Kato - New Releases

[Das Steinkopf]

9 hours ago, nah00 said:

 

My wallet wants to scream but has no mouth. The price on the six car set isn't bad and luckily August is nothing for me. 

 

Originally I thought that the 6 car set were JNR units given they are in Shonan and Yokosuka livries but have since found out that they are Shinano Railway units, part of the reason for the higher price tag is that it is two powered 3 car sets, this is great for anyone doing Shinano Railway with three 3 car sets available in different liveries.

[nah00]

On 4/5/2019 at 11:18 PM, Das Steinkopf said:

 

Originally I thought that the 6 car set were JNR units given they are in Shonan and Yokosuka livries but have since found out that they are Shinano Railway units, part of the reason for the higher price tag is that it is two powered 3 car sets, this is great for anyone doing Shinano Railway with three 3 car sets available in different liveries.

 

While it is great in one sense of the word I wish they would have spaced them out...but luckily I had nothing in August so this isn't a big deal. Plus for me having too many 115s isn't possible...

[Yavianice]

Hot on the heels of TOMIX, Kato announced their own version of the Twilight Mizukaze. Coming sometime in 2019.

 

 

[katoftw]

Both Tomix and Kato have said 2019.  I think the should be more specific.  Winter, Spring, Autumn or Summer would be fine as a vague reference of time to be good.  Although for Kato, if the seven stars is used as an example, then December would be the attempted release date.

[Yavianice]

1 minute ago, katoftw said:

Both Tomix and Kato have said 2019.  I think the should be more specific.  Winter, Spring, Autumn or Summer would be fine as a vague reference of time to be good.  Although for Kato, if the seven stars is used as an example, then December would be the attempted release date.

 

Tomix has today said it will release their version in September. Kato wasn’t specific but probably December like you said. Tomix is probably wanting to avoid being late at the party like with the Shiki Shima.

[Kiha66]

YES YES YES!  I'm super excited for this release.  I hope this one is just as good as their last two cruise train.

Judging by the previous two cruise train releases it will be scheduled for dec/Jan, and delayed a month or two for the actual release.  I assume kato will loose out less than tomix did seeing as the kato versions usually come with more options like DCC and interior lighting.

Edited April 10, 2019 by Kiha66

[VJM]

The question now is which one to get.... Kato or Tomix?

[katoftw]

All wheel pick up on the Tomix

[Kiha66]

Judging from the pricing on the tomix version and previous releases, I suspect the kato will be 1/3 cheaper.  

[katoftw]

3 hours ago, Kiha66 said:

Judging from the pricing on the tomix version and previous releases, I suspect the kato will be 1/3 cheaper.  

One would just need to decide if 1/3 cheaper is worth no interior lights fitted and no all wheel pick.

[katoftw]

Dunno if this means anything just yet.  But the poster for the Twilight Express has a file name as 2019-8b.  The August poster for releases is 2019-8.  They are normally one to twelve for the monthly release.  Without commiting to and actual date yet for various reasons like order numbers or manufacturing delays etc.  I wonder if they are gonna attempt for August?

[VJM]

I'd rather Kato take their time to get it right as opposed to rushing the thing out.  I don't want to have to deal with product recalls and replacements.

[gavino200]

 

I think I'll be buying Kato for this train. Lower price would be a bonus but not the reason. DCC friendly is a huge plus. As well I tend to favor the craftsmanship of Kato models. All wheel pickup is irrelevant to me. 

 

[katoftw]

10 hours ago, VJM said:

I'd rather Kato take their time to get it right as opposed to rushing the thing out.  I don't want to have to deal with product recalls and replacements.

They have been working on this model since last year.  So I don't think it'll be a rush job if they aim for August.  Although August was only speculation due to the poster.  No official word yet on release date.

[Kamome]

I would assume it was a strategic announcement as Tomix preorders are now on sites for September release.

 

Had they not announced it now, they might have missed out on sales as people jump on the Tomix preorder.

 

Well played, Kato!!

 

I will certainly wait for the Kato version as I just prefer their build quality, colour and presentation. Not to say the Tomix won’t be well done, but I only look outside Kato for trains they don’t produce.

Edited April 11, 2019 by Kamome

[JR 500系]

This is indeed a tough choice... Tomix seems to have upped their game by announcing the release earlier, and that professional video of how they made the train is simply magnificent, certainly a magnet for buyers to switch to their progressive grade and watching how much they have sweat and worked on the model so painstakingly... 

 

Knowing Kato, there probably will be a dedicated site for it too, like the Shikishima and the Seven Stars... And if history repeats, it should be around 27% cheaper than Tomix (Tomix 48k vs Kato 35k); that extra 13k should be more than enough to cover for 10 light tubes ~  🙂

[katoftw]

On 3/21/2019 at 8:17 PM, Yavianice said:

Real life prototype picture of the Shikoku 2000 series:

 

And KATO has released their concrete ties switches, curves, and 64mm pieces as a kato web shop exclusive

 

http://www.katomodels.com/hobbycenter/product/original/000571.php

Track pieces have made their way to Hobbysearch now.

[Hayashi]

Awesome news about Kato concrete additions. Anybody have any idea when they will be available to other hobby store sites? I was hoping they would offer those before I needed to order track. I hope they will produce the 29, 33, 38, 46, and 62s in concrete, but I doubt it.

[katoftw]

I haven't seen Roundhouse products offered much anywhere else.

 

I think if there is enough uptake on these two new pieces. Hopefully Kato will seen there is a need for more diverse track pieces.

[serotta1972]

Since I already have the other Kato Cruise trains, why not go for the Kato Trinity. 

[Martijn Meerts]

I just so happened to have tested my Tomix 0 series with all wheel pickup, and I ended up driving all bit 2 cars of the train over a section of track that's not powered yet, so that confirmed once again that all wheel pickup is really nice.

 

I don't have any of the cruise trains, and I don't know if I want this one or not, but I'd likely go with the Tomix version.

[IST]

Google translated tweet from Kato:
"IPhone app to enjoy the railway hobby [Rail-Navi] will be coming from KATO soon! You can make a record of your own trip, take a picture, or create your own model train collection. #KATO #RailNavi"

I am curious how they will make the collection part of this app and what it is for exactly. Android version is under development.

[chadbag]

8 hours ago, Martijn Meerts said:

I just so happened to have tested my Tomix 0 series with all wheel pickup, and I ended up driving all bit 2 cars of the train over a section of track that's not powered yet, so that confirmed once again that all wheel pickup is really nice.

 

I don't have any of the cruise trains, and I don't know if I want this one or not, but I'd likely go with the Tomix version.

 

It's cheaper to just power your track all the way 🙂

[Martijn Meerts]

2 hours ago, chadbag said:

 

It's cheaper to just power your track all the way 🙂

 

Depends.. I already had the train, and to power the track I'd need an additional occupancy detector, so in this case, powering the track wouldn't have been cheaper 😄

 

[chadbag]

1 hour ago, Martijn Meerts said:

 

Depends.. I already had the train, and to power the track I'd need an additional occupancy detector, so in this case, powering the track wouldn't have been cheaper 😄

 

 

The occupancy detector is still probably cheaper than the Tomix / KATO difference typical of their cruise trains (past performance may not be indicative of future results)