DF200 in Tokyo area?

[kvp]

Is these Hokkaido DD51-s are the cold region passenger variant? (higher top speed, different brake system and train steam heating equipment in the cab) Because afaik those were not refurbished when the JRF fleet was modernised. (imho JRH should keep a few for railtour service with a set of matching passenger cars)

Edited July 6, 2016 by kvp

[westfalen]

Wouldn't the DF200 also be optimised for cold region operations?

[ayokoi]

I posted a video of DF200-223 at Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

 

[yakumo381]

DF200-223 undertaking commissioning trials at Inazawa (image from http://ja.whotwi.com/ferrari599s/tweets@):

[yakumo381]

Video showing what looks like brake testing of D200 223 at Inazawa (from around 0:28):

 

[yakumo381]

As well as DF200-123 (now DF200-223), it appears some DD51 have also now been transferred from Hokkaido to Aichi: DD51 1146, 1147, 1156.

 

This video shows them in action although looking a bit worn and patch painted:

 

 

Will stand out in Aichi depot by Inazawa Station because of their "spinning glass" windscreens. Anyone know what the correct name is for this type of windscreen?

Edited October 26, 2016 by yakumo381

[katoftw]

Icicle cutters

[cteno4]

i questioned my father (ship captain from way back) and other nautical sources and his sea friends and spinning glass or spinning window was the name they all said. im pretty sure they came from nautical use first.

 

wiki calls it a clear view screen, and Mark Newton here has heard the term used, but that was never mentioned to folks i talked to that have used them on ships for the last 70 years. may be a product name given along the way as it looks like there are some name variations on it.

 

jeff

[railsquid]

I've also heard them being called "Kent screens" in a nautical context.

[cteno4]

Yeah I've seen that and looks like it was from the maybe original designer from the turn of the 20th century, George Kent limited. Can't find the first patents on it, but a friend is a retired us patent reviewer, maybe he knows how to find easily. All dads old sea salts didn't use the name, but kent was British so maybe that's it!

 

It's interesting to see wiki research as they say it was first in autos in the 30s from a popular mechanics article that just announces its use on cars. But they were on ships for a long tim and even tried in planes in the early 20s. Perhaps time to edit the wiki some with new refs!

 

Jeff

[keiichi77]

Several members of the local railway club are ship engineers, inspectors etc. They all call them "clear view screen".

[Kiha66]

If I remember correctly the ones on my school's ship were called clear view screens.  I'll be working on the ship tomorrow so I'll stop by the bridge and see what they are officially labeled as.  

[katoftw]

[yakumo381]

Wonder if the spin windows off a DD51 would fit my Land Rover Defender...? :)

[Kiha66]

After a talk with my ship's chief mate, it seems spinning windows is the term used by the US merchant marine.  I managed to find the original manual in the ships tech library, and it referred to them as both spinning windows and clear-view screens, so it would seem both terms are correct.  And based off of the dimensions from the manual, It probably would fit in your land rover, although at 460 watts the heating coil might require a bit more power than the cigarette lighter could supply!

[cteno4]

Thanks kiha! Makes sense as my dad and all his salts were merchant marine 90 day wonders during wwII.

 

In about 18months he ended up running the biggest salvage rug in the pacific (an Australian one) pulling destroyers out of battle and huge LSTs off the beaches and reefs. Wild how fast a farm boy from Texas ended up a ship captain. He got promoted from second mate to captain when the first mate was in the hospital and the captain went awol on a bender and a destroyer needed pulling.

 

The 1930 popular mechanics story was about putting them into car windows! Earlier references had them in airplane Windows as well.

 

Jeff

[yakumo381]

Currently in Japan and tracked down DF200-223 in the Depot by Inazawa station. May be being a bit of a hanger queen as was being worked on in one of the sheds until it got pushed out by a DE10 and then fired up. Will be keeping a look out for it in traffic whilst I am over here.

 

 

[yakumo381]

Didn't see DF200-223 hauling any freight whilst I was in the Nagoya area so may be JRF still having problems with it.

 

Noticed something that appears odd on a close up I took of it. The front number plate appears to be mounted over the top of its original number plate.

 

Optical illusion or so it can be whipped off for a quick return to Hokkaido?

 

Edited November 21, 2016 by yakumo381

[westfalen]

Didn't see DF200-223 hauling any freight whilst I was in the Nagoya area so may be JRF still having problems with it.

 

Noticed something that appears odd on a close up I took of it. The front number plate appears to be mounted over the top of its original number plate.

 

Optical illusion or so it can be whipped off for a quick return to Hokkaido?

 

DF200-223.PNG

If you look at this photo I took of DF200 111 at Goryokaku (a great place to get up close and personal with them) you will see that the DF200s don't have seperate number plates.  I don't know how the numbers are fixed to the loco but they might have found it easier, or cheaper, just to mount a new number plate over the top.

 

[westfalen]

They may be taking a while to qualify crews and shed staff on it before they turn it loose.

[yakumo381]

DF200-223 was taken back to the Kawasaki works towards the end of last year, from what I have picked up on the web as being for a weight distribution problem.

It looks like it went via Suita in December before heading back to the Kawasaki works where I assume it now still resides.

 

 

There has been a red EF510 at the Aichi works in Inazawa for a few weeks which is a type I have not seen regularly before in that area. Usually would be at Suita if needing repair or maintenance so possibly being evaluated for other reasons as I cannot see it as an alternative to DF200-223 replacing the DD51 on Kansai Line freights.

DD51 themselves are almost at their end at Aichi as I am only aware of the following in use, with not all being regularly used: 853, 857, 875, 889, 890, 891, 892, 1028, 1146*, 1147*, 1156*, 1801, 1802, 1803, 1804, 1805.  (* brought down from Hokkaido).

DD51 1109, 1179, 1183, 1186, 1192 have gone missing presumed "over the rainbow". DD51-893 is also heading same way having been stripped of its number plates.

Also EF64-77, which I thought was being kept at Asahi as a "depot pet" or for preservation given how it was kept pristine down to even painted tyres, now resides close to the scrap line devoid of numberplates. EF64-1041 is also withdrawn / plateless.

Edited January 5, 2017 by yakumo381

[miyakoji]

Thanks for keeping this thread going, yakumo381.  Too bad about EF64-77.  I agree about the EF510, even if there's wire it doesn't seem like a replacement for what the DD51s do in Nagoya and Yokkaichi.

[Das Steinkopf]

Here are some shots I got of DF200-223 when I was on holidays in April, also seen is some very new looking Koki 107's in the foreground and some Wamu 380000 and Wamu 80000 hiding in the background behind a DD51.

 

 

Edited June 12, 2017 by Das Steinkopf

[yakumo381]

With the JRF announcement of the DD200, I wonder if, rather than as a direct DD51 replacement, DF200-213 has been either used as a test bed or as a means to gather data to use in DD200 development?

[Das Steinkopf]

With the JRF announcement of the DD200, I wonder if, rather than as a direct DD51 replacement, DF200-213 has been either used as a test bed or as a means to gather data to use in DD200 development?

The DD200 are rated at 600hp whilst the DD51's are rated at 2200hp the chances of them replacing the DD51's are pretty slim given they are designed for totally different purposes, with the DD51's in Honshu they are more than likely to be replaced by a DF200 variant just as they were in Hokkaido once they get the teething issues sorted out, especially since they are rated at 3600hp which is more than suited to mainline operations.