Bo-Bo Diesel Electric
These 1200hp model DEV-736 Czech built locomotives are used for a wide variety of uses, both passenger and freight. Some 40 were delivered between 1985 and 1990.They are numbered from 621-660. They appear to have been painted in two colour schemes red with yellow lining and the lining changed to white (to match the D18E and D13E classes?). There has also been a change in the pilot from one made of piping to a solid metal one. Some locomotives have the cab side numbers in the middle and some closer to the bottom of the cab as well. Also some locomotives have the DSVN logo stencilled on the long hood side. The small photo (at the bottom of the gallery) of D12E-632 below seems to show a freshly repainted locomotive in bright red with white lining at the front and on the long hood but not on the cab or short hood as well as a black solid metal pilot rather than red. A new simplified style? A couple of the machines are depicted in the gallery with an unidentified blue and white logo on the long hood as well (626, 628 and 638).Several very similar locomotives were imported into Cambodia painted in a pale blue and yellow colour scheme.
Click on thumbnails for fullsize image
ORIGINAL COLOUR SCHEME
Steam Locomotives generally used the traditional French classification system. A steam locomotive with a 2-8-2 wheel arrangement is classified as 141 class, a locomotive with 4-6-2 wheel arrangement is classified as 231 class etc. Pretty straight forward, except what they did if two classes had a 2-8-2 wheel arrangement I'm not sure. It didn't happen so wasn't a problem?
Diesel locomotives have a completely dfferent clasification system.
All diesel classes start with the letter 'D' (for diesel?) then a number which I believe is related to the locomotives power output. The third character defines Electric' (E) or hydraulic (H).
e.g. D5H class = Diesel + 500 hp + hydraulic.
Again, what happens if two classes are the same I don't know.
I am still investigating pre 1975 classifications. Some are the same e.g. 141 steam class, and some are different e.g. 'BB' class instead of D9E.
Railways in Vietnam
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