The BUNBUN (read: boon-boon) was a fairly short-lived charter-only service run by a converted KiHa 58 series diesel multiple unit operated initially by the Japanese National Railways and later by the Kyushu Railway Company from March 1987 to June 1994.
History[]
The BUNBUN was an early Joyful Train consisting of a single two-car set converted from JR Kyushu KiHa 58 and 28 series cars; the cars selected for the conversion were KiHa 58 689 and KiHa 28 2489, which were renumbered to 8001 for both cars. The set entered service in March 1987 prior to JNR's privatization and division; after privatization, ownership of the set was assumed by the newly-formed JR Kyushu. The set would be used for special services and similar events before it was withdrawn from service in June 1994 and scrapped; this was one of the last trains officially recognized as a Joyful Train by JR Kyushu, with all officially-designated JR Kyushu Joyful Trains retired by then. Throughout its time in service the train was based at Kagoshima Depot.
Design[]
The BUNBUN featured the same general design as the KiHa 58 series cars they were converted from. The set featured a white base coat with the words "BunBun" splashed on the front along with Hiragana characters spelling out "bun bun".
Construction is of steel. Performance statistics are largely identical to that of the KiHa 58 series cars these were converted from. The set featured kōtatsus as seats.
