What did you order or the post deliver? (HO and other scales)

[Kamome]

While the Kamome household wasn’t expecting a Shiki-shima delivery, like many on the forum,  a Koki-Shunter arrived which was a welcome sight on the last day of the year.

[marknewton]

I've just ordered this after my son asked me repeatedly about it:

 

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10296046

 

I'm hoping it arrives before his birthday.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

 

[TimWay4]

2 hours ago, marknewton said:

I've just ordered this after my son asked me repeatedly about it:

 

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10296046

 

I'm hoping it arrives before his birthday.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

 

 

I'd like to get one when I'm over this year, at the current exchange rate I can save £98 on it by waiting and getting it on my holiday

[Kamome]

Thanks to Suica for the info about Stage.1 in Kokura. It’s always nice visiting these independent stores but unfortunately I’m usually too weak to resist a souvenir from my visit.

Found some nice 31ft Zentsu HO containers from Tomix. Not sure if these are new or old as they’re not in any of the Tomix catalogues I have. Also got some more 12ft JRF 19Gs to try and fill my bare Kokis. More Kadees too, as the couplers on the Tomix Kokis as so long, they look ridiculous.

 

Then I stopped in at Fukaya Hobby shop in Yahata as I had ¥3000 of loyalty points burning a hole in my pocket. This shop is a real Aladdin’s cave of hobby stuff, with boxes piled high in narrow passages and cabinets filled to bursting. It’s just nice to look around.

 

I extended my container train a bit more with some Kato Koki 104s. I saw some used, unboxed ones in Hobbyland Pochi some months ago and wasn’t that impressed. Seeing these new ones, I now realize lots of the detailing parts were missing from the used ones. They are very nicely molded and detailed but not sure if the other manufacturers containers will be interchangeable, as the connecting clip is a bit different. Couplers too are a bit ugly in grey plastic so I’ll need more kadees at some point. Included are dry transfers for wagon numbers and stickers to update the containers with the Eco marks and such so I’ll wait for a wet Sunday to do that.

Edited January 28, 2018 by Kamome
Missed text

[marknewton]

My second Aclass EF64 arrived a couple of days ago. Once I'd test run it I applied the detail parts and numbers. It's a beautiful  runner, smooth, quiet and powerful. As the model comes equipped with a 21-pin receptacle, DCC conversion was easy as. Here it is with my other EF64. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All the best,

 

Mark.

 

Edited February 14, 2018 by marknewton

[Kamome]

Temptation got the better of me. The Kato EF510s are ridiculously cheap for an HO loco, so I just couldn’t resist adding another loco to my JRF fleet. (¥9600 including tax)  I bought the ex-Hokutosei blue. Loving the switchable shunting and tail lights.

 

There are some details that have been omitted compared the the equilavalent Tomix versions but I bought a Roundhouse grade up set (28-170) which will add the hoses and other details as well as some head marks. There’s another set I need to acquire to add photo-etched wipers etc.. This is probably a good marketing example as it makes Japanese HO far more accessible than it had been previously. For those who want more accurate detail, the parts are available but low cost locos with the usual Kato quality, seems a good way to attract more to the scale. 

 

One slight disappointment, the Kato HO catenary seems way too over-cautious in terms of clearance. There’s a 12.5mm gap between the top of pantagraphs and the bottom of the hanger for the wire. That’s a scale distance of 1 metre. I wonder why such a gap. Perhaps Kato did this as their track is marketed outside of Japan but true HO is 1:87 scale so this would look even worse. Shame as I think it’s nicely molded. Not sure I want to cut down every single pole to make it more realistic so will look at alternatives. I have been eyeing up the Peco catenary as it looks nice but the masts look un-Japanese.

Edited February 18, 2018 by Kamome

[marknewton]

My model overhead is a compromise - or a bodge if you prefer. :) I've used the Kato masts, but replaced the registers with metal parts from Viessmann so I could use their preformed catenary sections. Not the ideal solution I agree, but it's one I can live with.

 

The EF510 looks very nice, I'm tempted to get on myself.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[Kamome]

 Cheers Mark

 

I’m still considering whether I just take 10mm off the bottom of each mast so it looks a little more realistic. None of the alternatives from other manufacturers have quite the same look. The plan is to make a shortish shelf layout for JRF shunting so I won’t need a huge amount of masts. I am also interested to see what the Kato ramen catenary gantries look like in the flesh. I do intend on adding wires with the most likely being Peco. I might invest in some overhead wires to see how they look together and  then go from there. 

 

I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the EF510, especially for the price point. The level of detail is pretty good with no detail parts included to add out of the box. The paint has a slight gloss finish and looks really nice. The silver roof looks a bit plasticky but a bit of dirtying up and pin-washing the details should fix that. No choice of numbers either so it’s EF510-504 out of the box. I believe the second grade up kit (28-171) has additional loco numbers. 

 

I’ve now added the roof equipment such as the covered horn, antenna and flare. These parts came in the detail pack. The drill hole guides are already indented into the inside of the shell so it’s a simple task with clear instructions on bit size. The jumper plug hoses will be a little more tricky as there’s no molded guides to help. The instruction do give an idea of position so careful measuring and patience will be necessary. The hose parts are from the EF65 and you get 3 sprues of them. (Now added, see picture)

 

Out of interest, did you scratch build your bridge or is it a kit?

On 2/19/2018 at 3:59 PM, marknewton said:

My model overhead is a compromise - or a bodge if you prefer. :) I've used the Kato masts, but replaced the registers with metal parts from Viessmann so I could use their preformed catenary sections. Not the ideal solution I agree, but it's one I can live with.

 

The EF510 looks very nice, I'm tempted to get on myself.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

 

Edited February 23, 2018 by Kamome

[Nick_Burman]

On 2/19/2018 at 7:59 AM, marknewton said:

My model overhead is a compromise - or a bodge if you prefer. :) I've used the Kato masts, but replaced the registers with metal parts from Viessmann so I could use their preformed catenary sections. Not the ideal solution I agree, but it's one I can live with.

 

And me thinking that they were standard OBB (Austria) masts... your masts have given me an idea - marrying the Viessmann registers to wooden posts would go a long way towards representing the early cantilever systems employed by some early AC electrifications (and some DC ones too).

 

Cheers NB

[marknewton]

On 21/02/2018 at 12:21 AM, Kamome said:

 Out of interest, did you scratch build your bridge or is it a kit?

 

The bridge girders and track are from Micro Engineering, the abutments and wing walls I scratchbuilt out of balsa and styrene sheet.

 

Thanks for the mini-review of the EF510, I think the next loco I buy will be one of these.

 

All the best,

 

Mark.

[beakaboy]

A new addition to my HO fleet. An old Tenshodo which has hardly been run. Has marking on rear paint which looks to be old foam from packaging, but the loco runs mint. $50 on local auction site. 

Edited February 23, 2018 by beakaboy

[marknewton]

Two recent arrivals get a run on the Kitchenbenchbahn.

 

First is a Tomix E231-500. Obviously too modernfor me, it's my son Harry's birthday present.

 

 

 

Mine is older and I think more attractive - Tomix KiHa181 series railcars. 

 

When I've had a chance to run them for awhile on the club layout I'll put the details and numbers on them.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[Khaul]

Oh yes, the KiHa looks a lot better.

[Kiha66]

Wow, that 181 looks really nice!  Does it come with the detail parts or are those an add on set?

[Kamome]

11 hours ago, marknewton said:

 

 

 

Very nice indeed, Mark.

I’ve been eying up the Tomix 181 as I love that Kiha 82 cab front. 

 

[marknewton]

On 18/04/2018 at 4:30 AM, Kiha66 said:

Wow, that 181 looks really nice!  Does it come with the detail parts or are those an add on set?

 

The model has all the detail parts and rub-on numbers supplied in the box.  As well as a comprehensive instruction sheet showing where everything goes, and typical consists for different times and places. 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

On 18/04/2018 at 9:16 AM, Kamome said:

Very nice indeed, Mark.

I’ve been eying up the Tomix 181 as I love that Kiha 82 cab front. 

 

 

They're beautifully finished and run sweetly - if you get some you won't be disappointed.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[Kamome]

The Kato KiHas (58 & 65) arrived yesterday with a few more Taki 1000s. The KiHas are fantastic looking although I think I’d like to add a bit more detail with paint to the seat moldings to show off how great they look. 

 

I much prefer the the look of the 65 with the front skirt but the 58 is nice too. Haven’t had a chance to run them yet as the bogies on the power unit have had a bit of a rough trip and have worked their way apart. Didn’t realize they’d be so easy to disassemble.

[marknewton]

A laser-cut card kit for a Nippon Express office:

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

And some Tomix 51 series passenger cars. So I thought I'd make up a consist representing a Hokkaido local or branch line train.

 

 

 

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

 

 

 

[Ken Ford]

Mark, those are gorgeous!  I was just looking at pics of these cars, they look very well done. 

[Kamome]

Not anything hugely exciting but a few more duplicate purchases to extend my existing formations from Kato.

3 more Taki 1000s with the Eneos Mark. I now have a rake of 8 of these so a good length train to throw behind the EF65. Another Koki 104 2 pack to further break up the 106 and 107 monotony in my container train and finally a Kiha 28 (plus light unit)  to add into the rail car mix.

 

I’ve also ordered some Kadee 147 couplers from a friend in the UK who’s visiting Japan soon. Annoyingly, the scale-head couplers (#58 or #158) aren’t available in an underset shank. The only Kadee options here seem to be the 3 options that Kato stock. All local model shops seem to only carry #5, #58 and #158.  The 147s have the same coupler knuckle as the #5s but will fit the Tomix Kokis better as they need to be underset. I think Imon do something similar but I struggled to navigate their website. 

Edited May 21, 2018 by Kamome

[marknewton]

On 5/18/2018 at 10:37 PM, Ken Ford said:

Mark, those are gorgeous!  I was just looking at pics of these cars, they look very well done. 

 

They are indeed. Although the real cars are rather boxy and plain, the models have a beautiful finish and lots of character. I've got three more on their way to me so I can run them as three 4-car sets.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

Arrived this morning - a new Tomix ED75. Once it's had a test run I'll attach the detail parts and numbers. But even straight out of the box I reckon it's a handsome loco.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[jasona2z]

Hi All!

 

First time post to the HO section! Yet another Forum member to end up with HO gear after a long string of 'N scale only' thoughts...

This arrived in the post this week. The same Koki 104's that are fairly common. 

 

 

 

I was in Japan last month and found a little shop with some second hand goods and ended up purchasing this.....

 

However, It didn't come with a box though, so I am on the hunt for packaging for a Kato DE10, to fit into this gap! If you have one you are willing to sell, I'm happy to buy! I am also looking for the ID plates to match, as most of them have fallen off are in poor condition.

 

 

I purchased this kato HO case over a year ago and had been using it for a tool case, at least thats what I was telling myself..