Toni's Model Train Adventures

[Mudkip Orange]

I vote for beach.

[kvp]

I think this line also has a legitimate business case. The first two stations are real life ones. (the station under the airport and Shibayama-Chiyoda) If it ever gets extended then going to the beach would be trivial. As I see it has a stop near the aeronautical museum too. If it ever gets built as a model layout, what format would you use? (modular, table, floor, etc.)

[ToniBabelony]

Yes, the reason is that this line is actually something that has a somewhat official planning already. The exact trackage and station locations are unclear as of yet, but from some plans I have seen (like here: http://www.jnsforum.com/community/topic/2002-massive-tokyo-metropolitan-area-map/), stations are fewer and I probably should rename them slighlty.

 

These strange billboards by Shibayama Railway itself have me pondering however:

 

 

It says the line is planned to pass through Yokoshiba and Matsuo, which is strange, as it doesn't provide a straight link to the seaside, but rather a sharp 's' curve in passing through Yokoshiba, Matsuo and ending up in Hasunuma at the coast. It's not really efficient, I'd say. However, remembering the reason this line was built, it does make sense.

 

The Shibayama Railway was constructed to appease the inhabitants of this area because of the nuisance called Narita Airport. Part of the concessions for them was a better connection to the metropolitan area, instead of the slow and expensive JR Sōbu line. A connection to as many places as possible with the highest area coverage possible (like the Shin-Keisei line) would make sense in this regard. I might have to revise my map now... :D

 

Initially, the plan is to build small modules for photographing purposes, to be integrated into a larger layout at a friends' later. For me modelling-wise it's mostly about customising the rolling stock and making small modules. Operation is not too important.

[Nick_Burman]

The thing is, I don't want freight traffic. I'm not really interested in that. Maybe a maintenance train, but that's about it.

 

At a pinch you could stretch reality a looong way and represent Keisei's attempt at hauling vegetables to Tokyo towards the end of WWII. It even gave birth to an electric loco (Tenshodo makes a plastic version of it in HO...). Or, given that your line is going to Kujukuri Beach, a fish train along the lines of that operated by Kintetsu...

 

 

Cheers NB

[ToniBabelony]

A fish train sounds good, but the connection would have been established around 2002, not providing a classic train for this kind of service. It's a very long stretch, but I do have a train set to spare for this service... Maybe a direct early morning shuttle from Kujūkuri Beach Sta. to Shinbashi Sta. (near the fish market)? :D

[Nick_Burman]

A fish train sounds good, but the connection would have been established around 2002, not providing a classic train for this kind of service. It's a very long stretch, but I do have a train set to spare for this service... Maybe a direct early morning shuttle from Kujūkuri Beach Sta. to Shinbashi Sta. (near the fish market)? :D

 

Tony,

 

Provided that, in a hypothetical situation, Chiba Prefecture and the local Fisherman's Association were willing to pay for the service and Keisei/Shibayama were willing to charter and dedicate a trainset for it, nothing would be impossible. After all, Kintetsu's fish train is nothing more than an older trainset set aside for the service.

 

Cheers NB

[ToniBabelony]

Provided that, in a hypothetical situation, Chiba Prefecture and the local Fisherman's Association were willing to pay for the service and Keisei/Shibayama were willing to charter and dedicate a trainset for it, nothing would be impossible. After all, Kintetsu's fish train is nothing more than an older trainset set aside for the service.

 

True. I could pretend the line was completed already in 1991 when the new Narita Stations were opened and the Shibayama line was constructed to the coast. Initially, Keisei saved the old 3050 types for the Shibayama railway to use, so there is a great excuse for using the old skool Keisei 3000~3300 trains in a new livery.

 

I have planned a little maintenance yard as well, so there will be space for an extra fish train I guess. Probably in some shabby old livery with fish stickers on the train. Maybe it could do special runs as a sushi train in weekends after the morning trip to Shinbashi. You know, run through to the Toei Magome yard, get a clean up and run as a special train on the Keisei network for gourmets for a while. It will be a blast! :D

[Nick_Burman]

I have planned a little maintenance yard as well, so there will be space for an extra fish train I guess. Probably in some shabby old livery with fish stickers on the train. Maybe it could do special runs as a sushi train in weekends after the morning trip to Shinbashi. You know, run through to the Toei Magome yard, get a clean up and run as a special train on the Keisei network for gourmets for a while. It will be a blast! :D

 

Toni,

 

What about decorating it with fish kite (the kind flown by fishermen on harbours to announce a good catch) figures on the side?

 

IMHO the Sushi Train is one too much - at least using the same trainset. After a run from Kujuki to Shimbashi the train would need something more like disinfection rather than just cleaning. I guess that the reason why Kintetsu set a train aside specially for fish service is that it must  run fairly out of it's own accord after a trip to market...also, Toei would have a few choice words to say if they had to service a smelly train...

 

If I were you I would add extra sidings or double-track (maybe an extended passing siding) along your line...Keisei would want to cash on summer weekend traffic to the beach, expect charters (excuse for using a Skyliner...) and limited expresses, your line could be pretty busy...

 

 

Cheers NB

[Nick_Burman]

I have planned a little maintenance yard as well, so there will be space for an extra fish train I guess. Probably in some shabby old livery with fish stickers on the train. Maybe it could do special runs as a sushi train in weekends after the morning trip to Shinbashi. You know, run through to the Toei Magome yard, get a clean up and run as a special train on the Keisei network for gourmets for a while. It will be a blast! :D

 

Toni,

 

What about decorating it with fish kite (the kind flown by fishermen on harbours to announce a good catch) figures on the side?

 

IMHO the Sushi Train is one too much - at least using the same trainset. After a run from Kujuki to Shimbashi the train would need something more like disinfection rather than just cleaning. I guess that the reason why Kintetsu set a train aside specially for fish service is that it must  run fairly out of it's own accord after a trip to market...also, Toei would have a few choice words to say if they had to service a smelly train...

 

If I were you I would add extra sidings or double-track (maybe an extended passing siding) along your line...Keisei would want to cash on summer weekend traffic to the beach, expect charters (excuse for using a Skyliner...) and limited expresses, your line could be pretty busy...

 

 

Cheers NB

[kvp]

What i've seen on several photos are freight cars sandwiched by a pair of old emus. This is an easy way to make freight emus for everything. So a fish train can be a few reefer container cars between your favourite old time emu cars from the cheapest junkyard. These old sets are also used for railfan excursions. (with or without the fish/garbage/rail/ballast cars) Since these cars are often running on whatever truck they can find, you can use any cape or standard gauge car. (this is how two standard gauge 3rd rail tokyo metro cars ended up at a small cape gauge line as a local train with pantographs)

[ToniBabelony]

Hmm, you're probably right about the train needing some intense sanitising before being used for an exclusive sushi train. I have planned a small yard for maintenance in the mid-section of the line and two sidings at the Kujūkuri Beach terminus anyway, so enough room for one or two more special trains. At some point I'd like to buy a Keisei AE100 and repaint it to a special beach going train. The livery of the original AE100 is boring, but the simplicity of the train allows for a lot of exciting options!

 

 

Freight cars will probably be just gondolas on bogies, painted black with a few yellow warning stripes. Maybe just a pair will do fine.

 

As for the line passing through both Matsuo AND Yokoshiba, this is almost impossible without making some very inefficient and sharp curves, so I'll leave out the Yokoshiba connection.

 

With 26.3km in the current plan I'm considering pulling the line through to Kujūkuri Town and maybe even through over the old trackbed of the Kujūkuri Railway to the JR Tōgane station. The line to Kujūkuri Town adds about 6.8km, whereas the old Kujūkuri trackbed adds an extra 8.6km upon top of that. That makes the line 41.7km long, which may be a bit too much of the good stuff...

 

[ToniBabelony]

I have no acquired all GreenMax economy kits that have the old Keisei train fronts (3000~3300 types), but they differ a lot in appearance. The differences make for a lot of frustration here. Let's take a look at the picture below first:

 

 

As you can see, they have similarities, but also their slight differences. From left to right the type of front as described by Greenmax and the kit they are originally from:

- Keisei 3300 type (pre-modernisation) from Hanshin Commuter train kit;

- Keisei 3100 type from Keikyu 1000 type kit;

- Keisei 3150 type from Keisei 3500 type kit;

 

To jump straight to the one which is unsable: the Keisei 3100 type front from the Keikyu 1000 type kit. The lower lights are placed too high and are too large. The windows are incorrect and the detail quality is a bit too butch. Very frustrating, since this is the most prevalent type of front I now have. The body of the Keikyu 1000 type is used as the basis for the Keisei 3000~3150 type trains, but comes with the most inaccurate front of all. Grrr...

 

The Keisei 3300 type front from the Hanshin Commuter train kit is good, but really ONLY fits the Keisei 3200 (before modernisation: cut away handrails and directional roll board) and 3300 type trains because of the difference of style in windows. This makes this front pretty useless to me.

 

The Keisei 3150 type front from the Keisei 3500 type kit is maybe the most useful, but the hardest to use. I want to use this one, since the windows are correct to the Keisei 3000~3100 types. However, since this is a modernised front, the middle double headlights are in place and the top lights are small squares. To rebuild this front to be used as a Keisei 3050 type front, I need to take away the middle double front lights and put a pair on top next to the rollerboard. The square lights will have to be moved to the lower part, like the Keisei 3300 type.

 

It will be a tough road and it means I will have to invest in a few more Keisei 3500 type kits. However, I think it will be fine, since I can also create a small fleet of Keisei 3500s, which I also like a lot. Pheh... I want at least three 4-car 3050s, so I need to get two more Keisei 3500 type kits.   Ah well. At least I can start building one of the three and a Keisei 3500 as well.

[ToniBabelony]

So I decided to not go with rebuilding the 3150 type front to a pre-modernisation 3000~3100 type, so I went with the 3300 type front that came with the Hanshin Commuter train kit. It looks pretty damn good, even with the terrible putty applied and my mediocre sandpaper skills.

 

Since this is my first kitbash, I am not going to bother too much with the correct details. The livery will be a fictional Shibayama Railway one. Light grey base with red and green lines. 

 

Now I have to get more Hanshin Commuter kits if I want more Keisei 3000~3100s... Maybe I should get into building Hanshin/Sanyō trains...  :icon_scratch:

 

[Nick_Burman]

You can have a break from trying to cook Keisei trains and build one of these http://homepage3.nifty.com/arumo/rn004.htm and decorate it as Keisei DeKi 1 - ideal for work trains...

 

Cheers NB

[ToniBabelony]

You can have a break from trying to cook Keisei trains and build one of these http://homepage3.nifty.com/arumo/rn004.htm and decorate it as Keisei DeKi 1 - ideal for work trains...

 

To be honest, I have one lying around somewhere. I bought it personally from the guy who runs Arumo and makes these models at the JAM last year :P It however lacks some of the lights as detail I think. I'm not sure though...

[Densha]

To be honest, I have one lying around somewhere.

Don't end up as Martijn! ;)

[ToniBabelony]

Don't end up as Martijn! ;)

 

I think it's already much worse, since I have my trains scattered around a several places across the globe... The main part here in Japan though. xD

Edited January 3, 2014 by Toni Babelony

[Densha]

Lol, you're right. I'm still having fun with some of your trains on the occasion.

[ToniBabelony]

So I have made some more progress on the Shibayama Railway project again. It's fun to work on models, but due to having not much time for glueing (my wife doesn't like the smell) it's not going fast. Next to that, I have looots of illustrations to do and work on my career.

 

Anyway, I finished two extra cars and have created a 4-car 3050 type consist. The destination signs and sides of the cars have been wiped smooth. Now I have the choice of adding the original four a/c units (RPU-3041 and FRP cover) or go for one CU-71 unit, like on the modernised Keikyu 1000 types. Since the 3050 type I am recreating is a fictional model, it could well be that the train got a radical overhaul with new a/c units... I should strongly reconsider this, since it will also influence the appearance and originality of the train.

 

 

Also, I have made a network map and heightmap. Just for fun and to add some realism to my fictional realm :D

 

 

[ToniBabelony]

I must be crazy to make graphic timetables... It was all for the cause of integrating the Shibayama railway into the existing Keisei schedule (with some hacks for extra 'Liner' services). It's not a very clean result and there may be a few flaws, but it creates a good general picture of what might happen on this fictional line.

 

Up trains:

 

Down trains:

 

Both ways:

 

Trains are mostly locals, with a few Liners in between. I think these services can be intensified in the summer weekends. Locals are mostly shuttles between Keisei Narita and Kujūkuri Beach, but morning  and evening runs see regular through services to Ueno and even up to Nishi Magome. I think I could even schedule through services to Shin-Zushi (Beach Express?), so I have an excuse to run Keikyū trains on the line as well.

 

Anyway, it was all to plan the network layout in the end:

 

The only frustrating thing about this company is that I'm not able to run Hokusō and Chiba New Town trains, as they don't run on the Keisei Main Line (at least not beyond the short section between Aoto and Takasago). Also no AE1 type 2nd series Skyliner, but I'm not a big fan of that one anyway.

 

---

 

I have also modified my 3050 Type project to a modernised version with a new air-conditioning unit with a CU-71 unit cover. It has changed the appearance quite a bit, but it kind of fits the train. The second one I'll make will probably have the standard FRP units. I was also shortly considering adding maybe a front skirt, but that would destroy the nice and simple looks of this train.

 

 

[Nick_Burman]

I must be crazy to make graphic timetables... It was all for the cause of integrating the Shibayama railway into the existing Keisei schedule (with some hacks for extra 'Liner' services). It's not a very clean result and there may be a few flaws, but it creates a good general picture of what might happen on this fictional line.

 

Up trains:

Graph02_up.png

 

Down trains:

Graph02_down.png

 

Both ways:

Graph02_a.png

 

Trains are mostly locals, with a few Liners in between. I think these services can be intensified in the summer weekends. Locals are mostly shuttles between Keisei Narita and Kujūkuri Beach, but morning  and evening runs see regular through services to Ueno and even up to Nishi Magome. I think I could even schedule through services to Shin-Zushi (Beach Express?), so I have an excuse to run Keikyū trains on the line as well.

 

Anyway, it was all to plan the network layout in the end:

配線図.png

 

The only frustrating thing about this company is that I'm not able to run Hokusō and Chiba New Town trains, as they don't run on the Keisei Main Line (at least not beyond the short section between Aoto and Takasago). Also no AE1 type 2nd series Skyliner, but I'm not a big fan of that one anyway.

 

---

 

I have also modified my 3050 Type project to a modernised version with a new air-conditioning unit with a CU-71 unit cover. It has changed the appearance quite a bit, but it kind of fits the train. The second one I'll make will probably have the standard FRP units. I was also shortly considering adding maybe a front skirt, but that would destroy the nice and simple looks of this train.

 

2014-01-11 19.11.32.jpg 2014-01-11 19.11.41.jpg

 

Toni,

 

Neat, very professional, but...could we get some romaji please? :D

 

What software did you use to greate the "daya"?

 

 

Cheers NB

[kvp]

What is the reason for the single track, double platform station?

[miyakoji]

In the track map you've got 長山大 instead of 長山台.  Looks good though, I followed it on a map down to Kujukurihama.  A lot of golf clubs out there.

[miyakoji]

What is the reason for the single track, double platform station?

Yeah I was looking at that too.  Toni, is it because of where you intend on situating the station?  This seems to differ a bit from the maps you have on page 2 of the thread.

 

Koike neighborhood: http://maps.google.co.jp/?ll=35.694877,140.417097&spn=0.015736,0.024054&t=h&z=16&brcurrent=3,0x6022edce9ab828c5:0x303c26d086ca2544,1

[ToniBabelony]

The railway line follows Route 62 pretty much, until around Shibayama Hatta where it goes underground, intersects the JR Sōbu line at Matsuo station and joins Route 58 again at Takatomi. The railway line doesn't have much to do with the golf courses, apart from the potential spectators for a match (which is unlikely to happen due to the airplane noise). It's more likely to see the golf courses being bought up and see some urban or industrial development. :D

 

Here is a very crude map I made:

 

I have made Koike station a single-directional double platform, since I think there would be quite a demand on the station for passengers. It has the post office, city hall and Kannonkyō-temple complex as places of interest, so you might call it the centre of Shibayama town. Especially with the railway line, this area is expected to boom and see an ever increasing number of passengers. The timetable however doesn't take train crossings in account here, so I have decided to split the platforms to reduce crowds. Trains cross at Nakadai, since there is more space to build a double track station.

 

Also, on demand, the english versions of the files!

 

 

And map:

 

Also, a corrected map with 長山大→長山台 That was a lazy typo from my side xD

 

All was made in Photoshop.