Kato E127 – EMU cab car DCC design

[David]

Along with my TomyTec controller I got the new Kato E127-100 today (I'll be ordering the E127-0 too, as it's my preferred design of the two) which, to the best of my knowledge, represents the first Kato "DCC Friendly" EMU design to have the motor in the cab car (all other DCC EMUs that I know are 3 or more cars). If you want photos of the overall train just head over to HS or HW, the photos here will be of the mechanism.

 

First the train itself – detail is good as always. There has been a smooth and steady increase in quality from Kato, and the E217 design lets them show off. Like the E233-1000 DCC model, this model forgos stickers – the rollsign is a solid piece of plastic like Tomix uses that comes pre-fitted. The Keihin-Tohoku had a grade up kit for sale with different destination signs. The E127-100 comes with one pair of replacement signs (I have not researched the schedule of the prototype, it is possible and perhaps likely that there are really only 2 signs, one for each direction of travel). Taking that idea one step further, Kato has applied all the detail parts. This model is completely finished out of the box. I was quite happy with the fit and finish of the parts too (up close on my Microace I was able to see that some of the factory applied detail parts had the marks from where they where cut from the sprue, making it look like a home job rather then a perfect factory finish). The only contents besides the trains and the manual are the plastic key for turning off the headlights (both cars can be turned off, since it runs in up to a 6 car formation) and the pair of replacement roll signs. Packaging, as with a lot of 2 car sets, is that gray foam stuff with a clear plastic cover.

 

What makes this set, I think, unique is that it's the first DCC set with the motor in a cab car. This creates a unique chassis design for the motor car. Assuming you have worked with any of this family of Kato DCC EMUs (E231, E233, E531), or really any Kato EMUs at all, something should pop out as you look at the picture – one of the trucks is unpowered! The front truck under the cab is a regular Kato pickup truck. By comparison the other truck is the same geared truck design as the other DCC designs in this family, though the way it connects has been upgraded – previously the drive shaft required some force to go into a little matching socket. The new connection is that black thing on the end of the motor – its some kind of zero force drive shaft coupler that makes it effortless to take off or put on the truck.

 

The next change is not as obvious until you physically hold the model. The entire section on the right of the motor is plastic. Not the covering, the actual chassis is a separate plastic section that is joined by tabs and the motor cover (the stress of this makes it difficult to remove the motor cover unless you make sure both sections are perfectly level with each other). The section on the left is of course a metal chassis. The motor still get pickup from all 8 wheels.

 

I have yet to run this model (my table doesn't have the free space for the curve size needed to run a 20m EMU) though for now I don't foresee problems with the single powered truck – the shorty chassis works the same way and doesn't seem to have issues not caused by their weight or the cheaper motor. Obviously this model won't have the same pull as 8 wheel drive, but it only needs to carry one other car.

 

My last comment is that due to the rather pieced together nature of the chassis it can be a bit dangerous to take apart (though you can put it back together with a few tries). The reason is that while parts are easy to remove, they often pull or allow other parts to fall off. Basically when its is all together it is a sturdy design, but as soon as you remove one thing the half and half chassis design starts to collapse like a house of cards. You also need to be careful with the light switch piece – once the motor cover is removed it will want to fall out of place all by itself. Putting it back in can be a challenge, because if it's misaligned the backup lights can stop working even with the switch in the on position (you need to take it apart again and reposition the switch). As long as you are willing to put all the pieces back together however I'd say, like many of the models in this family of tooling, that it is very friendly in terms of its smooth snap together construction. Nothing requires undue force to remove, and there are no parts that feel like they'll break.