Kato - New Releases

[Wolf]

1 hour ago, katoftw said:

I'd guess regular green bookcase

 

Thats the fact I didnt even realise at first, the initial release was a full 10 car edition. As this one now comes in a 4 car basic and 6 car add on set, we can pretty much assume just regular yes. Although some might even prefer just get a 4 car version.

[JR East]

... And still no re-release of Kiha 85 ...

[Kamome]

7 hours ago, JR East said:

... And still no re-release of Kiha 85 ...

Last released in 2019 so might be in a few more years. E001 as a brief comparison was last released in 2017 and i’m sure Kato received plenty of requests to rerun the product. 

 

Kiha 87 Mizukaze may get a similar rerun, also released in 2019

[JR East]

I was speaking ,of Kiha 85 as this year, the rolling stock is replaced by a new rolling stock. Could be the right moment for a re release as marketing wise it can be clever. 

[disturbman]

Kato is not always clever, and they more or less already missed the window. The Hida is already fully operated by the HC85. The final run in regular operation of the Kiha 85 will be on June 30. Then it will be relegated to special service at JR Central. Some will be operated by the KTR in replacement of the KTR001 iirc.

[ED75-775]

Maybe they've missed the window for a Hida re-run, but what about a Nankai run? There's posters around Nagoya Station stating that the HC85 will take over the Nankai services from later this month. Can't see that the livery will be much different, but I am not a major model railway manufacturer so couldn't say whether or not that would be a dealbreaker.

[disturbman]

No livery difference between both services. They could indeed manage an announcement on the 30th as it fits their announcement pattern. But I wouldn't hold my breath, it's not exactly how they do things.

[Kamome]

13 hours ago, disturbman said:

Kato is not always clever

Warning: Kato defending in progress!!

 

@disturbmanI think as a moderator, your views can sometimes come across a little too anti-Kato biased whether that may not be your intention. I can appreciate you have had your own experiences and it is helpful to manage expectations, certainly of people entering the hobby. I also understand there are a good number of forum members who are commenting on threads in a second language and sometimes words can come across stronger than intended. 

 

I’d probably suggest as a much smaller outfit than Tomix, it is more vital for Kato to look at how well previous runs or regional area stock sold. We all have our preferences but I’m sure Kato knows what sells for them and I’m sure many things are considered but are deemed too risky or wouldn’t generate enough of a return to warrant.  I wonder whether there’s greater following in certain regions. Does JR East stock sell better than JR West or Central? Certainly that’s true in my acquisitions. Kato have produced a lot of Iida line options whereas Tomix haven’t so the same argument could be applied depending on where your interests lie. Tomix have a tendency to get to market first with newly designed trains, probably as they have already secured licensing for Pura-rail releases which always come out before Tomix. And having factories in China, Japan, Thailand and South Korea probably surely helps a lot. 

 

Kato really don’t have the same levels of cash flow that the largest toy maker in Japan have, where investment risk can be offset against products and projects that bring in huge returns or can easily buy exclusivity. Licenses acquired by Takara Tomy are used across numerous brands and product lines whereas Kato have only their railway models to bring in their bottom line. 

 

So while it may seem frustrating not to have certain trains from preferred manufacturers, I’m sure all generally know what they’re doing and what works for their business in most cases. 

 

[disturbman]

Sorry, I was tired and in a hurry. I should have said, “Kato usually doesn’t do timely releases of sets in parallel to prototypes being retired from service.” It was not my intention to belittle Kato. More that they don't seem to be animated by that kind of marketing acumen. Which I think is somewhat of a mistake as they could ride these waves of interest and demand to release sets or special sets.

To attest to that tiredness, I first wrote “assimilation is futile” when quoting the Borg collective and it took me the tiniest while too long to comprehend what was wrong with that sentence 🙄

 

Regarding my perceived anti-Katoness. I’m not anti-Kato, they do very good models, and my position has long been to try to bring some balance to the clear pro-Kato bias our board has. First, as you noted, to help open new comers to other possibilities, and second, because after handling a lot of trains by different manufacturers, from Japan, Taiwan and China, I don’t believe their reputation as a god-tier manufacturer is earned, or rather, reflective of the reality.

Edited June 10, 2023 by disturbman

[Kamome]

1 hour ago, disturbman said:

I don’t believe their reputation as a god-tier manufacturer is earned, or rather, reflective of the reality.

No worries. I wasn’t aware they had ascended to this accolade either. As I’m sure you’re aware, I do generally have a preference towards Kato, as I started the hobby with their product, I sort of got to know what to expect with their stuff.  Not to say they are the best, just they gave me a certain expectation of Japanese railway models and when other manufacturers do it different, you either think wow, or what the f***?

 

Not to say they always get it right and my recent acquisition of the recently released Yume Kukan in HO felt both overpriced and underwhelming, despite 30% off the RRP/SRP. 

 

I have a sizeable amount of Kato 24 series coaches, mostly purchased for around ¥4500 each and when you’re now paying an extra ¥7000 per coach for some curtains that you’ve kind of seen in the 20 series, and some lit table lamps, it leaves you wondering where the rest of the money went.  If I had paid the full ¥49,500, I would’ve asked for a refund.  

Edited June 10, 2023 by Kamome

[Aleks]

Kato new releases have been announced... can't say they hit with me though, once again. It's good as I can focus on continuing to build, not buy.

 

E231-1000 Tokaido line

EF65-2000

Hankyu 9300

Ocean Arrow (283 series)

... and a T-track module

[bill937ca]

The grass field series of Japan is a material that can easily express the grassland and undergrowth that are the basis of the diorama. About 1.5mm grass material is softly finished with static electricity caused by friction with the bottle. If you combine the two colors, the grass will be shaded, creating a deeper and more realistic grassland ♪ Product details ↓↓

https://www.diorama-zairyo.com/kusahara02

 

 

[cteno4]

Ha neat, used a plastic that gets statically charged easily for the bottle. Don’t need a lot for short grass. 2.5mm.

 

jeff

[Falcon]

Hi,

where can I buy for only one loco these loco numbers, red digits.
2023 3061-4E2 / 2019 3061-5E2 or 2018 3061-4E2 ?

Or does anyone have some left for one  loco ?  Thanks

[Aleks]

Kato just announced new models, quite a few ones interesting to me. E257-5000 and -5500 Akagi/Kusatsu and other services, 789 series limited express Kamui/Suzuran, 651 series limited express, new Dr Yellow, two models of EF81, ED76. In addition to a lineup of classic 1950s trams, series 24 sleeper cars, and some kokis, Okis and UT13Cs.

 

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/e257_5000

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/e257_5500

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/hc_651kei

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/789kei

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/dr_yellow

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/ef81_300jrf

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/ef81

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/ed76

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/24kei_nihonkai

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/hc_ef81_300

[Kamome]

The JR era 24 series Nihonkai is not a bad looking blue train although there are not any specifically interesting coaches. A mix of white and gold banded stock but I tend to run mine more than many, more interesting trains.

 

For me, the JRF EF81-300, ED76-0 and koki 200s with MCLC chemical containers are the most exciting part of this announcement. I have some old 200s with UT11 containers and they have been impossible to find anywhere. I can finally model that nitric acid train that heads up to the chemical factory near Kurosaki, Kitakyushu. This is the train pictured in Kato’s EF81-300 announcement.

 

It seems a shame there are no further HO announcements at this stage. Even a good number of Kato products could do with a re-run, namely DE10, EF65-500, D51, C56, Taki 1000s to name but a few of my wants. Stock availability in Japan always seems pretty limited other than JNR era brown and blue coaches. I’d be interested on how whether their lines sell well or they just don’t make enough. There are sometimes products available through used channels but usually with scalper prices. 

Edited August 4, 2023 by Kamome

[KateM]

Here are the posters for us visual viewers

 

[katoftw]

Trying to decide if I really want the rose EF81-300. Already got the stainless version.

[Kamome]

On 8/5/2023 at 7:36 AM, katoftw said:

Trying to decide if I really want the rose EF81-300

Its kind of nice they went with the more modern condition with replaced, unpainted doors. But a stainless steel blue belt would've been a nice option.

 

As I'm Kyushu based, I'll probably jump on both of these.

[cplchanb]

On 8/4/2023 at 12:48 AM, Aleks said:

Kato just announced new models, quite a few ones interesting to me. E257-5000 and -5500 Akagi/Kusatsu and other services, 789 series limited express Kamui/Suzuran, 651 series limited express, new Dr Yellow, two models of EF81, ED76. In addition to a lineup of classic 1950s trams, series 24 sleeper cars, and some kokis, Okis and UT13Cs.

 

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/e257_5000

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/e257_5500

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/hc_651kei

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/789kei

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/dr_yellow

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/ef81_300jrf

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/ef81

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/ed76

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/24kei_nihonkai

https://www.katomodels.com/product/n/hc_ef81_300

Whats new for the dr yellow? slotless motor? 

[Kamome]

7 minutes ago, cplchanb said:

Whats new for the dr yellow? slotless motor? 

Essentially yes. Can’t see any further changes in the description

[Madsing]

 

[katoftw]

OMG do want

[Kamome]

Kato will release the Kiha 58 yet again to commemorate the mini diorama competition. This time in Toro-Q green livery. I wonder if they’ll release the 3 Tora 70000s further down the line.

[Kamome]

Kato new releases are out for Jan/Feb 2024

 

Should probably start saving now for the release of the outstanding 1990s HO gauge Hokutosei coaches to go with the Dream Space. The Mani 24 500 looks particularly interesting as blue trains go.  Looks like I'd still need a Orone 25 500 and a Orohane 25 500 from the existing offering.

 

I'd also like the N gauge C56 160 as I saw it on the SL Yamaguchi.