Tomytec Drive vs. Bandai Drive

[3railgreg]

Would like some opinions on which is better, the Tomytec tram drive units, or Bandi-B tram drive units. Been thinking of some of the Bandi Arakawa line trams and respective drive units. But also the Tomytec trams and their drive units, they just look better. Comments/opinions/guidance??

Thanks

[CaptOblivious]

I have both, and my opinion is that the Tomytec mechanisms, at least the one I have, is superior to the Bandai B-Train mechanisms (I can't speak for the Kato Pocket Line mechanisms). My Tomytec has a (small) flywheel, and very good pickups. The Bandai mechanism I have is prone to losing contact with the rails for some reason, and has no flywheel.

[bill937ca]

Here`s my review from when I first got my Tomytec tram drive.

 

http://jtrains.wordpress.com/2011/08/23/tomytec-tm-tr01-tram-drive/

 

Here`s another reaction.

 

http://princestreet.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/more-tm-tr01-ideas/

[3railgreg]

Thanks CaptOblivious and bill937ca. I am debating whether to use these tram drives with appropriate tram, or bag that concept and just get a couple trams for my new layout already to go. 

Most of the drives are around 25-30 US, and add the tram for more and you are looking at 60-70 or more for each.

Trying to determine my most bang for the buck so to speak.Plus the Bandai have no lights.

Maybe just get Modemo trams and be done with it. Most have lighting.

Thanks again. 

[bill937ca]

You might be able to find a Bachmann Peter Witt.  I picked one up yesterday for $88 on eBay.  But the N gauge version is no longer in the Bachmann catalog. Another source is Model Train Stuff.

[ToniBabelony]

I have used all three drives and I must say I'm most pleased with the Bandai drives, as they have all axles powered (4x4) and come with extra weights. The Tomytec ones however are the most reliable, but if you're going for the smallest ones (12m, 13m), they are only 2x4 drive, like the Kato drives.

 

The Bandai drives are good as they come, but are less inviting for kitbashing. Tomytec and Kato are the best when it comes to freelancing. For me, I'd choose the Tomytec motors, as they come with a flywheel, have a more powerful motor and are therefore a bit heavier.

[old999]

I recently got a Tomytec TM-01 plus Tomytec 800 tram body, a Tomytec TM-03, and a Bandai 3. Of the 3, the best performing is the Tomytec TM-03 - very smooth, nice slow speed, slow start/stop, and reliable pickup. The poorest of the 3 is the Tomytec TM-01. It looks great in the body and is nice and quiet, but stalls at slow speeds, always at the same places and not on switches. I've polished the track to no avail. I even increased the pressure on the internal pickup contacts, with modest success. I suspect the unit needs more weight, but it may be somewhere else along the power trail that is at fault. Maybe I got a bad one. The Bandai is quite good, but not as good as the others at slow starts - still good, though. My Kato Centram is by far the best performer I have ever had in any scale/gauge.

[old999]

I spoke too soon. The Tomytec TM-01 is NOW running beautifully. Maybe it just needed breaking in.

[brill27mcb]

The only difference between a TM-01 and a TM-03 (that I know of) is that the earlier TM-01 has blackened wheels. (The same is true for the "15-meter" TM-02 and TM-04.) Maybe it just takes a while to put some wear on the wheel treads to improve conductivity of the blackened surface.

 

Rich K.

[old999]

I screwed up my terminology. I have TM-TR01 (not TM-01) and a TM-03.  The TM-TR01 is a bit fussy. It has synthetic tires on two wheels, reducing pickup to six wheels, and has a tendency to not start, probably for lack of weight, or sometimes has a jackrabbit start. It has an expandable chassis and is relatively narrow.

 

The TM-03 is terrific, and bigger. It runs flawlessly.

 

-- Al

[bill937ca]

That could be your power pack.  Are you using a Tomix power pack?  Track voltage in Japan usually is 12V (it can be up to 16V in North America), but Tomix trams are built for  9V which is also the rating of the Tomix tram controller.

Edited March 1, 2013 by bill937ca

[old999]

I'm using an ancient MRC Tech II model 1400. It has 14 vdc output. It doesn't much to get the Japanese motors running.