Interest in Japanese rail

[sirenwerks]

This is my first post, as I just joined. Normally, I am an N scaler modeling the Pacific NW of the US, circa early 1970s. My wife and daughter and I moved to anew (used) house in Oregon a few years back and remodeling the house is taking much longer than expected due to me switching careers and COVID. Since my new career is as an emergency manager, I have been busy with COVID and the growing wildfire seasons here, and travelling a lot.  So an N scale layout filled with Alcos and timber traffic will be a while.

 

In the meantime, I have been watching a lot of real-time Japanese contemporary railroading (I watch the videos while running on the treadmill at home and in hotels) and become interested in it. My attraction to modern Japan is with the smaller locos and shorter trains and the prevalence and variety of passenger service, and the modern architecture, and I am thinking about a fictional line to keep my modeling muscle memory alive and score some train movement in my free time between house chores.  I am really interested in having a larger scenery to track ratio than normal to highlight Japan's natural beauty as well as the helter skelter of its urban environments, so I am thinking Z scale and, because I like to scratchbuild and wat to learn 3D printing, I'm looking forward to the challenge of creating Japanese architecture in such a small size.

 

But I am also interested in some industry and switching. I have come to understand today's Japanese industry is much more dependent on containerized intermodal traffic but I have seen N scale modeling of contemporary tank car traffic and aggregate unit trains, and I am wondering what other forms of non-container traffic is on the rails. With the amount of tank cars I see in videos, I presume there is some sort of petroleum or chemical industry that can be modeled, other than intermodal activity (and I love tank cars). I don't see any industry or switching in the videos though and I can't read Japanese to research using direct sources. 

 

Is auto traffic on the rails?  Covered hoppers? Coils or other gondola freight? Anything on flat cars other than containers? Anything else?  Any good internet sources of photos of Japanese industry? While rail-served industry is my primary interest, I suppose medium to large non-rail-served industry would also be of interest, as it provides a rationale for container action.

 

Thanks,

 

Bryan

Hillsboro OR

[Tony Galiani]

Welcome.  You might take a look at this youtube channel devoted to freight service:

https://www.youtube.com/user/Nosuview/videos

Ciao,

Tony Galiani

[bill937ca]

Hello and welcome.  To help you we can start with this video I posted of on Shunting at Ryuo Station. It is a video with a yard diagram. there is also discussion of the little shunter. Lots of tank cars here!

 

For translating Japanese you can use Google Translate. In Google Chrome you can  right click and Translate to English will come up.

 

Another little shunter video with tank cars and again at Ryuo Station.

 

 

Edited December 10, 2022 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

Another thread that will help.

 

 

[bill937ca]

A thread about the blue WAM trains.   

 

[bill937ca]

Japanese  Wikipedia will give you detailed information on JR freight (JRF). There is a problem. Until 2009 JRF published information on rolling stock that was used by magazines and book publishers. Since then there has been a vacuum.

 

This link will take you to the JR Freight vehicle category list of articles.  Google Translate should get you a working copy.  These can be very long and detailed articles.

https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/JR貨物の車両形式

[bill937ca]

Another Japanese Wikipedia article on  JR freight container format.  https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/JR貨物のコンテナ形式

[bill937ca]

Containers in Japan are loaded and unloaded by forklifts instead of cranes.

 

 

 

 

The 57th Fukuyama Rail Express from Nagoya has arrived at Kitakyushu Terminal. As soon as it arrives, the rear four cars will be separated and the container will begin to be unloaded. The work proceeded very efficiently, and in about 15 minutes from the arrival of the train, all eight containers were carried out by truck. Eight containers were carried away after 15 minutes from the arrival of the freight train. It is a very early work. 2017.07.15 iPhone6

 

 

Edited December 11, 2022 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

There is also the Chichibu Railway which is one of the last private freight railways.  

 

"Freight trains running on private railways are now a valuable existence. The sight of a freight train running on a single track in the mountains and the rich natural scenery along the route leave an impression on you. It is a railroad scenery that you want to remain forever. Freight trains carrying limestone still run on the Chichibu Railway. Limestone is transported to Mikajiri Station and transported to the Taiheiyo Cement Kumagaya Plant. There is also a feature in the line wiring. Chichibu Railway is a single-track line, but it is characterized by exchange stations because long freight trains run. A track with a long effective length is provided so that long freight trains can pass each other and evacuate. For this reason, there are many cases where trains do not change on the left side. Another feature is that many stations have railroad crossings on the premises. The "Paleo Express", which is pulled by a steam locomotive C58, is also in operation, mainly on holidays."

 

 

The Sangi Railway is another private railway and which runs tank trains. This shows 12 car consists at Higashi-Fujiwara station.

 

 

Also at Higashi-Fujiwara Station.

 

 

Edited December 11, 2022 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

The largest share of shipping in Japan goes by ship. Most major cities have harbors and the big stuff doesn't go by train as often as in North America.

I understand Japan has no (significant) domestic sources of gas and oil, so those tank trains may well be coming from the ports.

 

There are or have been some industrial railways that link the ports with industrial plants.  One example is  Mitsui Chemicals Railway which linked a coal mine with its port side facility. This line closed May7, 2020. 

 

Japanese language Wikipedia.   https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/三池鉄道

 

 

Official good bye video, Thank you Miike Railway 1891-2020.

 

 

[bill937ca]

Sangi Railway

 

 

[roadstar_na6]

wow, a nonuple-post 😮

 

anyway, welcome @sirenwerks 🙂

[Tony Galiani]

This seems to have turned into a freight railway topic!  So ... I have been thinking that the Mizushima Rinkai Railway would make a neat prototype to model since it combines freight and passenger service.  And MicroAce just released a two car DMU set for the railway.  I have managed to resist since I have so many other projects lined up but you never know ....

Ciao,

Tony Galiani

[Jimbo]

YouTube has plenty!!  you name its there, just takes some searching,  I've tried hard to stay away from freight but wanted to do a container train, a tank car train, an a mixed freight, three passenger trains, an four EMUs   an it's all crammed on a 4 by 8 table!   Sadly where i live the only hobby shop close by is more into rc cars an planes, an American rail, an doesn't have much in stock for even that,

[chadbag]

Just be careful.   Japanese container trains aren’t at all like US and collecting containers can become highly addictive.  Along with the KoKi flat cars for them.  I assume Z has a variety.  N scale is the most popular in Japan and gives you the greatest breadth of choice. 

[miyakoji]

Hi Bryan, welcome to the forum!