Does anyone know if it is possible to order items from Kato Japan that are not available via KatoUSA? In particular, I am trying to order Kato 28-952, N Scale Carrying Case For North American High-Level Passenger Cars For 6 Cars. It apparently is not available here in the USA, but I can see that the Kato Japan store has it for sale. I tried registering to become a customer, but it is clearly set up for Japanesse customers only. Is it possible to order things through old fashion mail? Any guidance would be appreciated.
There was at least one importer to the U.S.:
Why not contact Tonyās and see if they can get them again?
Good Luck, Ed
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Keep in mind if you order from out of the US, the possible new additional costs for being an American.
I had great service and prices from suruga-ya.com. Details below of my order. Delivery was under 2 weeks from Tokyo to Chicago. I only buy online if a vendor also has a physical store. Surugaya has a physical store in Tokyo.
Complete order mail at Suruga-ya.com
| ### suruga-ya reference@suruga-ya.com via suruga-ya.jp | Jan 29, 2025, 10:37 AM | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| to me |
|
Order Confirmation
Product name Quantity Total
1/160 JR 200 Series Tohoku Shinkansen Set (6-car set) [92641] x 1 17,940JPY
Subtotal: 17,940JPY
Shipping fee: 0JPY
Shipping discount: -0JPY
Shipping method: EMS
Commission: 900JPY
Order Total: 18,840JPY
Thank you for your order!
If this is not your order, please contact reference@suruga-ya.com
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I like the idea of this. Unfortunately since the end of January, tariffs are now being applied to packages of any value. I would presume, though, that customer service there would guide you through the likely delays or costs involved in ordering from them now.
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Yes, I saw this, but the pre-order ended in 2022. I sent them an email asking if it is still available. I will update this thread when I hear back from them.
Even before the tariffs and all that started I still remember shipping from Japan on eBay being incredibly expensive. I donāt even want to begin to guess what itās like now.
A lot of companies are just suspending shipments to the us, including Japan Post (although some of the private carriers are still shipping). Just got another notice today from another company.
Good luck, I guessā¦
Surugaya didnāt charge me for shipping. It was included in the price. In dollar terms it was about $123 for a six car series 200 Shinkansen. Very reasonable.
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Well, thatās not too bad then. Honestly it sounds cheaper than what a lot of US companies are charging for their stuff nowadays. Walthers would probably want over 500 for them if they made them.
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I stopped buying from Walthers. Not only are their prices too high but their shipping is too. I bought a few n scale passenger car trucks. They come in little packets you could fit in a wallet. They shipped it in a box the size of a 4 slice toaster. And charged $20 to ship it from Milwaukee to Chicago. Forgetaboutit.
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20 bucks for shipping? Nope. Not happeninā, Brah. I thought they were getting bad wanting 11 bucks.
I found a great website in Japan for ordering Kato products. It is HobbySearch at https://www.1999.co.jp/eng/rail. Unfortunately, they sent me a very polite email informing me because of the confusion surrounding tariffs, they are suspending shipping to the USA for now. Frustrating.
Iāve read that almost nobody is now shipping to the USA from any country.