Toni's Model Train Adventures

[cteno4]

Ouch! I've been impressed the tamya tape, worth it with all the time you put in!

 

Jeff

[JR 500系]

Wonderful work Toni! They look just like your Photo shopped photos! Are they motorised?

[ToniBabelony]

Ouch! I've been impressed the tamya tape, worth it with all the time you put in!

 

I'll definitely use that for my Romance Car conversion project!

 

Wonderful work Toni! They look just like your Photo shopped photos! Are they motorised?

 

Thanks. They are all motorised and I actually want to have a few more 16m length rolling stock trains to match these three sets.

 

Yes, I've made an attempt to add rub-on lettering to the sides.

 

I've been looking at cutting and pasting Greenmax economy kit 20m rolling stock by getting rid of one door-window section in the centre, as it deletes roughly 4m of IRL body. I'll pick up one later to experiment, as I only have 18m Keikyū 1000 type economy kits laying around. A stainless steel train would be a nice addition to the fleet.

 

Also, as much as I have experimented with fictional companies, time tables, track plans, etc. I can't come up with a good one for this project... Maybe Hiratsuka (JR East Tōkaidō Line) - Isehara (Odakyū Odawara line) - Ōyama (Ōyama Cable Car) with a branch line from Atsugi or Ebina?

[kvp]

The repainted trains look great! Imho the romance car perfectly matches their paint in it's current condition,

[ToniBabelony]

The repainted trains look great! Imho the romance car perfectly matches their paint in it's current condition,

 

That's the problem. It looks too recognisable as a Romance Car. It's not a very original design livery-wise. Odakyu and Nagaden ran and run -respectively- the HiSE in basically the same livery (Nagaden coloured all red sections in the same, uniform, red), so I want to get rid of the easy recognition factor. I want to play with the body, like the Odakyu livery. In the original livery, the lines line up perfectly with the different window levels and wedge design, but I want to do this in a totally different way. It's a challenge and it'll take a while before I've made up my mind about this...

[ToniBabelony]

Some fine tuning of one of the 'box-types'. I bought single arm pantographs and a bunch of front skirts to upgrade a few trains.

 

 

I also bought this book: https://www.neko.co.jp/?p=75207 A guide to 3D print modelling, co-produced and written by some people I met last year (I'm slowly getting acquainted with some of the creative minds in the model train world here). I might take my first steps into this realm soon as well. Total freedom.

[railsquid]

The current issue of RM MODEL (237) has a review of some "cheap" 3D printers.

 

It might be worth a separate thread for 3D printing? I'm kind of interested in this, I don't really have much time to invest at the moment (busy and too many other interesting projects) but in the longer term I'd like to be able to make spare parts for stuff I can't easily get parts for.

[ToniBabelony]

The current issue of RM MODEL (237) has a review of some "cheap" 3D printers.

 

It might be worth a separate thread for 3D printing? I'm kind of interested in this, I don't really have much time to invest at the moment (busy and too many other interesting projects) but in the longer term I'd like to be able to make spare parts for stuff I can't easily get parts for.

 

Yes, I was thinking about opening a thread later when I have made some decent results in "123D Design". It's easy to use, but because it's freeware, it has some issues still. That said, for me personally, it's not hard to use, since I'm an illustrator who has to deal with 3D thinking on a daily basis. I can imagine it's complete sourcery to others.

 

EDIT:

 

I have no idea what I'm doing.

 

 

Ergo, I have no plan of what I'm going to make, but it helps with getting the hang of things.

Edited March 25, 2015 by Toni Babelony

[ToniBabelony]

A kick in the butt from beyond the summer.

 

I've started on my first T-Trak module after some failed attempts with a Tomytec DIN-A4 board (which will become a 2nd project later):

 

 

 

The module is inspired by a few other offbeat modules I saw at meetings. A raised trackbed with underneath some interesting things going on. Under the bridge here will come a single-track electrified line, in the style of the JR East Sagami line around Harataima station (link to exact location). Maybe I'll decide to put the lower track in an angled position to mimic the real location.

 

The raised track (in this case the main line) would be a the fictive Sagamihara Kaihatsu Railway (link to Pixiv gallery), a project I have exhibited with last year. This project is now in revision, since I'm more keen on turning this fictive line into an LRV-style ROW, rather than heavy-rail oriented. This means no through running on Sōtetsu any more, but rather low-floor trams (maybe mixed with short high-floor trains for fun). It'd match the spirit of T-Trak much better.

 

The empty module next to it, is for the second project. I don't know what it will be, but I'm kind of inclined to make a module that depicts a potential station near the location of the first module, namely Asamizo Park (link to location), which has a splendid cutout between two massive public parks (one is prefectural and one municipal). It also has a nice landmark tower that can feature as a point of recognition. Here is a good photograph of the cutout and observation tower. This module however would be a in a completely different style (cutout), not matching the first module and probably double the standard length.

 

P.s. I just found this picture of the real situation I want to model: http://blog-imgs-57.fc2.com/d/o/u/doushigawa/CIMG5670_convert_20130507153551.jpg

 

I'm now pondering if the higher line shouldn't be the Sagami line and the lower the fictional line. This, since there are official plans (IIRC JR East in conjunction with the Linear Shinkansen station in Hashimoto) to double-track the line and unofficial plans (I think it was some local political individuals' goal) to turn it into light rail. Would make more sense as well. That'd make the Asamizo Park module project not valid though... :/ Hmmmm...

Edited September 29, 2015 by Toni Babelony

[katoftw]

I like.  Reminds me of the one you took a photo of at that train show.  You module isn't too tall is it?

 

Kinda bummed I didn't pre-order the Kantetsu trains now.

[ToniBabelony]

I like. Reminds me of the one you took a photo of at that train show. You module isn't too tall is it?

 

Kinda bummed I didn't pre-order the Kantetsu trains now.

My module is indeed inspired by that one, which is based on a Kansai related location. The module looks too high because I made it 9cm high in total. The trackbed should be 10cm from the tabletop so I'm safe ;)

 

Kanto Railway doesn't really have much to do with this project, as this is the Sagami region where Odakyu, Sotetsu and JR East rule ;)

[Martijn Meerts]

You're actually using wood instead of cardboard? Progress! =)

[ToniBabelony]

You're actually using wood instead of cardboard? Progress! =)

Well, wood, Styrofoam and MDF. MDF isn't too far off from cardboard though. It can be cut with a simple hobby knife xD Cardboard is too sensitive to moisture (which easily reaches +90% here in summer), so I've sworn that off as construction material.

[ToniBabelony]

Some premonition of what's going to happen:

 

 

I think it'd be fun to have both high and low-floor rolling stock of different companies as well. Low floor for local inner-city services and high-floor for the more long distance mountainous tracks to the west (Tsukui and Oyama areas).

[ToniBabelony]

Hello all, as I said before in the 'where y'all wasting your money at' thread, I've been busy with a fictional company. "What? Another one?" I can already hear the majority of you (who actually care) say. Yes. Another one. This time, it's a much more serious and feasible company.

 

The project is called Bandō Line and represents a fictional line that connects the Tōbu Noda line with the Kantō Railway Jōsō line and beyond to Mt. Tsukuba, connecting to the now defunct Tsukuba Railway (1987). This line could have saved the lonely Tsukuba Railway.

 

Another idea I have is to extend the line towards Ishioka to have it connected to the Kashima Railway (also defunct since 2007), but since I don't know the terrain between Tsukuba and Ishioka, I have left this out. It might be too much to handle. However, it might be interesting for potential freight operations.

 

The line crosses the unexplored Bandō area of Ibaraki, which is a agricultural powerhouse. Rice and vegetable fields for the Tokyo Metropolitan area dominate the landscape, with Mt. Tsukuba as a lonely giant observing the crops. This gives opportunity for an actual seasonal freight service to local factories and from there possibly to the JR/JNR network (e.g. Kikkoman Factory in Noda).

 

Anyway, the whole setting revolves more about passenger operations, with freight maybe being a nice extra feature.

 

 

- Initial line map proposal.

- Incomplete and renewed line map. "西茨城交通" (West Ibaraki Transport) is a temporary placement! Not a real serious proposal for the company's line name. Also, sorry for the lack of a legenda.

 

For this company, I have created one or two fictional liveries. Excuses for the characters ruining the setting. No, these can't become candidates for Ms. Pantograph, as this is a 100% dieselised operation!

  

- 2-car DMU (in fact a repainted and modified Ōigawa 1000 type).

- Shimotsuma station with two services, one a non-fictional 2200 type (or related) to Shimodate and a fictional 2-car 3100 type to Tsukuba (on the wrong track).

- A fictional Express service from Shimodate to Ōmiya (Tōbu Noda line). Would probably be run with a 2-car formation from Shimodate to Shimotsuma and coupled to another 2-car formation from Shimotsuma (coming from Tsukuba), continuing to Ōmiya. Possibly, along the way, another 2-car could be attached to reach the maximum 6-car length allowed on the Tōbu Noda line.

 

I think this is a keeper, a I actually regularly visit the region, have spend many good hours along the tracks of the Jōsō line, and made a few friends at the local club at Tobanoe station. Next to that, this is practically a free-for-all DMU acquisition setting, as before the introduction of the standardisation, the Kantō Railway just bought whatever 2nd hand stock they could lay their hands on. This also means an opportunity to create custom built trains, as I have a LOT of unbuilt Greenmax Economy Kits laying around.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Toni Babelony

[katoftw]

DMUs = win!

[ToniBabelony]

A little setup on the kitchen table to display some of my models for a TV pre-production interview.

 

 

 

 

 

I think it'll be a while before the real recordings happen, as so far, I'm the only foreigner living in Japan that likes trains for them. So, if anybody feels compelled to join in, send me a message and I can put you through to the production office! :)

 

Also yes, I'm working on a T-Trak module there. I think I'll put a narrow gauge line along a canal underneath the main track. :)

Edited April 12, 2016 by Toni Babelony

[Nick_Burman]

I think it'll be a while before the real recordings happen, as so far, I'm the only foreigner living in Japan that likes trains for them.

Don't forget to show then the forum page then... :)

 

Cheers NB

[ToniBabelony]

A little bit of progress on my T-Trak module. These are detail pictures, so they don't show the whole image (now posting from Kamata sta.). In general, the module has grown from 310x210mm to 310x310mm, with a narrow gauge track squeezing itself under the main line.

 

 

Of course, there won't be any room for electric vehicles to operate on the narrow gauge line, but with the pantos down. And even then it might be a very tight squeeze.

 

 

The narrow gauge line will travel in the middle of a road towards the right and will run on its own ROW in the other direction. So far, I haven't decided yet how the landscape (townscape) will look like, but I think I'm going for some kind of hybrid East Asian colonial style. Bricks and mortar, mixed with plasterwork, concrete buildings, the odd tropical plant here and there (I'm starting to appreciate palm trees and other big-leaf flora more and more) and of course the overground power lines.

[ToniBabelony]

A little progress:

 

 

The Hohenzollern under the bridge with a Kashima Rinkai KiHa 431 (Railway Collection) along a freight train, rumbling over it. The brick pattern styrene is a Nanyō Bussan product. The stones are bit too big for buildings, but do fine for infrastructure and making street rails.

[JR 500系]

That look nice! I assume the bridge is a Greenmax bridge?

[ToniBabelony]

The bridge is actually a bog standard Kato one. The rails on T-Trak are usually Kato Unitrack at a 10cm height, so I'll stick to that to be safe. I'm a big fan of these simple steel girder bridges and these can be used on a 25mm track-centre distance.

 

When all is done, weathering will of course also be done!

[kvp]

T-trak is 7 cm height, leveling screw adjustable for +3 cm. Track distances are 33 mm for mainlines and 25 mm for trams.

 

But anyhow, your module looks great!

Edited April 20, 2016 by kvp

[ToniBabelony]

T-trak is 7 cm height, leveling screw adjustable for +3 cm. Track distances are 33 mm for mainlines and 25 mm for trams.

 

No. It's 10cm height (5mm play up and down) and 25mm track distance: http://white.zero.jp/t-trak/standard/official.html The 33mm track distance was made up by US users who needed to run their big trains on these small modules. This is called 'Alternate Standard'.

[kvp]

Please check the official standard:

http://ttrak.org/standards.html

http://ttrak.org/images/Single%20base%20v3.jpg

Tram/traction track distance is 25 mm, mainline 33. This doesn't change the fact that the module height is 7 cm in both cases.