Kato Unitram Track Availability

[Burtos]

On 10/11/2024 at 7:26 AM, inobu said:

No, they were

No, they were listed as 3 Right and 2 Left.

I had some previously so now I think have 5 or 6 of each.

[inobu]

2 hours ago, Burtos said:

I had some previously so now I think have 5 or 6 of each.

When you placed this last order it had 3 Right and 2 Left as the max order, Right?  You could not order 3 Left because it only show 2 available. 

This time it shows 3 Right and 3 Left.

 

I did the same thing. I got 3R and 2L if I want the other left now I have to pay shipping for a single switch which is + $20. Then conversion

fee again its not worth it.  

 

Inobu

[Burtos]

Looks like another run of unitram track will be coming next Feb/ March.  Even including the new E series pieces.

[katoftw]

All back for pre-order at your favourite vendors.

[inobu]

On 10/9/2024 at 2:39 PM, brill27mcb said:

You are presuming that there is a U.S. distribution. I'm not as convinced. A search on the katousa website for "Unitram" results only in a non-updated product listing that still shows the old V51-V54 sets and so on. A similar search for "Unitram" on the katousa's "store" website only brings up the 4 colors of My Tram Classic trams.

 

I sure hope they prove me wrong...

 

Rich K.

Looks likes the U.S. distribution occurred like I predicted. I missed my order notification a little after katoftw posted.

 

So we see its a 2 month interval. 

 

Inobu 

[brill27mcb]

On 1/2/2025 at 12:41 PM, inobu said:

Looks likes the U.S. distribution occurred like I predicted. I missed my order notification a little after katoftw posted.

 

So we see its a 2 month interval. 

 

Inobu 

 

So hopefully you were able to get what you wanted. Did you get them directly from KatoUSA? I do not see them listed in KatoUSA's  online store, and their general Unitram info page shows only the older 40-210 and 40-211 Unitram turnouts, and not the newer 40-212 and 40-213 numbers.

 

Rich K.

[inobu]

I got on the "back order" list after I posted a few months ago. That's how I knew they were coming.

The Tram product line is a strange one. It looks like it made its way into the Catalog. Hopefully

its an indication of a better production cycle.

 

Inobu

 

 

 

 

 

[bill937ca]

There is two series of Unitram now. The regular with road markings and the E series without road markings.

[brill27mcb]

Well, the "E" series Unitram pieces are now released. I wonder if the "E" comes from the word "Economy." I always thought the Unitram track pieces actually had textured paving blocks, but a closer examination showed me that it's really only thick paint. The "E" pieces are just the same castings unpainted and not a different, untextured design. They can be made just by omitting the painting production step, so it makes sense that they appeared ahead of the scheduled production run of regular (painted) Unitram pieces announced at the same time. They could have called them "U" for "Undecorated" instead. 😄

 

If you want your street trackage to look like it is embedded in regular street paving instead of in a reserved right-of-way, then the "E" track pieces are the way to go, especially for modeling trolleys or trams running in narrow streets without additional traffic lanes. But if you want added lanes without the "left side traffic" road markings on your accompanying street pieces, the "E" street pieces also leave you without lane striping and color-differentiated curbs, sidewalks and parking areas, making everything look rather bland.  🙁

 

The overall effect of the "E" series, to my thinking at least, is that is takes away much of the appeal of Kato's Unitram line (the ability to create an instant decorated city block) compared with Tomix Wide Tram. It also further highlights that Unitram is less flexible in terms of layout design than Wide Tram. It adds so many separate product items for Kato to keep track of that I wonder if it is worth the effort for them, just to have a less expensive product on offer to compete with Tomix Wide Tram.  🤔

 

Rich K.

Edited 5 hours ago by brill27mcb

[Greg]

I received a shipping notification from Hobby Search for my order of E style track. Yes, they are not decorated but they are like a blank canvas to create on. They can be painted, stencilled or decaled (sp?).  There was a thread a while back about removing the markings, this obviates the need to remove markings. Plus they are a tad less expensive.