How do I model a railroad set in Asia???
Yes, i kno it’s a broad question but i need to find some good resources.
At my LHS, the only thing they got are Kato n-scale japanese buildings and some special order japanese bullet trains… it would be interesting to model a line weaving thru Chinese rice fields! or a Tokyo city scene!
Back in the day when The United States was THE industreal powerhouse a lot of US built locomotives were exported. Most likely the railroad you want to model used at least some US built power. The rolling stock might be harder to come by. You might find some Graham Farish (British) cars to represent the local freight cars. Local passenger service could be a real challange to model.
Well Dorothy, Tokyo is in Japan not China but regardless there’s lots of stuff out there if you Google around, maybe even scratch build something??? Oh I forget!!! Everyone wants RTR.
There is at least one guy on railroadforums.com that either lives in Tokyo or visits frequently and has a love affair with the Shinkansen (Bullet) trains and the Japanese subways.
Bachmann has also produced some Chinese prototype engines. Kato produces Japanese prototype stuff as far as I know…
How well do you know your prototype?
China still runs steam. So, if you like steam, you could model that. I’m not sure what configurations they would run though…
Tom
Trainworld has Bachmann (I think) Chinese diesels in their ads.
For inspiration, do a Google Image search on Railways of China, etc.
Bob Boudreau
Rather rare now, for more steam, try Poland.
In December, near GuangZhou, freight trains with diesel-electrics like Bachmann’s offerings, and passenger trains with straight electrics. Frieght cars appear to be very similar to American of 40 years ago, with different paint schemes.
who is dorothy? [:(!] … yes Tokyo is in Japan and Bangkok is in Thailand…
newayz… i don’t think the rolling stock and locomotives will be too hard to find, its just that I have absolutely no clue where to find structures for locations such as China and Vietnam. I’v been to Vietnam before, and I can assure everyone that the structures there are usually quite different. Add to the fact that I’v never really done any scratchbuilding before… [:(]
thx for help guys!
You might try a gardening place that has stuff for miniature oriental gardens.
I suspect Dorothy is a reference to the Wizard of Oz, as in “…not in Kansas anymore.”
There was an episode of Trains and Locomotives on RFD-TV Monday about steam trains that are still operating in China. The majority of Chinese steam engines were 2-8-2 Mikado types. There are even a couple of excursion railroads in the U.S. that use Chinese 2-8-2 Mikado engines because the Chinese were still building steam engines five years ago.
Since Kato is a Japanese company, they most assuredly make models of Japanese trains. Try looking at Kato’s Web site – the Japanese one, not Kato USA.
I think one of them was in Oklahoma?
Tom
The History Channel did a good special on Japanese rail from the early steam days up to the bullit trains.( I think it was a Modern Marvel episode) I know they sell these videos on their web site. You want a lot of steam try Cuba.
There is a great layout doing the rounds in the UK show circuit set in Africa, it’s in HOn30 or something like it anyway, (Narrow gauge possibly meter on HO track) everything is scratch built except the steam loco chassis. the railway runs through the bush past elephants and giraffe feeding in the acacia trees, then through open country with lions and chetah and eventually into a small station over a trestle bridge with a river and crocodiles and hippo underneath[:O]
If i could scratch build stuff like that i would do Africa i think[:P] this topic has got me thinking[;)]
Cow catchers are big enough. Can you image how big an elephant catcher would have to be. Boy, this went off topic.
There is bound to be a domestic Japanese building kit industry but you’ll need someone who can read the websites for you to order some.
I love the idea of modelling Thai or Viet or Philippine railways but I fear you are in for scratchbuilding. There are plenty of books on the architecture…
wow thanks for the help ppl!
robengland: who needs books when u can go there and witness it urself? hehe… I think i m gonna travel Asia rite after graduation from university (thats rite, i m that young!) to chek things out.
i like that african railroad idea too.
i only wi***hat cable tv up here had such great programing… Canadian TV lacks the punch of the American networks… [:(]
Oh to be young again and backpacking thru Asia… sigh. Hope you plan to take a year for it.
I posted a thread here a while back because I too went to Vietnam, about five years ago, and was curious what it would take to model a RR there. As far as rolling stock goes, there was an article referenced in the thread that named a few items. They were:
1.GE U-8b with a box car and a passenger car
2. French 2-6-2 and an French diesel similar in appearance to the U8-b
3. A French 0-6?-0 diesel
5. French 2-10-0
Basically most of their stuff is French, obviously. I’ll see if I can dig up the thread and post a link
Found the thread:
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=-1&TOPIC_ID=14703&REPLY_ID=227460#227460
Try this forum
http://www.trainmodel.com/forum/dvbbs/list.asp?boardid=10
In Chinese, but lots of photos