buying kato n gauge RHB stock

[whizzo]

Hi i would like to build a small  n gauge layout Rhb using kato my problem seems to be finding a supplier in the uk with stock 

          all seem to be waiting is this a problem caused by brexit ??/

    can any one say, if they have bought from Japan - also are there any taxes to pay as an import ??  of about £500 sterling . 

      any help / ideas would be great thanks for reading  Dave

[jjb1970]

You'd have the 20% VAT, handling charge and international shipping but buying from Japan is otherwise pain free and convenient. And the yen has lost a lot of value this year too so it's not a bad time to look at Japanese sellers.

[jonhall]

I've used Traintrax in the past, but they have changed owner, anyone that has a guagemaster account should be able to supply.

 

Jon

[MrTea]

+1 for Traintrax. Recommended!

 

I’ve also used Plaza Japan for imports.

 

In the UK I’d give Osbourne’s a wide berth. 
 

Ian

[Frutigen]

Good experiences with Plaza Japan here, too, but nothing recent.

[Mike Harvey]

I had an order from Train Trax last week. Everything I wanted was in stock. Highly recommended.

[Ian_M]

Kato use a batch production approach, so once a certain model is sold out then that's it. If we're lucky then there may be a re-run, but often with gaps of years between them.

 

A new run of the Glacier Express sets is due early next year.

 

I currently have stock of a few different locos, the EW1 coach sets, and the recent containers and wagons. What was it you were looking for?

 

Ian (Train Trax)

[Gordonwis]

13 hours ago, whizzo said:

Hi i would like to build a small  n gauge layout Rhb using kato my problem seems to be finding a supplier in the uk with stock 

          all seem to be waiting is this a problem caused by brexit ??/

    can any one say, if they have bought from Japan - also are there any taxes to pay as an import ??  of about £500 sterling . 

      any help / ideas would be great thanks for reading  Dave

 

Supply / availability of Kato RhB series N gauge stuff has absolutely nothing to do with Brexit as it is all manufactured by Kato in Japan.

 

Since the inception of the Kato N gauge RhB stuff I have been buying from Japan and as it has always been (fairly obviously) outside the EU you have to expect customs and import charges of some sort. However the Japanese price is much cheaper so it usually works out somewhat cheaper.  

 

Mr Kato himself was once again this year at the International N gauge show and I chatted to him about my extensive collection all due to Kato's 'foresight' in starting  it all off.

 

I have not posted to my layout thread for yonks so you may not have seen it:

https://www.rmweb.co.uk/topic/165478-paspels-the-first-nm9-layout-and-my-nm9-creations/#comment-4662029

 

Traintrax is the UK specialist . Also available from a number of other UK retailers. If you prefer not to deal with the import from Japan, use Traintrax.

 

For buying from Japan I use Hobby Search Japan (aka 1999.co.jp)

 

 

 

 

Edited October 17, 2022 by Gordonwis

[Gordonwis]

8 hours ago, jonhall said:

I've used Traintrax in the past, but they have changed owner, anyone that has a guagemaster account should be able to supply.

 

Jon

 

The change of ownership has had zero impact on the quality of service from Traintrax

[PaulRhB]

As Ian says the batches are the reason for everyone waiting stock as it tends to sell out in a month or so at the cheaper suppliers. On the plus side it does seem to be every 3-6 months they do another run or rerun of something. 
I’ve had excellent service from Traintrax and usually only a week or two behind the good Japanese shops like PlazaJapan & Hobbysearch. The Japanese shops are slightly cheaper on an order like yours if they avoid the tax but new systems mean that’s pretty rare these days and I’ve found Traintrax very competitive on price compared to eBay sellers. I only still use the Japanese ones because I order stuff not stocked by any Uk shops from other manufacturers so it makes sense to bundle purchases. 

[PaulRhB]

This is the Kato release dates page. 
The year is followed by the month(s) for release and it tends to be 2-4 weeks later arriving here. Some showing two months are colour coordinated. 
https://www.katomodels.com/posters

 

The next RhB releases 2023 due in March

 

Re-run of the original GEX set plus extension set and the Glacier on Tour set. 

 

The last release was the container wagons and another couple of Ge4/4ii’s in July this year. 

[MichaelE]

Those are some really great prices compared to BEMO HOm scale. That is, if my currency converter is working properly.

[Gordonwis]

On 17/10/2022 at 15:39, MichaelE said:

Those are some really great prices compared to BEMO HOm scale. That is, if my currency converter is working properly.

 

 

Oh yes your currency converted is working correctly.

 

I remarked a few years ago to someone (after I got my first Kato Allegra that I am quite happy to put up with the slightly inaccurate gauge issue of the Kato RhB series when it allows me to recreate a scene in 1:150 scale at roughly 1/4 of the cost of setting up a similar scene in HOm...

 

Cost (approximately) breaks down as follows:

 

N 1:150 

Kato Allegra =  guide price £140

Circuit of Kato unitrack (ready ballasted) = can be obtained second hand for about £10

total - say £150

 

HOm

BEMO Allegra = circa £500

A circuit of HOm track = circa £25

Ballast and the 'labour cost' of the ballasting work = say £10

total - say £550

Edited October 18, 2022 by Gordonwis

[Gordonwis]

21 hours ago, PaulRhB said:

 

The next RhB releases 2023 due in March

Re-run of the original GEX set plus extension set and the Glacier on Tour set. 

 

 

 

 

Specifically, what has been announced (and some is still available to pre order on Hobby Search Japan for February delivery) is:

 

10-1816 Glacier Express basic set (loco and 2 coaches plus a bit of straight Unitrack): (Ge4/4III 644, 1 x 1st, 1 x 2nd)

10-1146 Glacier Express 4 coach add on set: (1 x 1st, 1 x bar, 2 x 2nd)

28-186 Glacier Express short coupler set (which includes 2 lengths of short coupling and short 'flattened' coach corridor connections - this spares item is fairly regularly reissued and there are still stocks around in various European and Japanese retailers

10-021 Glacier on tour starter set (Ge4/4III 651 plus 2 coaches plus Unitrack oval of track plus controller (costs over £40 separately) - loco with new motor (see below)

 

Note the additional information for the two sets with locos included  is VERY interesting (what is a 'slotless motor?)

From this product, the motor of Ge4/4-III included in the basic/starter set will be changed to a slotless motor. Along with that, the product number, JAN code, and price will be changed.

 

Edited October 18, 2022 by Gordonwis

[Gordonwis]

For the 'purists' it is worth noting that none of these re-issues will represent the 'here and now'  on the real RhB, because:

 

a) 651 has now lost the 'Glacier on Tour' livery

b) 644 is now in 'large logo' livery

c) for quite a few years now the Glacier Express has not generally been hauled by Ge4/4III.

Edited October 18, 2022 by Gordonwis

[PaulRhB]

2 hours ago, Gordonwis said:

For the 'purists' it is worth noting that none of these re-issues will represent the 'here and now'  on the real RhB, because:

 

c) for quite a few years now the Glacier Express has not generally been hauled by Ge4/4III.

Yes there’s a lot of change going on in the last four years with the introduction of the Alvra sets and the Capricorn units and the Kato range caters for the pre covid RhB quite well. 
The 4/4iii’s did work the stand-alone GEX regularly from the new coaches introduction in 2006 to 2019 though and if Kato oblige with an Alvra set it’s still common to see a GEX set tagged on the the back with a 4/4iii or Allegra hauling the combination. 
 

[Jim Easterbrook]

6 hours ago, Gordonwis said:

Note the additional information for the two sets with locos included  is VERY interesting (what is a 'slotless motor?)

From this product, the motor of Ge4/4-III included in the basic/starter set will be changed to a slotless motor. Along with that, the product number, JAN code, and price will be changed.

Mistranslation of "coreless motor"? A conventional armature has 3 (or 5) "slots" in which the coils sit. A coreless motor armature doesn't have such obvious "slots".

[jjb1970]

My advice would be to check Japanese sellers as Japanese models can be significantly cheaper in Japan. Of course you have the shipping and VAT but the price savings can still be worth having after all that. Model trains are a huge hobby in Japan and retailers who don't offer good service won't last long. 

Admittedly the comparison I am going to make may be meaningless for people in the UK as it concerns a completely different country but here in Singapore I seem to be able to get Japanese outline and Kato foreign outline for less in S$ than £, which is a huge difference. For example the Kato Prince was S$125 and a GWR IEP S$160, delivered. Shipping from Japan to Singapore is cheap and fast, it's more to the UK but still fast. Asian postal services seem to be very good, I get models from the UK and Japan almost as quickly as I got internal UK deliveries.

[JimFin]

On 16/10/2022 at 12:32, whizzo said:

can any one say, if they have bought from Japan - also are there any taxes to pay as an import ??  of about £500 sterling . 

I have bought a lot of items from Plaza Japan over the last few years with no problems and find them very helpful and efficient in all aspects. 

 

Regarding taxes, no import duty, model railways (and all scale models) have 0% tariff under World Trade Organisation rules. Imports to the UK have 20% VAT added on arrival and you will usually have to pay the courier a handling charge as well (£11 to £15) to collect the VAT and make payment to HMRC.

 

HOWEVER - historically there was a £135 personal exemption limit under which tax was not collected and my experience is that this is still being applied.

 

So - maybe split your order into smaller parcels, each under £135 and you may avoid the VAT, since there is no tax to collect, no handling fee either. You need to do the calculation if the multiple postage costs exceed what you might save.

 

 

[whizzo]

Hi all just a note to say Thankyou - i went through Traintrax   for my start regarding layout stock  all went very well after i sorted out a problem with Paypal -  at my end, and found it better to use mr plastic  a very easy company to deal with , well worth a look for stock