The SY (Chinese: 上游; pinyin: Shàng Yóu; lit. '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.

China Railways SY (上游)
SY1658m built for use in the U.S.
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Tangshan Railway Vehicle (Mostly) Build date 1960–1999 Total produced 1,820
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-8-2  • UIC 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+3⁄8 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 (1,379 kPa) Heating surface:  • Firebox 4.5 m2 (48.44 sq ft) Cylinders 2 Cylinder size 580 mm × 710 mm (22.83 in × 27.95 in) Valve gear Walschaerts Valve type Piston
Performance figures Maximum speed 80 km/h (50 mph)* Tractive effort 207.66 kN (46,680 lbf)
Career Disposition 42 preserved

History and design

The SY class was the last major class of steam locomotives to be produced anywhere in the world with the last one 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] What was contrasting from the JF6 Class was that the SYs were fitted with airhorns (like many other powerful steam locomotives), frequently blown as a warning; or else the operators of the class enjoyed sounding the airhorns more than blowing the whistles, as they found loud signal sounds more useful.

The SYs are 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 at the very beginning of the 21st century.[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 during the 1991 North Indian Ocean cyclone season.[4][5]

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 engine house in Kane, Pennsylvania. On the morning of 16 March 2008, the 58 was damaged when the engine house it was stored in was burned by arson. The 58 was purchased later that year by the Valley Railroad at an auction.[6] 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.

One was bought by the Korean National Railroad in 1994, numbered 901, and operated for excursion trains. It has been out of service since 2012.

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 1658M (3025) at Essex, Connecticut in the United States.
• 
  SY 1702 at Guilin University of Aerospace Technology.
• 
  KORAIL 901

• SY-0017: is preserved at Fangzi Coal Mine Heritage Park, Weifang.[7]
• SY-0024: is preserved at Maanshan Iron & Steel Co.,Ltd.[8]
• 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
• SY-0368: is preserved at Gourmet Mansion in Nanjing.
• SY-0381: is preserved at Discovery Park, Hengyang.[9]
• SY-0386: is preserved at ? on static display.
• 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.
• SY-0652: is preserved at Dalian Modern Museum.
• SY-0862: is preserved at Shanghai Chedun Film Base.
• SY-0913: is preserved at Guilin, Guangxi.
• 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.[10]
• SY-1647m: is preserved at the Belvedere and Delaware River Railway in the US
• SY-1658m: is preserved at the Connecticut Valley Railroad in the US
• SY-1670: is preserved at Shanghai Institute of Technology.
• SY-1701: is preserved at Hangzhou Baita Park.
• SY-1702: is preserved at Guilin University of Aerospace Technology.[11]
• SY-1748: is preserved at Shanghai Youth Square.

See also

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

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to China Railways SY.