Tiny Little Tomix Power Units

[marknewton]

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10300862

 

Can anyone tell me something about these? They'd be very useful for powering vehicles in other scales, but I'm curious about a couple of things. What wheelbase are they? And are they really only intended to run on a level track with no points?

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[Krackel Hopper]

They are for N scale tracks.

 

This power unit is designed for the Hakotetsu line from Tomytec. Basically light weight paper craft kits with a plastic innard for a small degree of structural integrity. They have previously released Tetsudou Musume and Rail Wars Hakotetsu sets. I can't find any exact measurements but it is small. Pictures from these will give you a better idea of size..

 

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10252175

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10279778

 

I imagine it is not recommended for grades because it is probably too lightweight and will not provide traction. Also, no traction tires. I assume no points/crossings because the wheel base is probably so short that the engine will stall out going over any insulated sections.

[cteno4]

Ha tomytec trying to get a slice of the btrain shorty market! But $5 a car for a box wrapped in a sticker? Not much compared to a shorty. Something tells me the are going to be on the train bargain page after a while.

 

Mark I don't expect these will have super power, but maybe with some weight. The tomytec mechs are pretty well made overall.

 

Jeff

[The Next Station Is...]

Ha tomytec trying to get a slice of the btrain shorty market! But $5 a car for a box wrapped in a sticker? Not much compared to a shorty. Something tells me the are going to be on the train bargain page after a while.

The Hakotetsu concept only really made some sense with the character heads sticking out on the Tetsudou Musume and Rail Wars versions, as a crossover trading figure/railway model. These new versions just seem bizarre, and I'm not really sure who the target market for these are.

[kvp]

The motor has Tomytec coupler mounts on both sides and Tomytec train collection sideframe mounts. This means it can be used as a power bogie for scratchbuilt projects or as base for short wheelbase locos. On the other hand, the new trains look like they are meant to extend the head cars to full train length by matching their style. One thing is important tough, the basic hook couplers have to be replaced with rapidos to be able to reliably go though S curves and turnouts, but this will increase the distance between cars. Other than that, if the layout uses Tomix mini turnouts or anything with a powered frog, then the motors wil be able to go though them.

 

Some pictures from the Tomix samples:

And i think these frames might be usable for a really simple Yurikamome build. (with elevated tomix street tracks used as the concrete guideway)

[Densha]

and I'm not really sure who the target market for these are.

The poster kvp posted says Tomytec targets these at children who want their own model train, while their father doesn't want them to run with their expensive models on the layout.

[The Next Station Is...]

The poster kvp posted says Tomytec targets these at children who want their own model train, while their father doesn't want them to run with their expensive models on the layout.

Cue drums. That actually makes sense, as a stepping stone somewhere around the transition from Plarail Advance to proper scale models or B-Train Shorties.

[marknewton]

My thanks to everybody who has replied - I thinks there's enough potential in these little units to make ordering a few worthwhile.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.