So when are KATO or TOMIX going to release a monorail system?

[Mudkip Orange]

Tama, Osaka, Haneda, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Tokyo-Disney, and Dubai all use essentially the same sized trains and beams, with only styling differences. A single set of standard track pieces and a single standardized motor (with different bodyshells) could conceivably cover every straddle-beam monorail in Japan.

[quinntopia]

And Seattle too! 

[Shashinka]

Mono = 1
Rail = Rail

[to2leo]

...when US gets a Shinkansen line 

[CaptOblivious]

...when US gets a Shinkansen line 

…and Micro Ace releases a model of it to the American market ;)

It's funny, Disney had working models of their monorailb for sale. Cheap looking and the demo units were clearly cheap running too-a cheap toy in every sense. But I bet it could be improved. Id guess it at roughly HO scale.

[bill937ca]

I translated 'nine gauge monorail' into Japanese and a couple of blog entries came up with photos of N gauge monorails.

http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/dccmodel/15828783.html

http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/doragon76615/1917699.html

But you never see them on the market.  Maybe they were not commercially successful.

[disturbman]

With a little kitbashing (maybe even with a paper model) it might be possible to transform a normal train in a monorail. The rail won't look right but the train yes.

[jappomania]

I translated 'nine gauge monorail' into Japanese and a couple of blog entries came up with photos of N gauge monorails.

http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/dccmodel/15828783.html

http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/doragon76615/1917699.html

But you never see them on the market.  Maybe they were not commercially successful.

it's a long time I search a monorail system in N scale
noboby produced this type of train excluding Wuppethal monorail around 500-600 GBP!!! (in H0 is much simple, you find Disney, old Shuko monorail and E-R model Sidney monorail, I don't know more....)

those guys is amazing
http://dreamland-monorail.seesaa.net/
http://members2.jcom.home.ne.jp/li_7_1393/NewLoco/Monorail/index.html

I know DDF make a satic model of Tokio airport monorail but the rest is all self made
http://notaro.ndap.jp/nscale.html
this model run inside Haneda airport layout
http://haneda.keizai.biz/headline/photo/215/

if someone know more, please reply, thank's

ciao
Massimo

[quinntopia]

Massimo, those are really cool links.

I think this has been posted here before, and its not Japanese, but it is a monorail and it is N Scale...
http://www.hielscher-dampfmodelle.de/cms/index.php?page=shop.browse&category_id=19&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=38

[bikkuri bahn]

Two words: niche product.  But could find a decent market perhaps in N. America, where people even today seem overly enthralled with monorails as the savior of public transportation- witness the famous "The Simpsons" episode lampooning it.

[jappomania]

Massimo, those are really cool links.

I think this has been posted here before, and its not Japanese, but it is a monorail and it is N Scale...
http://www.hielscher-dampfmodelle.de/cms/index.php?page=shop.browse&category_id=19&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=38

yes, this is Wupperthal monorail, it's brass made and sincerly not so good compared with price, my friend in Milano bought one and it's over 2 years that try to sell to me this  (too much overprice)

ciao
Massimo

[quinntopia]

where people even today seem overly enthralled with monorails as the savior of public transportation- witness the famous "The Simpsons" episode lampooning it.

Bikkuri - Have you not heard of the infamous Seattle Monorail Project?  This is not the existing Monorail from the 1960 World's Fair that still runs on a short segment downtown, but a full on commuter line.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle_Monorail_Project

The wikipedia article does a pretty good job of summarizing the issues that ultimately killed it, but they don't go into much detail on some of the cost over-runs, which included some fairly extravagant 'art' to be built for each station.  A nice idea if you can afford it, but as all things typical in this city, they have big dreams they cannot afford!

[quinntopia]

yes, this is Wupperthal monorail, it's brass made and sincerly not so good compared with price, my friend in Milano bought one and it's over 2 years that try to sell to me this   (too much overprice)

I agree, very expensive, especially when taking into account the conversion of Euro's to dollars!  I would love something like this, but the video itself is not too complementary of the performance!