Kŭmsŏng-class locomotive

Kŭmsŏng
금성

금성8002 on display at the 3 Revolutions Museum.

Type and origin Power type Diesel-electric Builder Kim Chong-t'ae Works  North Korea Build date 1970s Total produced at least 4

Specifications UIC class Co-Co Gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in) standard gauge Driver dia. 1,050 mm (41.34 in) Length 17,550 mm (57 ft 7 in)* Width 2,950 mm (9 ft 8 in)* Height 4,615 mm (15 ft 1.7 in)* Fuel type diesel Prime mover DPRK copy of Kolomna 14D40 Engine type V12 diesel Cylinders 12 Transmission Electric Loco brake air

Performance figures Maximum speed 100 km/h (62 mph) Power output 1,470 kW (1,970 hp)

Career Operators Korean State Railway Number in class ≥2 Numbers 금성8001, 금성8002

* - 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] 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]

In testing, the first prototype, numbered 8001, the goal of attaining a maximum speed of 100 km/h (62 mph) was achieved,^[1] 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] 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

Another view of Kŭmsŏng 8002.

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

1. Kokubu, Hayato. 将軍様の鉄道 (in Japanese). Shōgun-sama no Tetsudō. ISBN 978-4-10-303731-6.
2. "3大革命展示館". 2427junction.com (in Japanese).
3. "Тепловозы семейства М62: некоторые факты и размышления". perecheek.narod.ru (in Russian).
4. "朝鲜铁路机车车辆概况一览". cchere.com (in Chinese).
5. "朝鲜铁路机车车辆概况一览（续）". cchere.com (in Chinese).
6. "強行軍型399号の正体" (in Japanese).
7. "M62 - Taiga Drums in North Korea". farrail.net.(registration required)
8. "平壌～北京間国際列車定州→新義州". 2427junction.com (in Japanese).