭmsŏng class locomotives using both copied components and Russian-made parts.[1][page needed]
In testing, the first prototype, numbered 8001, the goal of attaining a maximum speed of 100 km/h (62 mph) was achieved,[1][page needed] and the copy of the Kolomna 14D40 engine produced 1,470 kW (1,970 hp). However, reliability issues prevented mass production.[5] The second unit, 8002, has been on display at the Museum of the Three Revolutions in P'yŏngyang since it was built.[1][page needed] The first two units were both painted in a yellow and red livery, strikingly different from the blue and green scheme applied to the Soviet-made versions. 8001 is in service, pulling freight trains on the P'yŏngŭi Line
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/NORTH_KOREA_RAILWAYS_DIESEL_LOCO_ON_DISPLAY_PYONGYANG_CITY_DPRK_NORTH_KOREA_OCT_2012_%288643228129%29.jpg/220px-NORTH_KOREA_RAILWAYS_DIESEL_LOCO_ON_DISPLAY_PYONGYANG_CITY_DPRK_NORTH_KOREA_OCT_2012_%288643228129%29.jpg)
There are a number of noticeable external differences between the Kŭmsŏng class locomotives and the Soviet-built M62s. The most immediately evident is the number and arrangement of the side windows, and the shape of the cab windows. Also very different are the headlights: the top light is round on the Kŭmsŏng instead of rectangular, and the main headlights are mounted in pairs, and higher up, than on the M62.[6] Another readily noticeable difference is that the bogie frames are constructed with welded steel profiles.[7]
Conversions to electric
Like the M62, some Kŭmsŏng class locomotives have also been converted to Kanghaenggun-class electric locomotives.[8] Two have been seen so far - #0309 in dark green and white, and #399 in dark blue and white, but it is not known whether these were converted from existing Kŭmsŏng class locomotives originally built as diesels, or if the electrics use newly-built bodies.
References
- ^ a b c d Kokubu, Hayato. 将軍様の鉄道 (in Japanese). Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō. ISBN 978-4-10-303731-6.
- ^ "3大革命展示館". 2427junction.com (in Japanese).
- ^ "Тепловозы семейства М62: некоторые факты и размышления". perecheek.narod.ru (in Russian).
- ^ "朝鲜铁路机车车辆概况一览". cchere.com (in Chinese).
- ^ "朝鲜铁路机车车辆概况一览(续)". cchere.com (in Chinese).
- ^ "強行軍型399号の正体" (in Japanese).[dead link]
- ^ "M62 - Taiga Drums in North Korea". farrail.net.(registration required)
- ^ "平壌~北京間国際列車定州→新義州". 2427junction.com (in Japanese).