International Railroad Discussion > Showa Era Class 103 EMU (Japan)

While the Emperor of Japan only plays a symbolic role in society, eras are defined when emperors transition. Currently, Japan is in the Reiwa (令和) era, while the previous ones were Heisei (平成, 1989-2019) and Showa (昭和, 1926-1989).

As mentioned elsewhere, government-run Japan National Railways (JNR, 国鉄 pronounced Kokutetsu) was privatized into 7 JR Groups in 1987, or Showa's 62nd year. For many Japanese railfans, that year marked the transition from "classic" to "modern" era, especially in hindsight.

Showa Era spanned 63 years, and covered WWII and their ambitious economic expansion. Transition away from steam also happened in the Showa Era, in the 1960s to 1970s. Coincidence or not, industrial design changed from angular/boxy to curvy/rounder during the Showa to Heisei era transition. That explains the very strong Showa nostalgia shown by many Japanese people, and it's not limited to trains.

TO members who have railfanned Japanese trains for decades might know this already, but I mention this to explain the reason why Showa Era trains are special. Comparable nostalgia is how some of us miss the angular "classic" EMD standard cabs.

I promised a report on the Class 103 EMUs several years ago, so I'm finally doing it today. The first 103s went into service back in 1963, and the last ones were manufactured in 1984. There were several variants due to 20+ years of manufacturing, details of which can be looked up in English with a wikipedia entry:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/103_series

While visiting the Kansai Region (metropolitan area around Osaka) in 2015, I had a chance to document some Class 103s still in service. JR West discontinued the use of 103s on their Osaka Loop Line in 2017, but the light green-colored ones still operate on the Nara Line today.

- "Low cab window" version at Kyoto (Nara Line).

- "High cab window" version on the Osaka Loop Line.

- Video of Class 103s at Shin-Imamiya Station.

That's it for the quick, belated report.

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Thanks for the revealing photos and fascinating information.

Thanks for sharing your Nara line photos. Here are a couple more, from 2015. We were sightseeing Japan after my son's wedding.

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cchan006 Wrote:
>
> While visiting the Kansai Region (metropolitan
> area around Osaka) in 2015, I had a chance to
> document some Class 103s still in service. JR West
> discontinued the use of 103s on their Osaka Loop
> Line in 2017, but the light green-colored ones
> still operate on the Nara Line today.
>

With the exception of one of the Nara sets, the sets you illustrate all have one car in the center [ more or less ] of the formation with special labeling -- what does that designate ?  A women and children car only, or.....?

Great photos as usual.

Best, SZ

symph1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks for sharing your Nara line photos. Here are
> a couple more, from 2015....

Actually that is a 101 class, per the number.  As I recall when they were newer there were subtle differences between them and the 103 class [ well, besides the r/n....] but I forget what they were, and I imagine they probably disappeared after a number of heavy overhauls.

Nice photo !

Best, SZ

Steinzeit2 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> With the exception of one of the Nara sets, the
> sets you illustrate all have one car in the center
> [ more or less ] of the formation with special
> labeling -- what does that designate ?  A women
> and children car only, or.....?

Yup. Women-only car.

Groping has been a problem for decades in Japan, especially in crowded commute-hour trains. You already know that, but I wanted to mention it for other TO members.

It's interesting that Osaka Loop Line (JR West) has the car located near the center, probably due to closeness to most station exits. In Tokyo (JR East), women-only cars are located at one of the ends, most commonly Car #1. That might have something to do with enforcement (engineer/conductor in cab cars on the ends).



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/18/21 16:01 by cchan006.

Steinzeit2 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Actually that is a 101 class, per the number.  As
> I recall when they were newer there were subtle
> differences between them and the 103 class [ well,
> besides the r/n....] but I forget what they were,
> and I imagine they probably disappeared after a
> number of heavy overhauls.
>
> Nice photo !

102-215 is actually Class 103. Class 101 end cars would have gotten a 100-xxx numbering. Class 101s had slightly bigger (and lower) front cab windows, which is how I tell the difference. What confused people in the Osaka area back in the mid-1980s was that some Class 101 cab cars (with the same bigger cab windows) got minor modifications and operated as Class 103 due to car shortages. Google Image search for "kuha 103-2001" might show some examples. But yeah, the differences can be subtle between 101s and 103s.

Interesting you mention Class 101. That class is considered the symbol of JNR's EMU modernization, first introduced in 1957. It had several design flaws that showed up when operated on the Yamanote Line with shorter distances between stops. Class 103 was designed to address the issues, and one interesting solution was to make 103's braking stronger, as simulations showed that improving acceleration did not improve the scheduling effectively. Side effect was that some injuries were reported initially, when the 103s would brake hard and "dislodge" standing passengers, especially while running at speed.

There's a very detailed design analysis of the 103 in the Japanese wikipedia entry.

While the Nara Line 103s were newer than the Yamanote Line 103s, they both are light-green (うぐいす色, color based on a bird). For that, it's a look back to the roots of Class 103, which is on the Yamanote Line where they first operated under revenue service. In the Showa (and Steinzeit) Era, 103s would have been running everywhere in the Tokyo region.

Well, the number on the side of that car certainly looked like 100 215, and it still does -- but you probably have a better monitor and eyes than I do.

I have been trying to hold off on posting a bunch of photos here and elsewhere while I still have my mobility, more or less, but you are tempting me to perhaps get an early start.....

Best, SZ

Steinzeit2 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Well, the number on the side of that car certainly
> looked like 100 215, and it still does -- but you
> probably have a better monitor and eyes than I
> do.

It would have been nice catch if it was a 101!

I don't know if I still have the video tape, but I visited Chichibu Railway in the mid-2000s to document the last 101s still running. They were discontinued there in 2014, and I had too much To Do List on my plate, so I couldn't visit again to document them with a better camcorder. Missed opportunity there.

No photos or videos, but I did ride the remaining 101s still running on the Nambu Line in the late 1990s.

> I have been trying to hold off on posting a bunch
> of photos here and elsewhere while I still have my
> mobility, more or less, but you are tempting me to
> perhaps get an early start.....
>
> Best, SZ

Looking forward to any of those posts! Maybe we'll get more people interested in the Showa Era trains.