Electric Local Lines as Modeling Subjects

[bill937ca]

I was just out at the local hobby shop and noticed that Continental Modeller has published a two part article on Electric Local Lines as modeling subjects by Peter Dibben in its October and November 2016 issues. Each article is four pages. The October 2016 issue covers the Konan Tetsudo and Mizuma Tetsudo, the shortest electric line in Japan.  The November article covers the Ichibata Denki Tetsudo, Kumamoto Electric Railway and the Choshi Dentetsu.  The focus is on EMUs and passenger service.

 

The December issue of Continental Modeler will feature Peter Dibben's Hironocho, a portable N scale minor private railway layout.

 

Continental Modeler is a monthly magazine published in the UK covering non-UK layouts and railroad models by the publishers of Railway Modeller. For those not near a magazine dealer that carries the magazine there is an online edition.  In the past it has covered Japanese layouts such as the last layout by Doug Coster and Japanese prototypes like the Enoden.

 

Not bad for a small city hobby shop!

Edited November 19, 2016 by bill937ca

[Densha]

Mizuma Tetsudo, the shortest electric line in Japan.

Okay, so what about the Tobu Daishi Line for example, with it's length of 1 km?

[bill937ca]

It's part of the Tobu system. Mizuma Tetsudo is an independent line.

[ToniBabelony]

Shibayam Railway with 2.2km is still the shortest independent railway company overall. Still, it's not independent in the sense of operations and not really a great example for modelling purposes. Well, unless you want to focus on the rolling stock and heaps of concrete.

[ben_issacs]

Folks, 

An interesting little local line is the Gishu (or Kishu) railway, south of Osaka, off the Nankai Rly's main line.

Non electrified.

For many years this was a mecca for Japanese rail fans as it was the shortest railway in Japan.It's now lost this title to the Shibuyama line at Narita airport.

The Gishu Rly. is the epitome of small Japanese local railways, funny old stations, no rush or bother, and when I was last there, some several years ago, their operating fleet were a couple of four wheeled rail buses, possibly the last of their type running in Japan.

What they run now I don't know.

They also had in the depot shed a proper bogie diesel car, No.600, I think, which came out on special occasions.

If one is ever in Osaka, it's worthwhile to take the Nankai train down to the Junction station, whose name I've forgotten, and spend a few hours on the Gishu system.

I hope that it still runs, a couple of blokes on tuk-tuks could put it out of business!

Regards, 

Bill, 

Melbourne.

 

 

[katoftw]

Kishu Railway comes of JR line at Gobo station.

 

http://kishu-railway.com

 

Here is a link the prevoius poster forgot to include.

[cteno4]

A little bit in english

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kishū_Railway_Line

 

jeff

[ben_issacs]

Folks, 

Thanks for the comments on this little line.

I hadn't thought to look for a web site for it.

From this site, it appears that the four wheeled rail buses are no more and they now have what looks like a couple of small bogie diesel rail cars.

Also, my memory failed me on the connection, not to Nankai, but to the JR station at Gobo.

And I think that it runs from platform 0 at Gobo stn.

At least, it's still going  as a railway.

I wonder if Tomytec will model  one of these cars?

When I was there, I bought at the main station a souvenir can of Kishu Tetsudo beer, the empty can sits amongst my Japanese station building models.

I wonder if this is still available.

Regards, 

Bill, 

Melbourne.

 

  

[katoftw]

https://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10352350

 

Older car have been modelled previously. Yahoo is a good way to pick up individual cars.

[ben_issacs]

Folks, 

The Kishu Rly. diesel car in the Tetsudo Collection No.22 is their older car, No.603, 600 series

Saw it in the shed, but not on the road..

Probably too early yet for their latest cars.

Regards, 

Bill, 

Melbourne.

 

[ben_issacs]

Folks,

Another interesting local elec. rly. is the Sangi Railway, down the line from Nagoya.

It runs from Kintetsu Tomida to Nishi Fujisawa.

It is one of the few local lines that still has a freight service as well as pass, or at least did so a few years ago, could be worth checking on its web site.

There is a big cement works at Nish Fuji..., so there are limestone trains to this works and cement trains out, all hauled by neat box cab elec. locos,in a maroon livery, usually double heading.

Depot at Hobo.

These freight  trains don't terminate at Kintetsu Tomida, there is a branch off  which crosses over the Kintetsu line and goes to the JR Tomida station, to interchange with the JR for onwards transmission. 

The Sangi pass. trains, usually two car in off peak are in a bright yellow livery with  orange bands.

One can get to this line from Nagoya either by Kintetsu or JR, the JR station is a few minutes walk from the Kintetsu Tomida station.

Generally rural Japanese scenery along the line.

At one of the intermediate stations, and I can't remember which, is a small museum devoted to a collection of older Japanese goods wagons,  they also have on display under the old goods shed awning, 4-4-0 passenger loco No. 34, ex IGR, then ex Tobu Rly., used on the Sangi for freight haulage before electrification.

Certainly worth a visit, and one can also do the two 2'6" gauge lines in the vicinity, one Sangi, one Kintetsu.

Regards, 

Bill, 

Melbourne.

Edited December 9, 2018 by cteno4
Blank space

[ben_issacs]

Folks, 

Further to the Goods wagon museum on the Sangi Rly, it is at Nyugawa station, can be picked up on Googly Earth, 

Regards, 

Bill, 

Melbourne.

 

[ben_issacs]

Folks, 

Here's another small, local electric railway.

This is the Kumamoto Electric Railway, (Kumaden), at Kumamoto, in Kyushu.

Basically a long main line and a short branch.

The main line runs from Fujisakigu-mae, on the outskirts of Kumamoto city, out to Myoshi, 9.7km.

This line used to run much further, out to Kikuchi, a hot springs resort, but this section  closed in 1968.

The branch line, of 3.4 km.,  runs from Kita-Kumamoto, which is the location of the depot, to Kami Kumamoto, the station there is adjacent to the JR station of the same name.

Rolling stock now-a-days is a mixture, a fair amount of ex Tokyo stainless steel bodied stock.

Earlier EMUs had a pleasant livery of two blues with red and white stripes. Tomytec makes a model of a Kumaden two car set in this livery.

The station at Kita-Kuma... is (Perhaps now was) a wooden structure dating from 1950.

There is a short section of street running between Kita Kuma... and Fuji.... 

It seems not to have had any elec. locos, but did at one time exchange goods wagons with the JNR, these being hauled by an EMU set.

Timber overhead wire poles were a feature of the line during my early visits there.

Kita Kuma... could be a busy station at times, then an up and a down train would call there, crossing, and there would be a single car off the branch also.

In off peak times, all this happened every 30 minutes, then everything went back to sleep.

Scenery along the line, generally rural, built up near the city, one tunnel, on the branch

Their latest stock is running with a black and white cartoon bear motif applied.

Regards, 

Bill ,

Melbourne.

 

[Drunkenclam]

On 12/14/2018 at 12:38 AM, ben_issacs said:

Their latest stock is running with a black and white cartoon bear motif applied.

Regards, 

Bill ,

Melbourne.

 

 

That would probably be Kumamon

FYI The 2 sailor suits and school photo I have above my layout are from Kumamoto Daiichi High School