JNR Class D51 No. D51 498

Japanese National Railways No. D51 498 is a Class D51 2-8-2 Mikado-type steam locomotive built for the Japanese National Railways by Takatori Works in November 1940. It is one of two operational Class D51 locomotives, the other being D51 200.
==History==
D51 498 was built by the Japanese National Railways's Takatori Works; the locomotive was completed on 24 November 1940; although Takatori does not give serial numbers to locomotives built by them it was the 26th locomotive built there. Entering service the same day, D51 498 was assigned to the Okayama Depot near Takatori and used to pull freight trains. The locomotive remained at Okayama throughout World War II, with its documents destroyed during air raids conducted in the area in 1945.
After World War II, D51 498 was moved between various depots; it was last stationed at Sakamachi Depot as of September 1972. One of D51 498's front wheels was replaced with a front wheel from C58 103, withdrawn in May the same year and now on display in Ichinoseki. Out of service since October 1972 after pulling a special train on the Hachikō Line to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Japanese railway network, D51 498 was withdrawn from service on 1 December 1972 and donated to the town of Tsukiyono in Gunma (now Minakami) and put on display in front of Gokan Station four days later.
Due to dire financial straits, the JNR was privatized and split into seven companies on 1 April 1987, one of them being the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Around October 1987, JR East launched a movement to revive the use of steam locomotives under the guise of "community-based service"; coincidentally, around the same time, the secretariat of the Yokohama Exhibition, planned to be held at Minato Mirai 21 in 1989, requested that a steam locomotive-hauled train be used to run between Shinagawa and the site of the exposition, with JR East agreeing to this proposal. Under president Shōji Sumita, a list of steam locomotives on static display around the Kanto region was drawn up; C57 135, preserved at the Transportation Museum, was determined to be in the best condition of all the evaluated locomotives and was slated to be restored to operational condition, although Sumita believed that restoring a D51 would be more effective as the type was synonymous with Japanese steam locomotives and would allow for closer ties to be built with the community.
With this is mind, the restoration for C57 135 was postponed indefinitely and a new plan drawn up to have a D51 restored instead. Through a further investigation, it was determined that D51 70 and D51 498 were in the best condition of all evaluated D51s; D51 498 was ultimately selected as it had a "familiar appearance" in comparison to D51 70's partial skyline casing. D51 498 was removed from Gokan Station in March 1988, being pulled to Takatori Depot by a DD51; on 12 June 1988, the locomotive was moved to Ōmiya Works for restoration and modification, also pulled by a DD51. Restoration work was complete on 25 November 1988; the locomotive was then restored to JR East's fleet register and assigned to Takasaki Depot (now Gunma Depot).
While the planned steam locomotive operation at the Yokohama Exposition was ultimately canceled, D51 498 was selected to pull the final run of the Orient Express '88 which was in Japan at the time; D51 498 would ultimately make its first run in preservation pulling the train as a means of commemorating its restoration, with the locomotive also cosmetically modified with the logo of the Nostalgie Istanbul Orient Express added to the tender for this run only. The locomotive pulled the service on 23 December 1988, with EF58 61 following behind as a auxiliary locomotive; it is said EF58 61 provided assistance by helping the locomotive recover from a delay at Akabane Station, with D51 498 being the only source of motive power for the remainder of the service. With it restored to the register, D51 498 essentially became the face of JR East's operations, and would be used to pull various services such as the SL Okutone on the Jōetsu Line (now the SL Gunma Minakami).
Due to the frequency with which D51 498 was operated, parts would wear down quickly and malfunctions were frequent, with D51 498 usually replaced by some sort of diesel or electric locomotive or another steam locomotive owned by JR East, such as C57 180. On some occasions, JR East had to arrange for steam locomotives operated on private railways to replace D51 498 on short notice due to these malfunctions. A smoke dispersal smokestack and Gōto-style smoke deflectors were installed on the locomotive in 2010 for a brief period; the same year, a newly-fabricated builder's plate was fitted on the locomotive, having not originally been there when D51 498 was built. Today, D51 498 is used to pull various steam locomotive-hauled services under JR East's jurisdiction; when not pulling services, D51 498 is also used to train engineers on how to operate steam locomotives within Gunma Depot.
D51 498 underwent repairs at Ōmiya Works from January to June 2024; test running commenced in mid-July 2024.
==Trivia==
*D51 498's whistle tuning has changed more than five times since it was restored, making it have the most varied whistle sounds of all steam locomotives in preservation in Japan.
Category:Tender locomotives
Category:Eight-coupled locomotives
Category:2-8-2 locomotives
Category:2-8-2 steam locomotives
Category:JR Group trains
Category:Takatori Works locomotives
Category:Steam locomotives
Category:Narrow-gauge steam locomotives
Category:Locomotives
Category:Built in 1940
Category:JNR Class D51
Category:Preserved locomotives
Category:Preserved steam locomotives
Category:Japanese locomotives
Category:Japanese steam locomotives
Category:Restored locomotives