The is a type of

4-6-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and two trailing wheels on one axle. The locomoti ...

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...

built in Japan from 1928 to 1929. The locomotives were designed by Hideo Shima and built by

Kawasaki Heavy Industries Rolling Stock Company is the Japanese rolling stock manufacturing subsidiary of Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Since beginning operations in 1906, the company has produced more than 90,000 railroad cars. Products As indicated by the company name, the company mainl ...

Kisha Seizo was a Japanese manufacturer of railway rolling stock that existed from 1896 to 1972. * 1896: Established by Inoue_Masaru_(bureaucrat), Masaru Inoue as the . * 1899: Factory opened in Osaka. * 1901: Merged with the , a coach and car maker in ...

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational engineering, electrical equipment and electronics corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MHI is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group and its automobile division is the prede ...

and

Hitachi () is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1910 and headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. The company is active in various industries, including digital systems, power and renewable ener ...

. A total of 97 Class C53 locomotives were built. The locomotives are notable for being the only non-experimental three-cylinder locomotives in Japan's railway history. They used the

Gresley conjugated valve gear The Gresley conjugated valve gear is a valve gear for steam locomotives designed by Sir Nigel Gresley, chief mechanical engineer of the London and North Eastern Railway, LNER, assisted by Harold Holcroft. It enables a three-cylinder locomotive ...

, which enabled high performance on the mainline. However, their mechanical complexity led to a short service life, especially after better-performing locomotives, such as the Class C59 and C62, entered production in the 1940s during and after the

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

. All 97 locomotives were retired by 1950. JGR C5343 hauling train

Preserved examples

Today, only one Class C53 locomotive has been preserved in Japan, C53 45, at the

Kyoto Railway Museum The (formerly the until 2016) is a railway museum in Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan. The original Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum opened in 1972, but was expanded and modernized in 2016, becoming the Kyoto Railway Museum. The museum is owned by We ...

(formerly Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum). File:Japanese-national-railways-C53-45-20111213.jpg, C53 45 preserved at Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum in December 2011 File:Advertisement of Kawasaki Dockyard Company in 1930s.jpg, C53 on a

Kawasaki Heavy Industries is a Japanese Public company, public multinational corporation manufacturer of motorcycles, engines, Heavy equipment (construction), heavy equipment, aerospace and Military, defense equipment, rolling stock and ships, headquartered in Minato, To ...

advertisement File:Nagoya Station at the completion, 1937 (昭和12年建物完成時の名古屋駅).jpg, C53 96 passing by

Nagoya Station is a major railway station in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. It is Japan's, and one of the world's largest train stations by floor area (410,000 m2), and houses the headquarters of the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Much of this space ...

File:JNR-C5345.jpg, C53 45 steam loco frontview File:TheThirdCylinder of C53.jpg, C53 The 3 cylinder File:Umekoji Steam Locomotive Museum 梅小路蒸気機関車館 (8178323119).jpg, C53 45 at the Kyoto Railway Museum

References

{{Japanloco 1067 mm gauge locomotives of Japan Steam locomotives of Japan 4-6-2 locomotives 2′C1′ locomotives Preserved steam locomotives of Japan Railway locomotives introduced in 1928 Passenger locomotives Hitachi locomotives Kawasaki locomotives Kisha Seizo locomotives Mitsubishi locomotives

Preserved examples

See also

References