Sentetsu Purero-class locomotives

The Purero-class (プレロ) locomotives were a group of steam tank locomotives with 2-6-2 wheel arrangement of used by the Chosen Government Railway (Sentetsu) in Korea. The "Pure" name came from the American naming system for steam locomotives, under which locomotives with 2-6-2 wheel arrangement were called "Prairie".

Chosen Government Railway Purero class (プレロ) Korean State Railway Purŏyu class (부러유)
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Orenstein & Koppel Build date 1911 Total produced 2
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-6-2T Gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) Driver dia. 1,370 mm (54 in) Length 10,846 mm (35 ft 7.0 in) Width 2,900 mm (9 ft 6 in) Height 3,900 mm (12 ft 10 in) Adhesive weight 34.70 t (34.15 long tons) Loco weight 51.45 t (50.64 long tons) Fuel capacity 1.60 t (1.57 long tons) Water cap. 5,600 L (1,500 US gal) Firebox: ​  • Grate area 1.80 m2 (19.4 sq ft) Boiler: ​  • Small tubes 81 x 45 mm (1.8 in)  • Large tubes 12 x 137 mm (5.4 in) Boiler pressure 12.0 kgf/cm2 (171 psi) Heating surface: ​  • Firebox 7.60 m2 (81.8 sq ft)  • Tubes 74.40 m2 (800.8 sq ft)  • Total surface 74.40 m2 (800.8 sq ft) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 19.00 m2 (204.5 sq ft) Cylinders 1 Cylinder size 450 mm × 550 mm (18 in × 22 in) Valve gear Walschaerts
Performance figures Maximum speed 75 km/h (47 mph) Tractive effort 72.0 kN (16,200 lbf)
Career Operators Domun Railway Chosen Government Railway Korean State Railway Class Sentetsu: プレロ KSR: 부러유 Number in class 2 Numbers Sentetsu: プレロ1, プレロ2 KSR: 부러유1, 부러유2 Delivered 1911

In all, Sentetsu owned 227 locomotives of all Pure classes, whilst privately owned railways owned another 52; of these 279 locomotives, 169 went to the Korean National Railroad in South Korea and 110 to the Korean State Railway in North Korea.

Description

Orenstein & Koppel of Germany built two superheated 2-6-2 tank locomotives in 1911 which were operated by the privately owned Domun Railway after 1920. Both were taken over by Sentetsu after the nationalisation of the Domun Railway in 1929; after the general renumbering of 1938 they were designated プレロ (Purero) class and numbered プレロ1 and プレロ2.

Postwar: Korean State Railway 부러유 (Purŏyu) class

After the Liberation and partition of Korea, both ended up in North Korea after Liberation, and were operated by the Korean State Railway designated 부러유 (Purŏyu) class.