Latest Release News

COLLECTIBLE SERIES NEWS

Items that  have been definitely announced are ...

January 2006

Bandai will release the 5th in their 'Working Vehicles' series, and it is a set of 2 different types of mini-bus. These smaller 7m long buses are seen everywhere in Japan, and are especially useful in the narrow streets, and winding roads of more rural areas. Companies include Enoshima Railway, Keio Teito, Keihan, Fuji Kyuko, Nishitetsu and Himeji buses.

January 2006

See official page at ... http://www.tomytec.co.jp/hobby/truck/index.html

Tomy 'The Truck Collection' #2 - this set contains 12 vehicles made up of mixture of Hino TC, Hino ZM & Isuzu Giga as delivery vans, dump trucks and cement mixers, and a single Isuzu TX fire engine.

February 2006

Tomy 'The Trailer Collection' #1 - this is 10 vehicles comprising of 2 different cab-over prime movers with a dry and a refrigerated 40' ISO container for NYK, MOL and K-line, as well as a plain dry container; plus 3x 26,000 litre tank trailers for ENEOS, JOMO and IDEMITSU. The containers are removable and can be used with the Tomix Koki200 container wagon.

March 2006`
The second in the 'Railway Daughter' series is slated for release this month.

Tomy have announced their first HO collection set - a set of cars !!! It will contain 12 vehicles made up of 3 of each of the following ...Toyota Highace van, Toyopet Crown van, Toyota Highace DX, and Toyota Crown sedan.   Reservations for this set close on  the 20th January.

Advertised sets, without firm release dates yet, are Tomy's 'Machinami Collection' #5 (old & new larger type city buildings), 'The Bus Collection' #8, 'The Car Collection' #3 (Nissan Fairladys) and 'The Minibus Collection ' #1, as well as Bandai's 'Working Vehicles' #6 (cement mixers). Keep an eye out for the official release of each of these

As always, early reservation is ESSENTIAL to obtain any of these sets, because the cut-off date for orders is often well before the actual release date. You cannot wait until the release of these items, so you can see what they look like, before making your decision if you want to get them or not !!!

12 January 2006

MicroAce announced their tentative releases for June 2006, as follows ...

A0411 103 series EC 8 car set (Osaka Loop line - Orange) - ¥20,500
A0772 103-1000 series EC 6 car set (Joban line - Emerald green) - ¥17,500
A0773 103-1000 series EC 4 car add-on (Joban line - Emerald green) - ¥10,000
A0785 103-1200 series EC 5 car set (Joban line - Emerald green) - ¥16,800
A1480 DE15-2516 series DL + 50 series PC 3 car set 'Furano/Biei Norocco' (JR Hokkaido) - ¥18,800
A1483 DE10-1660 series DL + 50 series PC 5 car set 'Kushiro Marshland Norocco' (JR Hokkaido) - ¥21,900
A1490 JR Mani30 + 5x Koki57000 refrigerated container wagon set with UF26A 'COOL EXPRESS' containers - ¥19,500
A1491 JNR Mani30 + 2x Kokifu10000 + 4x Koki18000 refrigerated container wagon set with R10 containers - ¥19,800
A3603 EF61-8 series EL (Brown) - ¥7,000
A3606 EF61-11 series EL with PS22 pantograph (Blue) - ¥7,000

11th January 2006

Tomix will re-release on the 14th January ...

92150 E231-1000 series EC 2 car Green car set
8338 SahaE231 Tohoku line EC

The 2196 JNR EF81 EL have been changed from a March to an April release.

29th December 2005

Kato announced the release in March of another set of anniversary releases ...

10-255 101 series EC 6 car set Sobu line (powered) (Yellow) - ¥16,000
10-256 101 series EC 4 car addon Sobu line (Yellow) - ¥7,000

... as well as their version of the EF510 EL ...

3051 EF510 - ¥6,400
3051-1 EF510-1 - ¥6,400

26th December 2005

Greenmax announced the release in January of a new set of pre-painted kits ...

1058T Odakyu 3000 series EC 4 car total set - ¥13,600
1058M Odakyu 3000 series EC 2 car mid set - ¥4,600

24th December 2005

Kawai announced another release in mid-January of their hopper series ...

KP236 Hoki9800 Series bogie tank car x2 (Kirin Beer - Sendai) - ¥2,900

Tomix re-released the 115 series EC individual cars, and the 3 car E2-100 'Hayate' TEC set.

They also released the two versions of the EF510 EL.

Latest Publications

Railfan Magazine (02-2006) 

This issue's feature article is about JNR steam locos, and it covers all the main classes, with lots of photos (many even in colour !!!) and tabular data. Also included is a photo & chronological history of the Dr Yellow fleet, as well as details of the new JR West 321 series & Tobu 50050 series cars. 

Even the box for this set is special, not just the plain blue one - it has a sleeve with the train's picture and logos on it, and the slip case is gray and white with a computer drawing of the train on it. The cars are packaged in 4 sets of 2 cars, with the power car and #4 separate (no idea why???) The cars are pearlescent white on the sides, and cream on the roof. The red strip along the side fades nicely on the end cars. The lettering of car numbers, and logos is crisp and readable, and comparing to photos in Railfan magazine, the lettering and other details is quite accurate. However the appearance is spoiled by the obvious lack of a windscreen wiper on the driver's window. The roof details on the two pantograph cars are in three colours of gray, and the cars also have tinted green windows. The connections between the cars allow each one to pick up current and therefore you have the whole train (except for the 2 'dummy' front bogies) picking up power for the motor. The motor runs very smoothly and quietly, and there are two extra weights that you can choose to add to the power car if you wish (depending if you are using interior lighting). I am not sure why these are included, as the train runs OK without them. Fortunately, they are recessed so you cannot really see them through the windows. The headlight uses a bluish LED, but it is not as blue as some of the Kato ones. The wheels are not blackened but you cannot see them very much behind the side skirts. You cannot even see the dummy front bogies, which have been used so there is enough swing within the narrow nose. However they run a lot better than the similar type of bogies that were used on the DE15 snowplough set. The set is made in Japan, which is a departure from most recent Tomix releases.

Except for the E4, this would have been Tomix's best release for the year, and is one of the most unusual and beautiful prototypes released during 2005.

In 1961/62, two prototype sets were built for testing before the opening of the Tokaido Shinkansen. Set 'A' was a two car set, and set 'B' was a 4 car set, and they were test running together as well as separately. MicroAce have released both of these sets, as well as the versions they became after the line was opened in 1964. 

The two car set 'A' is cream with a dark blue stripe above and below the windows. The cab window is a different shape to that eventually used and the headlight are a lit smaller and oval shaped. The windows have a silver edge and are the long type of the original production series. The roof is silver, and one car has twin pantographs. The interior has blue seats with white headrests. The nose cone used to light up, but this is not present on the model. The headlights shine brightly and change colour with the direction. Unfortunately when you run two sets together, there is no way to turn them off. The radio aerials on the cabs are a bit chunky and plasticy looking. One car is powered and runs smoothly and quietly, and wheels are blackened. A small section of the nose is removable, and you can insert a Rapido coupler so that two sets can be coupled together
.

This set is basically the same as the 'A' set, except that it is cream with a dark blue window band and one middle car has hexagonal window. Also one end car has three large 'boxes' on the roof. In this set, it is one of the middle cars that is powered, and one end car and one middle car have twin pantographs.

The 'A' prototype set was converted to the 941 series 'Emergency Relief Train, and it lasted until 1976. The cars are yellow with dark blue stripes, and a silver roof. One cab car acquired a 'box' on the roof and the other acquired two. Also another difference is the removal of the inner pantograph and a different shaped radio aerial. The headlights were made to the large round shape of the production sets. The interior details show various mechanisms/rooms in a pale green colour. Other details are as of previous model.

Again in 1964, the 'B' set was converted to the first Doctor Yellow - the 922-0 class, and it also lasted until 1976. The same changes as with the 'A' were made and the two middle cars acquired camera pods for observation of the pantographs, as well as lots of extra wiring/piping. This modeled with a silver wire. This set kept the twin pantographs and other details are as before.

The 4 car sets come in white or bright yellow hard plastic cases, and the 2 car in a cardboard sleeve with two clear plastic boxes. HINT - get a MicroAce B1140 case, and you can fit a 2 & a 4 car set in the same box.

 This one-off train is used by JR Central together with the Odakyu RSE20000 (about to the released by Modemo) on the Odakyu's Shinjuku to Gotemba 'Asagiri' service. it is white with a blue window band and stripe. The car roofs are silver and the underbody details a dark gray. The cab front windows and painted shape of this set are an unusual oval shape and this has been done well by MicroAce. Each end car has a pantograph, and there are two middle cars without pantographs and one with (which is the powered car). There are also two double deck Green cars (with orange 'JR' logos), with a black fill-in between the two levels that make it look like one large window. Unfortunately, these two cars are slightly different, but MicroAce have just used the same car in reverse for one. The windows of each car are quite large, and you can see the beige sets with white headrests, as well as the car interior floor, which is too high. The headlights (which are white) and tail lights (which are near the roof) are nice and bright, and change colour with direction. The powered car is smooth and quiet (but quite fast), and the wheels are blackened. Although this set was built in 1991, it is quite modern and unusual looking.

All the MicroAce sets are made in China

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DVD Reviews

185 Express 'Kusatsu' - Ueno to Manza Kazawaguchi

Company : Teichiku Records
Title : 185kei Tokkyu Kusatsu 1 (Ueno - Takasaki)
Number : TEBD 38072
Time : 90 minutes
Zone : ALL
Format : NTSC 16:9
Price : ¥3,800

Company : Teichiku Records
Title : 185kei Tokkyu Kusatsu 2 (Takasaki - Manza Kazawaguchi)
Time : 95 minutes
Zone : ALL
Format : NTSC 16:9
Price : ¥3,800

These two volumes make up a set covering one journey, so they will be reviewed together. Each one starts with an introductory chapter showing run-by scenes of the train in many places. Then you have a choice of 3 selections ...

• Take the whole journey or select which station you want to start at by selecting on a map.

• See a review of the 185 series cars (the same on both disks).

• See a series of run-bys at various locations (different on each disk).

This is quite an interesting trip, as you go from the urban sprawl of Tokyo at Ueno, to the flat built up areas all the way along the Takasaki line, and then gradually more rural areas along the Joetsu line to Shibukawa, and then into the mountains after that on the Agatsuma line. This line parallels river canyons for quite a lot of the way, and the view out the side window would be quite spectacular if you could see it.