583 series
Introduction Reliveried 583 series on a ''Kitaguni'' service in April 2008The  were limited express electric multiple unit (EMU) train types introduced in 1967 by Japanese National Railways and later operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West) on the through services express ''Kitaguni'' and other special trains until 2017.The seats of the 581 and 583 series trains could be transformed into three-berth beds, enabling the trains to be used on both daytime and night train services., just six cars remained in service, operated by JR East and based at Akita Depot for use on additional and charter services. This last trainset was withdrawn in April 2017.
Individual car types * '''KuHaNe 581''': Cab car with air compressor and motor-generator (150 kVA)* '''KuHaNe 583''': Cab car with air compressor and motor-generator (210 kVA: beneath the floor)* '''MoHaNe 580''': Motored car with two pantographs (1,500 V DC / 20 kV AC 60 Hz)* '''MoHaNe 581''': Motored car coupled to MoHaNe 580* '''MoHaNe 582''': Motored car with two pantographs (1,500 V DC / 20 kV AC 50/60 Hz)* '''MoHaNe 583''': Motored car coupled to MoHaNe 582* '''SaHaNe 581''': Intermediate trailer car. All withdrawn. * '''SaRo 581''': Green (first class) intermediate trailer car. The seats cannot be converted into berths. * '''SaRoNe 581''': Converted from SaRo 581 in 1985 for ''Kitaguni'' services. The berths cannot be converted into seats. * '''SaShi 581''': Dining car. All withdrawn.File:JNR EC TNc581 side view.png|Artist's impression of a KuHaNe 581 coach
Formations (as of 1 July 2010)===JR East (Akita Depot)=== Car No. 1  2  3  4  5  6 Numbering KuHaNe 583 MoHaNe 582  MoHaNe 583  MoHaNe 582  MoHaNe 583  KuHaNe 583===JR East (Sendai Depot)===Set N1/N2: Car No. 1  2  3  4  5  6 Numbering KuHaNe 583 MoHaNe 582  MoHaNe 583  MoHaNe 582  MoHaNe 583  KuHaNe 583===JR West (Kyoto Depot)===Sets B04-06: Car No. 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10 Numbering KuHaNe 581 MoHaNe 582  MoHaNe 583  MoHaNe 582  MoHaNe 583  SaRo 581  SaRoNe 581  MoHaNe 582  KuHaNe 581
Interior File:JNR583seat.JPG|Seating arrangement in a 583 series coachFile:West Japan Railway Company(JR WEST) Night Train Express "KITAGUNI" 4.JPG|The interior of a Saro 581 Green seating car in 2010File:JNR sashi581-19 syanai.jpg|The interior of a SaShi 581 dining car in 1985
History The 581 series was introduced in 1967 on the ''Midori'' ( -  daytime limited express) and ''Gekkō'' (Shin-Osaka -  night limited express).The 583 series was introduced in 1968 on the ''Hatsukari'' ( -  via Tōhoku Main Line daytime), ''Hakutsuru'' (Ueno - Aomori via Tōhoku Main Line night), and ''Yūzuru'' (Ueno - Aomori via Jōban Line night).These trains were subsequently used on other limited express services.In 1982, when the Tohoku Shinkansen opened, many cars became surplus to requirements, and some were remodeled into 419 series and 715 series EMUs.The last remaining trainset in service, a six-car set based at JR East's Akita Depot made its final run on 8 April 2017, on a charter service between  and .
Preserved examples , six former 581 series cars are preserved statically. * '''KuHaNe 581 8''': Preserved at the Kyushu Railway History Museum in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka (cosmetically restored from its previous identity as KuHa 715-1). * '''SaHaNe 581 19''': Preserved at the  in Bifuka, Hokkaido. * '''SaShi 581 31''': Preserved adjacent to the Hachinohe City Museum in Hachinohe, Aomori. * '''KuHaNe 581 35''': Preserved at the Kyoto Railway Museum in Kyoto since April 2016.In February 2015, JR-West car KuHaNe 581 35, formerly stored at Suita Depot in Osaka, was moved to Kyoto for exhibition at the Kyoto Railway Museum opening in April 2016.It was returned from its previous ''Kitaguni'' livery to its original JNR blue and cream livery.In August 2017, JR East announced the donation of two former intermediate 583 series cars (MoHaNe 582-106 and MoHaNe 583-106), which will be preserved at the National Taiwan Museum in Taiwan. The 583 series is known to be the first sleeper EMU introduced in Japan in the late 1960s.File:Kuhane581 8.jpg|KuHaNe 581 8 at the Kyushu Railway History MuseumFile:Kyoto-Railway-Museum Series581-35.jpg|KuHaNe 581 35 at the Kyoto Railway Museum in September 2018File:Mohane 582 106 583 106.jpg|583 series intermediate cars at the Taipei Railway Workshop
In fiction The story "Ah, My Beloved 583-series" of the anime ''The Laughing Salesman NEW'' focuses on a man whose dream is to ride the 583-Type train and is given a once-only chance by Moguro, however boarding the train again condemns him to stay on it forever.
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