kato vs tomix vs other brands mileage

[jrcrunch]

Hi!

 

which train brand got the better mileage? better tyres? engines?

 

i have no kato and tomix distributor in my place so this is important to me. i have to send it to japan in case for repairs

[cteno4]

Jr,

 

ive got about 150 sets and over the last 15+ years I don't think I've seen any clear leader or problem one between kato, tomix and microwace. Of course there are a few problem models from each manufacturer that can be problematic in various ways, but nothing in general. Of course each some detailing and other features that again vary by models. Newer tomix shinkansens have all wheel pickup which can help performance on dirty track.

 

But overall with my experience I would not say any one manufacturer over another for longevity/performance.

 

Btw for all my tomix and kato problems I've ever had I have been able to repair them myself and eventually get or modify parts w.o returning them to the manufacturer for repair. Only microwace I've had to do this as they do not supply any spare parts, most of us are in the same situation of not having a local supplier. You do need to return the product thru your supplier/shop to get repairs from the manufacturer usually.

 

You will find a lot of kato vs tomix vs microace discussions here over the years. If you are interested in a specific model search the forum and then also ask questions on it.

 

Cheers

 

Jeff

[Welshbloke]

The main problem I've experienced on all of them is motors. The brushes get clogged with an oil/graphite mix which jams them in their holders and also covers the commutator. It's no criticism, all mechanisms be they train, watch or car need servicing occasionally and at least the Japanese N manufacturers design their models to be easy to get into, with clips instead of glue.

 

Weirdly it's easier to fix on Kato than it is on Tomix, at least with the underfloor motors they still use now. The brush holders have removable end caps so you can take the spring and brush out from both sides, clean everything (I use washing up liquid and warm water as it's a fairly mild degreaser), then reassemble with a tiny drop of oil on the armature bearings. Tomix motors seem to be intended to be sealed for life, so when they do eventually shuffle off this mortal (field) coil you'll need a replacement.

 

Remember to work in a tray of some sort and beware parts trying to ping themselves into oblivion, as spares are often non-existent. Kato especially seem to sell parts when the models are nearly new, but the supply has dried up by the time you're likely to need them.

Edited April 25, 2016 by Welshbloke

[kvp]

I think the Tomix philosophy seems to be to sell replacement parts, even for older models. You don't really have to fix a broken motor by taking it apart, just replace it. The same goes for power bogie assemblies and usually in case of Tomytec, whole assembled motor chassies are sold as parts and also used by kit and scratch builders. Wheels, couplers and other parts are available as parts, even for ancient models sold in the 80ies.

 

I was not so fortunate with Kato, but they do have spare parts for many products and some sellers do stock them for a long time, so it's possible to get them later with a little search.

 

Microace and Modemo doesn't seem to sell any parts, so it's either send it to the manufacturer for repair, throw away or in case of many microace sets, you can try to fit an available Tomix/Tomytec part to fix it and i've seen many people do just that. I don't have much information on ready to run Greenmax trains but their kits have good parts support either from Greenmax or Tomytec. There are also smaller manufacturers, like Kawai, who sell freight cars only and they seem to be fully compatible with Tomix parts.

 

I would like to add, that to avoid damage to the trains, keep the voltage at or below 12V DC. Kato trains are more tolerant of higher voltages, but Tomix/Tomytec and Modemo motors are not designed to be run above this and not just get way too fast, but you could damage them. Keeping the right voltage, current and speed limits helps keep the trains (and most accessories) running for a long time before they would need any servicing.

Edited April 25, 2016 by kvp

[cteno4]

I've rarely had motor trouble, for me it's been more gunked truck gears, stripped drive shafts, dirty contacts, or needing some lubrication. As Welshbloke noted they all are pretty easy to get into and fiddle with. More use of plastic tabs than screws and at first this worried me (coming from old n scale with split frames held together by many screws and no tabs and little plastic), but never broken anything doing repairs and a few problem children took many disassembles to finally get things working right!

 

All in all the quality seems near the top for n gauge, and especially good when you figure in the price as well.

 

Kato and tomix do tend to sell Sapir parts in different ways as kvp mentioned. In contrast to the motor situation, It's odd that kato does not sell drive shafts alone, but you have to buy the whole power truck and dive shaft as a unit (and a pair of them), where as tomix sells them separately. Since usually it's just the stripped ends of the drive shafts that goes bad and it's only a tiny hunk of plastic this makes a lot more sense and is a lot cheaper to replace! Over the years I would order a different pack of tomix drive shafts (like 200-400¥) with orders and built it a small variety and could repair most all tomix with them and even was able to repair a few kato with tomix drive shafts. Tomix even sells a few that are telescoping in lengh, very handy!

 

So again there is no clear winner here just some variances, but not consistent.

 

Jeff

[katoftw]

Micro Ace seems to have inconsistent quality controls coming out of their factory in recent releases.  All manufactures have a whoopsie every now and then.  But Micro Ace have had quite a few coming out of China in the past 12 months.

[Suica]

But Micro Ace have had quite a few coming out of China in the past 12 months.

And this is what happens when you outsource your production to a minimum wage country. The same quality inconsistency can be found with Arnold models.

 

The MA Meitetsu 5500 series is actually the best running Japanese model I have.

Edited April 25, 2016 by Suica

[katoftw]

It has only been the last 12 months.  Previous to that Micro Ace's outsourced production wasn't an issue.  All my Micro Aces have been great runners, even at lower speeds.  But none have been brought in 2015 or 2016.  All were brought beforehand.

 

If on was to buy a Micro Ace from earlier.  Then you wouldn't need to worry about the purchase.

[cteno4]

recent stuff from ma has run fine for me. Actually MA longer back were usually rougher runners than of more recent years when things have been more consistent on running quality in my experience. They were never horrible, but i had to lube a higher percentage of them and some always growled a bit on the older ones. Lack of spare parts is a problem though! still fiddling with my old 922 that started to have issues a year back, just have to get time to keep working on it. only other problem was doremon but that was a melted truck from a track derail/short circuit and luckily was able to get it back to ma thru a dealer to get repaired.

 

Ive done some product development thru china and elsewhere, and like anywhere you get what you pay for. if you go cheap you get cheap. but if you pay for quality you can get it and use producers that dont pay bottom dollar wages. but thats hard to find at times and the economic trends in china tend to make it tough for factories to keep on a standard path.

 

cheers

 

jeff

[JR 500系]

Like Jeff mention, there is no clear winner amongst the brands....

 

I have many Tomix Shinkansen and they run like clockwork, i do have a few sets that have a stucky motor....

 

I have many Kato commuter and limited express trains too, and one of the best running trains i have is the Kato 225 series. It runs like a charm, even at extremely low speed. But same, i do have the E351 that is coughing and refusing to move nicely...

 

Similarly for MA, my Odakyu EXE runs like a charm, but the Kiha-40 i have runs like someone is pushing it from behind slowly...

 

My only Modemo train is the RSE 20000, and it runs greatly, but have very poorly lighted directional lights...

 

So it really doesn't seem to have a clear winner over the order in terms of running performance...

[katoftw]

The Micro Ace recent issues tend more to be finishing issues like plastic moldings being warped and painting off colours than running issues.

Edited April 26, 2016 by katoftw

[JR 500系]

Forgot about GreenMax, it seems the recent new motor of the GreenMax is a great runner too! My Kintetsu Urban Liner NEXT runs like a charm!

[Suica]

Speaking of GreenMax, the motor of my Keihan Comfort Saloon seems awfully underpowered. Once it runs, it runs nicely. Really quiet too. But getting there is a bit of a problem. No other model I have is this prone to wheelspin, even though the motor car itself is quite heavy.

[cteno4]

any traction tires and how many cars Suica?

 

jeff

[bill937ca]

It has only been the last 12 months.  Previous to that Micro Ace's outsourced production wasn't an issue.  All my Micro Aces have been great runners, even at lower speeds.  But none have been brought in 2015 or 2016.  All were brought beforehand.

 

If on was to buy a Micro Ace from earlier.  Then you wouldn't need to worry about the purchase.

 

Micro Ace was probably hurt when Kader took over Sanda Kan  and kicked out many model railroad product lines. Many model railroad manufacturers have had problems with reliable sourcing since then.

[Suica]

any traction tires and how many cars Suica?

 

jeff

Yeah, traction tires are fine. It's an 8-car set.

[Ochanomizu]

Hi!

 

which train brand got the better mileage? better tyres? engines?

 

i have no kato and tomix distributor in my place so this is important to me. i have to send it to japan in case for repairs

 

Hello,

 

I don't think you can compare.  Like Mr Jeff, I have over 150 models.  I don't see any trend related to particular manufacturer, except that Micro Ace models seem to sit very tight in the case.  This has led to several panto problems, usually simple disassembly, which I have been easily able to repair.  I'm more careful with handling Micro Ace models.  This is the only "out of the box" problem I can recognise.

 

Any other problems I've had have been my own doing.  For example, a pickup spring disappearing when I'm servicing a bogie, or windows falling out when I'm disassembling a cab car to fit a decoder.  But these models are small, complex, and fiddly.  I think these things are to be expected.

[Martijn Meerts]

I probably have equal amounts of MicroAce and Tomix models, and a little less Kato models, and they're all fine. Tomix does generally use motors that aren't serviceable, but they don't go bad that quick, especially not when running at somewhat more normal speeds. Kato is using non-serviceable motors more often as well though. For all 3 of these manufacturer's I've had minor issues. Usually a bogie not being clipped in completely on delivery, or a coupler having popped out.

 

Actually, the 'worst' model so far has been a Kato, but I think I just got unlucky there. My Kato GS-4 Morning Daylight isn't assembled well. The cab and boiler have too much of a gap, and it feels like the wheels are misaligned, causing the loco to wobble quite a bit. It still runs well, and can pull all 18 cars without problem though.

 

I also have a set of Modemo JNR era coaches, those are definitely not the best quality.