If I had the room and resources I'd love to do a layout with contemporary Japanese architecture with some traditional. Very cool but yeah... rarely does anything work as advertised lol.
Pretty much what I am aiming for here, to be honest. A lot of what I want to scratch-build for my city scenes are buildings that have been erected since I was there and never got to see, or things I would have loved to have gone to but did not know about when I was. I wanted to make sure I had water somewhere so I could include a Toro Nagashi scene. I had to learn how to make better pine trees because once I decided I wanted to include a shrine, Kamishikimi Kumano was the first and only choice. And I never saw it but Kayashima Station is one of my favorite things in all the world - the town fought so hard to keep an old tree that they built the train station AROUND it instead of culling it. Heck, one of the main reasons I wanted to include an airport at all is so I could build a farm into the runway and have protestors out front, just like Narita Kokusai. These are all things that make Japan special (at least to me) and I wanted to at least attempt to include. Like you said, though, what's in my gourd doesn't always translate to irl HAHA We'll see how it all turns out, but I definitely want to have more than just random structures and track on plywood by the time I'm done. Have thought about this way too long to not have a few tricks up my sleeve
the 2-car passenger train that I preordered (FIVE MONTHS AGO) for my city released and is on the way, but this 3000 that Greenmax has on preorder right now is looking awwwwwful sexy to me. Been staring at the screen a little too long so far today. I don't even have a functioning segment, of even a partial layout, I have a shload of things I need to get first to finish what I've already started, and here I am already thinking about swap-out trains. This hobby is DEFINITELY going to bankrupt me
well this has been an eventful morning already... Yellow van man was here bright and early, opened up my box and was wildly disappointed. I had preordred these Tomix Type 2000 shells with Evangelion graphics (because let's face it, if you're trying to do anything resembling Japan without something Neon Genesis Evangelion and/or Gundam then you're just doing it wrong haha) and pantos to match, since they were special design for this shell. Purchased in early February, just came today. The ones I got had no windshields or A/C units for the roof, just the painted shells. I didn't take pictures because I did not want to open the boxes, but HS said that I could return them for exchange or in-store credit, which surprised me given that they were preorders. Still, am boxing them back up and heading to PakMail on my way to work. This is what they were SUPPOSED to look like, and - truth be told - was less than impressed with the quality, with or without windows. The painted graphics are fantastic, but after that exactly zero detail or personality, inside or out. If someone told me they printed these out on a resin printer in their bedroom I'd totally believe them. I purchased off a drawing, not sure I would have had I been able to see the "finished product" (I put that in sarcastic quotes because you still need a power chassis for one and a trucks/trailering kit for the other, which is more $$ than the shells themselves). Maybe that's the takeaway here - buyer beware, eh? definitely would be fun - absolute color explosion and it is 110% protoypical, not just something silly that someone came up with. But now that I've seen them in person, that 3000 is looking even better to me. I guess if I can get something I actually really like without being stuck with something am not thrilled with, it all works out the way it should, but can't say am not a tad disappointed - I waited a long time on these.
One of the downfalls of 'preorders' and/or buying online. Like Forest Gumps momma always said... "It's like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're gonna get !"
One door closes, another one opens, I guess - and sometimes there's goodies outside it! This hasn't even been marked as shipped yet so was not at all expecting it, but something else I purchased ages ago and had to wait for it to come back into stock. This might be my favorite passenger train ever, is such an original design imo. Never rode it, but have always wanted to. The lighting in here is weird today because of the weather so photos are not great, I should probably find a better way to take pics but that's neither here nor there lol so these photos do not do justice. Such a well-detailed model. Love it! And tell me Kato doesn't know EXACTLY what they're doing Basic train set comes in a cardboard box with styrofoam wells. You want the book case for it to store in? Yeah, you need to buy the expansion set for that! (I was going to anyways, but it still makes me chuckle)
I’ve taken the 353 a few times on the Chuo line on the way downtown or the Narita express to the airport. More than the basic fare, but when you have little kids and bags, it’s nice to have a guaranteed seat during rush hour. I think the 353 is a little newer than your prototype but it’s got the same style. Very comfortable. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Have never even seen the 353s in-person, either - both were put into service well after I was back home (I got out in the beginning of 2005 but was back in San Diego from Christmas POM until my separation, was TAD to FTCSPAC, so I left Japan in late 2004). The 353's are a little sleeker and not quite as spaceship-looking - which I have to admit I still prefer haha - and I do like them, just not nearly as much. If I ever get the chance to go back to Japan, though, I definitely do want to take a ride on the E259, just to say I have. I don't even care where to. On a funny note, Chuo was still running the super-boxy 201s when I was there - I remember the E231 being the coolest looking train around. Fast-forward to 2022, is now one of the oldest and plainest in the entire city! I still dig it though, will always be old school cool to me
was just going to bookmark this page for future reference once I can get started on my lower level, but figured would share it in case anyone else is looking for creative lighting solutions as well. I could spend hours (not to mention hundreds lol) on this site! https://evandesigns.com/
it's funny that I just dropped almost $150 for stuff to scratch make a single building and it wasn't even everything on the build list! On the other side of that coin, though, it is going to be one of two centerpiece structures for my city and by far the biggest and baddest. Got a couple of other things that am not quite ready for but found online at a great price so threw them in, as well - I got to see my paycheck actually in my account for a whole few hours this time. Felt good while it lasted HAHAHA Am just stoked to be moving in a positive direction again finally after all the mess that has gone on lately with the house and Mother Nature and all. This is all moving so much more slowly than I originally envisioned, so at this point any progress at all gives off lots of them fun vibes
I'm going to go ahead and assume my mailman pretty much hates me lol but came home for lunch and found Round 1 of new building mats on the porch - a 4" HDMI Raspberry Pi screen, some Just Plug spotlights and red blinkers, a bridge kit I had 3D printed, and some amazing acrylic sheeting from my new favorite Etsy store hahaha More is on the way! With the balsa sheet I ordered for my train station on backorder until like 2041 probably, hopefully all this shows up and I can start building SOMETHING soon.
My arms have apparently gotten shorter, because I could not get these directions far enough away to read them. I am teetering on the edge of needing glasses to actually see and being too stubborn to use readers, so I just took a look at the pictures and pieces as best I could and decided to wing it! Is just pushed together for now, I will want to paint it since brown and beige don't do much for anybody, myself very included (!!!) but this will be a fun little downtown stop, no need for a full station. Most Tokyo tram stops are street-level anyhow. I dig it. only kicker is this kit is designed to snap into Kato's Unitram roadbed so I had to file off all the mounting holes on the bottom, and it will have to lip under the track like this to set flush on the ground now. Fun little kit, though - has more decals than parts, will look really good when complete.
you guys ever come across something that makes you think you are not nearly as smart as you think you is? I have about 350-400 different photos I've saved from all over to get ideas for my layout, but part of what I've wanted from the beginning is a gondola lift that is modeled at least in part after Mt Takao, also home to Japan's steepest operating cable car. I have been racking my brain trying to figure out how to make something even remotely similar to the Momiji-Go cable car for some time: what I had originally planned to do was (stay with me here!) buy a 3D printed trolley shell and cut it into 3 sections with a microsaw. Then, cut the bottom edges at an angle and mount each section back onto the frame, then cut styrene pieces to make the section joiners for the roof. It won't even be powered, is basically just there for looks, but this thing has been giving me nightmares. Then, like an absolute tool who never even thought to look for another alternative, I randomly came across this NIB Kato car last week and realized that all I'd have to do would be take it out of said new box and paint some freaking stripes over the writing and it would be very near perfect for what I want. Total derp moment lol Just came FedEx, will save me at least 10hrs of swearing and miscutting and whatnot. Score!
now I just need to get some small bottles of paint and figure out how to use the cordless airbrush I bought. Ought to be a relatively easy first project, solid lines shouldn't be that hard. Is the game plan, at least!
We rode it last fall-I can confirm the photo you posted still matches the prototype. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
In a couple of afternoons with a little bit of clear acetate for windows, styrene sheet to buil out the roof (maybe some filler to blend any seams), and a Kato pantograph I bet you can get it really close. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Will definitely add the panto, maybe try to fab up those round headlights and figure out how to make and print a waterslide for the front badge, but make no mistake - am painting this sucker as-is and that's that, no ridiculousness involved. Maybe someday once I have the rest of things taken care of I'll sit down and try to make something more prototypical, but for now I'll be perfectly happy with just some paint. The more I think about it, though, I'm pretty sure I need to get a second one for the other car (Aoba-Go!), as well. Maybe even have them passing like this and get some figures taking photos to fill them both with? Could be fun.
