Japanese Vacation No.9 (week 1)

[bikkuri bahn]

Yes, it probably was late/delayed, not an unusual occurrence for freight- after all, sacks of flour or microwave ovens don't complain when stuck for an hour at a station.  There is a place on the JR freight website where you can check any delays:

http://www.jrfreight.co.jp/i_daiya/index.html

[KenS]

These are great photos, and I'm enjoying following your vacation virtually.

 

Any idea what the structure on the right in this photo is?  It looks like a platform for crew to get out of a train, but others I've seen just had a short platform on one side, so perhaps this is some kind of maintenance/cleaning area.  And what's that thing that looks like a slot in the ground between the rails for?

[westfalen]

These are great photos, and I'm enjoying following your vacation virtually.

 

Any idea what the structure on the right in this photo is?  It looks like a platform for crew to get out of a train, but others I've seen just had a short platform on one side, so perhaps this is some kind of maintenance/cleaning area.  And what's that thing that looks like a slot in the ground between the rails for?

 

My thought was that it could be an area for washing the railcars and the slot between the rails is a drain for the water.

[The_Ghan]

Are these white things on the track all sensors?  Why are there so many, so close together?

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

 

[bikkuri bahn]

Are these white things on the track all sensors?  Why are there so many, so close together?

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

 

 

Yes, they are ATS sensors.  They are grouped like that at terminal stations, to prevent overrruns- a single sensor is not enough as the time delay to automatic braking would permit the train to still crash the buffers due to the short distances.

[quinntopia]

Great photos...and love the little stories as well.  The idea of a teenage railfan on a bike at the station is really cool.  Thanks for sharing these!

[The_Ghan]

Great photos...and love the little stories as well.  The idea of a teenage railfan on a bike at the station is really cool.  Thanks for sharing these!

 

quinntopia: Agreed ... pity the kid couldn't hang around long enough to watch the train leave.

 

west: glad the proxy is working for you.

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[westfalen]

Well, I made it to Miyazaki without reserved seats and it worked out better than I planned. I got down to Nagoya station early and was able to catch an earlier train to Shin Osaka, Hikari #493, which just happened to be an N700. That got me to Shin Osaka in plenty of time to get the Sakura service before the planned one which in turn got me to Kagoshima Chuo an hour earlier giving me enough time there to have lunch at a resturaunt at the station and grab a few shots of trams with enough time to still be third in line when the 4 car series 787 rolled in to form Kirishima #12 for Miyazaki. The 787 seemed to give a rough ride, not sure whether it was the track or the train starting to show it's age but every rail joint shook the whole car. I kind of wish the solid, comfortable old 485's waiting for their fate in the yard at Kagoshima were still running.

 

Had more than the usual choices for dinner tonight. When I wandered downtown there was some sort of international food festival in progress with stalls lining one of the main streets selling everything from Korean noodles to German bratwurst and a lot of stuff in between that I had no idea of what it was. You paid Y1000 and got a sheet of 12 Y100 value coupons that you exchanged at the stalls for food and beverages. There was an all you can eat resturaunt in a department store with an 'Australian cuisine festival' but I didn't recognise any of the dishes on display.

 

The Toyoko Inn here is right at the southern end of the platforms and the trains go right past my window.

 

The first photo is car 1 of a standard N700, the next interior shot is an N700-8000. You could eat your lunch out of the rubbish bins at Hakata station after those ladies finished scrubbing them.

[westfalen]

Some shots from Kagoshima.

[westfalen]

More Kagoshima.

[westfalen]

With JR Kyushu's no smoking policy the only place smokers can go on the 787 is the smokers room.

 

And last but not least, I don't know what country they are from, but anyone for fried potato slices on a stick smothered in butter?

[scott]

I kind of wish the solid, comfortable old 485's waiting for their fate in the yard at Kagoshima were still running.

 

I hope there are a few of them left if I ever get there...

 

There was an all you can eat resturaunt in a department store with an 'Australian cuisine festival' but I didn't recognise any of the dishes on display.

 

It's funny how things fail to translate from one place to another.

 

And last but not least, I don't know what country they are from, but anyone for fried potato slices on a stick smothered in butter?

 

Sounds good, but I'll wait to see if you survive first. ;-)

[The_Ghan]

West,

 

Looking good mate.  You're right where Mrs_Ghan and I plan to start our trip next year.  Thanks for keeping up with those interior shots.  You know, I bought 10 sets of Kato interior lights and I plan to detail the interiors as I add the lights, since I'll have the cars apart at the time. 

 

The Ibutama black and white train looks interesting.  Is it a KiHa 47 DMU?  Did you take a ride?  I've heard they have great interior detailing.

 

That 500 series is I ride that I HAVE to take when I'm there.  It is my favourite shinkansen currently in service.

 

That 787 interior looks a little gloomy and I look forward to recreating that atmosphere when the time comes.  I hope you don't mind if I save all your interiors for future reference.  Was the ride really that rough or was it the fact that you've just gotten of a silky smooth shinkansen? 

 

Love the smoking room ... but I don't think Kato has it on their model.

 

Glad you're having such a great time.

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[scott]

That 787 interior looks a little gloomy

 

That's funny--I had exactly the same thought. But I might be biased--I've always thought the 787 was one of the ugliest Japanese trains anyway.

[bikkuri bahn]

That 787 interior looks a little gloomy

 

Some would call that "the executive look" with all the blacks and greys.  I certainly would be gloomy if I had to stick around an executive boardroom for long.

 

The 787 seemed to give a rough ride,

 

The 787 series is a contemporary of the JR East 253 series, both are carbon steel body designs mounted on relatively simple bolsterless bogies, perhaps(?) the bogies are not quite up to the task of carrying such a heavy body while providing suitable dampening of shocks.  It is curious that JR Kyushu fitted some 787 series intermediate cars with different bogies, the DT901K type, which is unusual as the JR group railways don't usually use SU Minden type designs on their rolling stock.  Minden type bogies are known for their stability, especially at high speeds (a variation of the minden design was used for the first shinkansen bogies)

[The_Ghan]

...  It is curious that JR Kyushu fitted some 787 series intermediate cars with different bogies, the DT901K type, which is unusual as the JR group railways don't usually use SU Minden type designs on their rolling stock ...

 

Ahhhhhhh, the good-ol' DT901K's .... yeahhhhhh ...... riiiiiiight ....

 

seriously bikkuri, is there anything you don't know about Japanese trains?

 

Thank God you're here .... we'd be lost without you!!!

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[The_Ghan]

... I've always thought the 787 was one of the ugliest Japanese trains anyway.

 

Of course it is ..... that's because it's a Decepticon!  My nephew picked it straight away.  Apparently Decepticons can't fool kids, only adults, so it's not my fault that I didn't realise it sooner ... Not your fault either Scott.

 

West, ride it at your own peril mate!!

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[keitaro]

... I've always thought the 787 was one of the ugliest Japanese trains anyway.

 

Of course it is ..... that's because it's a Decepticon!  My nephew picked it straight away.  Apparently Decepticons can't fool kids, only adults, so it's not my fault that I didn't realise it sooner ... Not your fault either Scott.

 

West, ride it at your own peril mate!!

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

 

that red is hoorible

[westfalen]

West,

 

Looking good mate.  You're right where Mrs_Ghan and I plan to start our trip next year.  Thanks for keeping up with those interior shots.  You know, I bought 10 sets of Kato interior lights and I plan to detail the interiors as I add the lights, since I'll have the cars apart at the time. 

 

The Ibutama black and white train looks interesting.  Is it a KiHa 47 DMU?  Did you take a ride?  I've heard they have great interior detailing.

 

That 500 series is I ride that I HAVE to take when I'm there.  It is my favourite shinkansen currently in service.

 

That 787 interior looks a little gloomy and I look forward to recreating that atmosphere when the time comes.  I hope you don't mind if I save all your interiors for future reference.  Was the ride really that rough or was it the fact that you've just gotten of a silky smooth shinkansen? 

 

Love the smoking room ... but I don't think Kato has it on their model.

 

Glad you're having such a great time.

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

I didn't have time to ride the black and white train but there was a recent article in Japan Railfan Magazine about it and they do have a nice interior.

 

The ride on the 787 was definately rough with a lot of banging and crashing from the bogie under the end of the car where I was sitting, maybe they were designed for the better maintained track they ran on when they were the pride of the fleet. I remember riding them from Hakata to Kumamoto and Nagasaki to Hakata when they were new in 1994 and they were smoother then.