In mid-April I started ordering items to build a new layout in N scale with Japanese 1:150th N scale products from Tomix, Kato, Modemo and Green Max. My interest grew out reading about the of the work of some East Penn Traction club members who created a table top 2-rail trolley layout that they called an Easy Trolley. They had been looking for a way to attract people to the hobby without needing carpentry, soldering, rail-spiking or other advanced modeling skills. My HO layout seemed to be an endless stream of soldering, painting and other chores that kept pushing operation further into the future. My hobby is traction not soldering!
Tomix has offered a range of tight curves in sectional track suitable for street trackage for a couple of years now. Street track is easily created with Tomix’s snap together covers that turn roadbed track into street track. Both Tomix and Kato offer elevated viaduct sectional track off the shelf. Modemo offers a wide range of current although foreign electric cars (this includes streetcars, high platform interurban cars and suburban cars which are often similar to subway cars). These have a good reputation although production runs are very limited like most other Japanese model railroad items (and in fact most consumer items in Japan).
Most trains in Japan (and seven streetcar lines) operate on a track gauge of 1067 mm (3ft6in). Over 86% of today’s lines in Japan are 3ft6in gauge. The next most common gauge is 1435 mm (4ft 8½in). This gauge is used for Shinkansen high-speed trains and these trains are modeled at 1:160 in Japan. Japanese model makers have however chosen to use the normal N scale track gauge of 9 mm for all models between 1067 mm and 1435mm (Tokyo streetcars were 1372mm or 4ft6in).
Although many of the products are drawn from Japan, my layout is not exclusively Japanese. I operate my cars on the right (traffic in Japan move on the left) and my streetcar lines end at loops (in Japan crossovers and double ended streetcars are the rule).
The layout is located on a 30" x 60" hobby table originally intended to be an extension of my still a building (?) HO layout. At this point I have a double track line with three loops, one at each end and one near the middle. There are three separate unconnected sections of Tomix Easy Track including one 90 degree curve. Further work on the Tomix Easy Track will await investment in more switches and track.
As of this week I have operated for the first time on my layout. The layout is about 50% complete. I am planning to add a car barn with two or three tracks, a single track cutback from the top loop to the double track line across the bottom of the table and a single track interurban line with high platforms and gentle curves across the middle and top back of the table to a rural terminal.
I was hoping to put an elevated line behind the tall buildings, but I do not believe I have enough space for the 9 3/4 inch radius curves. A single track elevated line maybe possible, but this requires further investigation.
Tomix has offered a range of tight curves in sectional track suitable for street trackage for a couple of years now. Street track is easily created with Tomix’s snap together covers that turn roadbed track into street track. Both Tomix and Kato offer elevated viaduct sectional track off the shelf. Modemo offers a wide range of current although foreign electric cars (this includes streetcars, high platform interurban cars and suburban cars which are often similar to subway cars). These have a good reputation although production runs are very limited like most other Japanese model railroad items (and in fact most consumer items in Japan).
Most trains in Japan (and seven streetcar lines) operate on a track gauge of 1067 mm (3ft6in). Over 86% of today’s lines in Japan are 3ft6in gauge. The next most common gauge is 1435 mm (4ft 8½in). This gauge is used for Shinkansen high-speed trains and these trains are modeled at 1:160 in Japan. Japanese model makers have however chosen to use the normal N scale track gauge of 9 mm for all models between 1067 mm and 1435mm (Tokyo streetcars were 1372mm or 4ft6in).
Although many of the products are drawn from Japan, my layout is not exclusively Japanese. I operate my cars on the right (traffic in Japan move on the left) and my streetcar lines end at loops (in Japan crossovers and double ended streetcars are the rule).
The layout is located on a 30" x 60" hobby table originally intended to be an extension of my still a building (?) HO layout. At this point I have a double track line with three loops, one at each end and one near the middle. There are three separate unconnected sections of Tomix Easy Track including one 90 degree curve. Further work on the Tomix Easy Track will await investment in more switches and track.
As of this week I have operated for the first time on my layout. The layout is about 50% complete. I am planning to add a car barn with two or three tracks, a single track cutback from the top loop to the double track line across the bottom of the table and a single track interurban line with high platforms and gentle curves across the middle and top back of the table to a rural terminal.
I was hoping to put an elevated line behind the tall buildings, but I do not believe I have enough space for the 9 3/4 inch radius curves. A single track elevated line maybe possible, but this requires further investigation.