They would come in very handy for any “What if?” layouts. A simple re spray and hey presto, you have a layout showing a British town with foresight to retain trams from the 50s or 60s, as I think these look like they are from that vintage. Likewise they won’t look out of place on a modern scene either! Croydon and Manchester trams seem to follow the European model of effectively being a light railway with street access, so I think it has loads of scope. Terrific buy mate 👍🍀
Funny after watching your video, it got me thinking where I had seen Kato trains before. Well back about 20 years ago I went to Switzerland and in a place called Interlaken there was a lovely toy shop [now a tourist tat shop :( ] however in there they did ngauge kato trains, wonderful models, always thought, one day. Well my thinking is if it is good enough for the Swiss it is good enough for me.
Inspired by your videos about Kato trams and Pocket Line I took the plunge and bought: The super compact CV1 track pack, an oval with 150mm radius curves. The CV2 track pack with two points which allows you to create a layout with a passing siding. The Kato MyTram, a three section, modern articulated tram. I believe based on trams in Hiroshima. It has directional lighting and runs beautifully. The Pocket Line steeple cab freight set with the loco in red. Total from Amazon Japan delivered was £120 including UK VAT. I'm absolutely delighted with it all. Now seriously tempted by the Kato TV1 tram-specific track pack and another tram. Probably the retro 60s Tokyo one made by Modemo, another Japanese company, which is £35.
Thanks for the review Mike. I rather like the electric locomotives, trolleys/trams and had the good fortune to ride a vintage trolley in British Columbia 2 summers ago. Great fun and I thought to myself as it went around a ridiculously sharp curve that this would be ideal for a small space. After your review of the generic steeplecab I went out and bought one and have it on a small loop of track in my home office. I recently received the red and yellow trams as they were so well priced, about $47 CDN each, from Plaza Japan. They did not disappoint. Like yours they operated smoothly right out of the case. Thanks for making us aware of what's out there and keeping those of us with smaller resources engaged in the hobby!
Great video. I think trams generally offer huge bang for buck as they give you all the interest and fun of an additional thing running round your layout at far lower cost than a freight or passenger train. Trams are also great for automated shuttle services running in the background while you control other trains on the rest of the layout yourself. A ready-to-run automated shuttle module costs £16. They work on the principle of insulated track breaks at each end of the shuttle route. When the tram reaches the end, the module reverses the track polarity and the tram changes direction. If you want more flexibility and to avoid track breaks another budget option is an Arduino board plus infrared sensors for around £20. Also just seen that Train Trax sell a four car Kato DMU for £76. Unbelievable value. Now seriously tempted by N gauge.
Superb model ! Might relaunch my idea of a GDR tram layout. This is generic enough to look like a 1970s Tatra. I had traveled in one several times in Hungary in summer 1989, I can tell you this one looks convincing to represent one !
Hello, brilliant video,these locos are very for both layouts you have and suits any period perfectly.for the price they are very cheap compared to other brands.
I have the one in the prototypical Hiroshima Electric Railway Hannover livery, unfortunately it's the 2009 release with the older mechanism so it's a bit of a pocket rocket, may to have buy an updated chassis for it some day. :)
I’m thinking ,some Tyne and Wear PTE decals you have a kind of metro train on a shoe string as you say use your imagination plus you can get N gauge buses for the Newcastle area ,metro with not much effort train wise ,what you think 😊😊 Thank you all the best Mark
Up until the 1950's the United States had interurban railroads. These electric lines ran town to town through usually rural sometimes suburban countryside. They also hauled freight pulled by light to medium electric locomotives. Many lines that didn't deiselize were killed off by buses and trucks as the modern highway system evolved.
From WO: "The Iowa Traction Railway Company (reporting mark IATR), formerly the Iowa Traction Railroad Company, is a class III shortline railroad operating in the United States as a common carrier. It was originally founded in 1896 as the Mason City and Clear Lake Railway, a passenger carrier. Business has been exclusively freight since 1937. One of the only remaining freight railroads in the United States to use electric locomotives, the company's main line connects Mason City and Clear Lake, Iowa. The railroad also serves Rorick Park near Mason City." Still operating in 2024!
They do make an azuma, but yes it would be good. The one Dapol Wagon I have is awful by comparison to the kato ones when it comes to running yet cost twice as much. Usual UK model railway attitude, looks and detail more important than running
They did make a Class 373 and recently re-issued it in the newer Eurostar livery. The original runs were imported into the UK (and I'm told sell second-hand there for a mint), dunno if anyone bothered importing the later runs in retail quantities. The older ones had been relatively cheap in Japan until recently, I bought my slightly damaged set for around £40.
Been watching a load of small/micro Japanese layouts (you know what the RU-vid algorithm is like, once you've watched one...) and I think Kato is hard to beat in N. I have Kato chassis under my OO9 locos. Great stuff. Cheers
Local shops are selling these at something equivalent to £28, is international shipping really that costly? Btw this yellow livery looks a lot like the trams in Lisbon.
