The Introduction Thread...

[KaydensRailway]

Hi everyone, my name is Kayden and I'm from Malaysia. I have been infatuated with steam locomotives since I was a child and find Japanese ones quite fascinating. My favourites are the Japanese National Railways C11 2-6-4Ts and C62 4-6-4s. I hope I can someday make the trip to Japan to see the preserved ones and ride behind them if possible. I look forward to making new friends while I'm here and meeting them in person when the awaited day comes. 

[RS18U]

@KaydensRailway I am a relatively new member here too, and have found it to be a welcoming, and informative, place to spend time.  Welcome aboard!

[SL58654号]

@KaydensRailway You're among good company here. Welcome aboard, Kayden!  

[JR East]

Welcome aboard @KaydensRailway

[Rovan]

Not sure if I should be making my own intro thread, but hello all! I just started N scale less than a month ago after purchasing a Kato P42 starter set plus the M1+V1 track combo, though I was heavily inspired to take the plunge after visiting the Japan Rail Modelers booth at the Sakura Matsuri event in DC. As much as I'm tempted to vomit out a few paragraphs of fluff, I'll just say that most of my background stems from MTH O Gauge as a kid with a small stint in HO; still, definitely looking forward to creating something fun with N scale even if I destroy my savings!

[RS18U]

@Rovan welcome!  This is a great place for information.

 

As for cost, I have found it to be very reasonable, and less than HO and probably than O.

[cteno4]

Welcome Rovan! Glad you found the forums and the JRM layout to get you started in Japanese n scale. Luckily it’s probably the best combo of affordability, quality and selection out of all scales, so at least you will get a lot for your savings!

 

cheers,

 

jeff

[miyakoji]

Hi @Rovan welcome to the forum!

[Junech]

Hi everyone,

I'm slowly getting started with Japanese N scale. I got around 10 years in H0 modeling, but that wasn't Japan-themed and is coming to a finishing point.

 

I mostly want to concentrate on the 3rd sector Tarumi Railway and build some modules of the line. But before starting that I will need to do more research and visit the line in person... In the end, it wouldn't be a permanent layout, so I'm thinking of doing a smaller permanent layout to run my models and get used to the smaller scale. The planning and building of that would go into the sub-forums.

 

Cheers, Junech

 

[cteno4]

Welcome @Junech! Glad you found us. I think you will enjoy Japanese n scale, there are tons of trains and structures produced and Japanese scenes can have wild combinations of things in them (fewer zoning laws) and trains end up going past or thru most everything. Lots of helpful folks and info on these forums here.

 

May take a bit moving to n scale to get by loosing some detail, and limits of n scale detail. N scale affords some interesting play with the viewer’s minds eye as n scale is right at the point the brain’s visual memory can fill in details (and not be concious of it happening) and folks can swear they saw things not there. I have a lot of fun with this. I do get jealous of all the neat details on HO stock and how much more detail you can put into scenery, but it’s a two edged sword as if you go detailed you have to do it everywhere or the eye will pick up the places it’s not there fast! Also you can cram 4x the amount of track, buildings, and scenery into the same space as HO! 
 

keep us posted on your progress. You planning a modular/sectional layout? Any Ttrak clubs near you? Ttrak is a fast way to learn n scale but get playing with trains and others quickly and relatively inexpensively. Also n scale works great doing small temporary layouts on tables of floors as Kato Unitrak and Tomix finetrak is reallly amazing to just pop something together with sectional track and it works right away. Points are power routing so you can have sidings and yards power controlled with out doing a lit do fancy wiring to play with some trains.

 

Enjoy!

 

jeff

[miyakoji]

Hi @Junech welcome to the forum!

[Junech]

Thank you!

Sadly there are no T-Trak clubs near me but that's not that big of a problem. But I will keep T-Trak in mind while planning my small permanent layout.

 

The permanent layout will be sectional at most. On the other hand, the plan for modelling parts of the Tarumi Line will be to connect sections with "black box" modules to make a visible separation and arrange the different sections more freely.

 

I got some Kato Unitrack pieces to build a small circle and run a Haimo 295-315 and my pair of Haimo 180 at the moment.

 

I will do some touch-ups on my plan for the permanent layout and post it in the planning subforum when ready.

 

Cheers, Junech

[RS18U]

Welcome!  I'm primarily an HO scale modeler (Canadian and logging)
but am finding the possibilities of Japanese N gauge to be fascinating and a bit of a slippery slope with T-Track looking like an ideal happy ground.  Hope you enjoy it!

[cteno4]

Sectional can work quite well. Design a small layout and then figure out the bases needed to support it. They don’t have to be same shaped and size, just be convenient to the track plan to break tracks and wiring gracefully. Also see if you can engineer in a break point where you could slip in more modules to expand the layout later if desired.

 

problem with Ttrak is is a very simple oval and you need 4 corners and a couple of straight modules and unless you have some woodworking skills that could run you easily $250 for track and modules. But is a quick way to do some modeling and have a little loop you can always easily take to events to show off and get others interested.

 

Cheers,

 

jeff

[Catenary]

Hello folks!

 

My name is Kevin and I am 30 years old living in Germany.

I started with H0 model trains since I was a child, but due to our Japan journey the first H0 train model (Tomix E231) arrived at my home. 😋

I knew a few trains before our journey but now I saw a lot more over there and startet investigating a little bit more.😁

 

I´m glad I found your forum and glad I can exchange and share our beautiful hobby with other people over the world!

 

Cheers,

 

Kevin

 

 

[cteno4]

Welcome @Catenary, glad you found us! You will find a lot of kindred spirits here! A number of Japanese HO modelers here from around the world.

 

cheers

 

jeff

[Catenary]

Thank you very much!

That sounds great and I‘m looking forward.😁

 

cheers,

 

Kevin

[miyakoji]

Hi @Catenary welcome to the forum!

[RS18U]

@Catenary just be aware if you even get a sniff of the Japanese N gauge you may end up getting hooked on that and forgetting all about HO!  Don't ask how I know 😁

 

Actually my primary scale is HO but have started to dabble in the N gauge stuff and am rather fascinated by it.  Enjoy whatever scale you use, and welcome!

[Catenary]

Hello guys,

 

thanks for the nice welcome!

 

@RS18U hehe, I know what you mean..

Maybe, juuust maybe, there was a Tomix N Shinkansen N700 8000 in our luggage.😜

All the great rapid trains in N gauge.. I need a house for the hobby.🫠

[Kamome]

On 6/12/2024 at 9:02 AM, RS18U said:

if you even get a sniff of the Japanese N gauge you may end up getting hooked on that and forgetting all about HO

Or slide further down the rabbit hole and discover more Japanese HO to compliment the Japanese N scale 😱

[Kingmeow]

Or....you plan a trip to Japan not for the history and sightseeing aspect of the country but for the train stores!!!  🤣😁😎

[doodlebugdepot]

Hello!

 

It's been many years since I've signed up for a forum. I miss the days when they were a major way to interact and communicate about hobbies and interests.

Trains are a lifelong passion of mine. I have always wanted to get involved with model railways.

I am more a fan of the small and whimsical than the strictly prototypical. I am most interested in crafting my own things that I would like to design and scratchbuild.

I love trains from all over the world, Japanese included. I especially appreciate the ready available material from Japan like Kato, Tomix, Tomytec, Rokuhan etc. like "shorties," small radii, and mechanisms. Small and "micro" layouts and things like the Kato Diorama Circus appeal to me.

As of now, all I have to show for my interest is a little Rokuhan Z Shorty loop.  I would like to start engaging more in the hobby and since I have both lurked this place for a little while and have questions probably best answered here, I thought it would be a good start.

 

I hope you all are well and having fun. 😊

[N-Osoi]

Welcome @doodlebugdepot! Great little layout 😄

 

@Kingmeow I'm already planning my next trip so I can buy a steam loco and spy a freight loco 😎

 

 

[cteno4]

Welcome @doodlebugdepot, glad you found us.

 

the tiny layouts are quite fun and a real art form in its own in Japan. the scenery and scene development on these tiny layouts are some of the most superb I’ve ever seen.
 

I’ve had it on the list to make one just to have on the desk and to take to shows to display the variety of Japanese train modeling.

 

keep us post on your tiny layout(s) and start a topic in them in the layout forum!

 

cheers,

 

jeff