Kato UniTram 3-way junction?

[velotrain]

Has anyone tried building one with two tram turnouts and the UniTrack Compact turnouts?

 

I see they have a 15 degree crossing, but no 30 degree, which might kill the idea.

 

 

How about cobbling one together using two Tomix PY280-15 and the X72.5-30?

[kvp]

It's doable with tomix turnouts and more than one way is possible. I haven't seen a kato kitbash, but it might be possible, just hard.

[katoftw]

Much easier with tomix than Kato. Kato as very limited flexibility other that puting all the modular pieces together and making what you see normally all over the net.

 

Tomix on the other hand as wide tram track, normal rail and kits to make normal rail into wide tram tracks. their tram assessory kits are awesome, and allow different eras and street/grassed/paved sections to be made.

 

Personally for what you are trying to attempt, I wouldn't be wasting time with Katos limited tram tracks.

[velotrain]

  On 7/24/2014 at 11:06 PM, katoftw said:

 their tram assessory kits are awesome, and allow different eras

 

Just what accessory kits do you mean, and where do I find them?

[katoftw]

http://www.tomytec.co.jp/tomix/products/n/3079.htm

http://www.tomytec.co.jp/tomix/products/n/3076.htm

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10104805

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Tomix-3076-Street-Car-Tram-Track-Kit-N-scale-/201051154793?pt=Model_RR_Trains&hash=item2ecf952969

Edited July 24, 2014 by katoftw

[velotrain]

I've seen those before, but I'm confused.

 

All the wide tram track I've seen pictured already has street pavement on it - I'm looking at a package of 140 straight right now.

 

Are the insets for an older version of the track?

 

Are the cobbles an overlay for the current track?

[cteno4]

These were before the wide tram track, and just snapped between finetrack bits. It's a bit fiddly and sometimes pop up on you w/o glue, but a really neat product. Trying to fill in pavement around curved track is a pain to say the least without something like this! Wide tram track sort of killed these plate sets. I have a box of it given to me that I've played with a little and its neat. Don't think they did cobblestone with it. You could probably do cobblestone printing on paper and stick it down on the pavement. Cobblestone relief in n scale is less than a quarter mm, so well w/in printing effect range for visuals.

 

Jeff

Edited July 25, 2014 by cteno4

[velotrain]

> Don't think they did cobblestone with it. You could probably do cobblestone printing on paper and stick it down on the pavement. Cobblestone relief in n scale is less than a quarter mm, so well w/in printing effect range for visuals.

 

The last link in katoftw's post shows cobbles, so I don't know if they're from Tomix or what.

[katoftw]

The assessory sets I think came out before wide tram tracks were originally available. I haven't been in the scene long enough to know. Others would know better than me.

 

I like it cos you can build junctions with it.

 

Yes there is a brick paved version. And a smooth version just like wide tram.

 

The paved one is great as I said earlier to model a older era.

Edited July 25, 2014 by katoftw

[cteno4]

You are right they did do the brick version as well!

 

These only go over finetrack, not the wide tram track which is basically the same thing built as all one piece.

 

I wonder if tomix is keeping these in production or only old stock is left. Rich k migh chime in he would know.

 

Jeff

[katoftw]

  On 7/25/2014 at 4:53 AM, cteno4 said:

I wonder if tomix is keeping these in production or only old stock is left. Rich k migh chime in he would know.

It has the points covering that isn't included in any other wide tram sets/piece.

 

I dont see them discontinueing them. but if they do, then they'll probably just make a new product code with just the points sections.

 

But who knows? They could be a poor seller, and already deleted from the production line.

Edited July 25, 2014 by katoftw

[bill937ca]

  On 7/25/2014 at 1:48 AM, velotrain said:

> Don't think they did cobblestone with it. You could probably do cobblestone printing on paper and stick it down on the pavement. Cobblestone relief in n scale is less than a quarter mm, so well w/in printing effect range for visuals.

 

The last link in katoftw's post shows cobbles, so I don't know if they're from Tomix or what.

 

That`s not cobblestone, but very large stones.

[brill27mcb]

  On 7/25/2014 at 6:18 AM, bill937ca said:

Nagasaki_Tram.jpg

 

That`s not cobblestone, but very large stones.

 

Everyone has covered this pretty well. The 3076 "kit" with large pavers came out first, as a way to turn normal Tomix "Mini" and "Super Mini" (103mm radius) track into paved track. Bill (bill937ca) some years back posted photos (or a link to them) of a Japanese tram line that had these exact large pavers, and one photo showed spare pavers stacked up on the edge of a terminal area. They could be lifted out for track maintenance and then re-installed, from the looks of it. They also seemed to serve to make motorists prefer to be off the tracks on smoother adjacent roadway.

 

Then came the plain, textured Tomix 3079 kit, and then came the already-built Wide Tram. Fortunately, the 3079 matches the color and texture of Wide Tram track. Much of the paving parts in the kits are unnecessary now, but you can use the points parts to completely pave a Mini-Points turnout, and you can use trimmed-to-fit straight and curved pieces to have one leg of the turnout go off the edge of the paved street. You can also use the between-rails points pieces and outer straight paving pieces to pave the Tomix 30-degree crossing. (Photos showing examples are on the EasyTrolley site).

 

You can also now add in Moving Bus System road pieces, cut to suit, to create a number of effects, such as the tram tracks turning off the side of a completely while the road itself continues. The only thing in addition that I miss is a way to pave the Tomix  280mm "Y" points, so you could create a center-of-road single-track line with passing loop/siding where trams can pass each other in opposite directions.

 

I'm hopeful that Tomix will someday see the wisdom of producing pre-paved points/turnouts, in ways that can be used other than crossovers in double track.

 

Rich K.