The Straco Layout, Part 20 - A Patriotic Traffic Pattern

More cars to add to the busy roads of the Straco layout.

I'm almost at the point where I don't need any more vehicles for the Straco Layout (read more about the whole project here).  After all, I don't like bumper-to-bumper traffic in real life, and I don't find it especially attractive on a toy display. Having too many pieces overwhelms the viewer and just looks like clutter.

However, I'm still open for unusual pieces, as long as they fit the criteria; made in Japan in the 50s-60s, mostly or all-metal construction, originally inexpensive, and still fairly inexpensive. A pair of odd cars caught my eye the other day.

Judging by lithographic colors and the car bodies, I believe they date from the late 1950's (I welcome any additional info about these cars). Note the design -- though made in Japan, these are clearly patriotic vehicles! They're red, white, and blue, and they have stars and bars on them. (click on images to enlarge)

Patriotic, but not official. The odd design of the lithography
attracted me to this pair of vehicles.

Of course, these are American patriotic motifs as interpreted by another country, so the design isn't as iconic as it would have been had these been created in the States. And although they're decorated in an American theme, they're not official vehicles of any kind.

Many of these cheap Japanese tin cars were sold in sets, with the same car body being lithographed as a police car, a fire chief car, an ambulance, and a taxi. These aren't anything like that. They just... are. Which is why I liked them.

So traffic's increased by 20% on my little Straco layout.

The real challenge is what to add next. Cars and trucks are fairly easy to find. Structures and trees are much more difficult. But part of the fun of this oddball little project is the search, so we'll see what happens.

In the meantime, I have a pair of patriotic vehicles that arrived just in time for the Fourth of July!

Total cost for the project:

Layout construction:

• Pegboard: $4.95
• Flathead Screws: $0.40
• Molding: $2.49
• SilClear: borrowed from a friend
• Green Paint: left over from another project
• Wood Screws: $3.60
• Felt Pads: $1.99

Power Pack: $5.90
Small Houses: $3.00
Testor's Gray Paint for road: $1.29
Two Japanese toy cars: $2.00
Bandai Areo Station: $8.99
A.W. Livestock truck: $4.99
Taxi: $2.99
Ambulance: $2.99
Two Japanese patriotic cars: $6.99

Total Cost: $52.57

#Straco

Straco Track: the mystery clears (slightly)

Bandai track with
fiberboard ties

Straco(?) track with
plastic ties

For some time I've been posting on these three inexpensive (OK, cheap) Japanese toy trains I've acquired, and what the connection between them is. In my last post, I talked about the two different types of track that these sets came with. There was an early fiberboard-tie version stamped with Bandai's logo, and a later version where the ties were plastic.

Now these sets came to me through various means. As a child I owned the set with the Santa Fe diesel and two Santa Fe cars (a box car and a refrigerator car). From that set just a few pieces of track survived.

The Straco Express, the most detailed set of the three, I picked up at a toy train meet over a year ago. It had some, but not all, of it's track with it, including the terminal section (that's the piece that has the connectors for the wires running from the power pack).

The other set, which I'm pretty sure is Bandai, I obtained recently through an eBay auction -- primarily to complete my circle of track. It also had a piece of terminal track.

Front to back: Straco Express, childhood Bandai(?) set, Bandai set via eBay

And its those two pieces of terminal track that helped me unwrap the puzzle a little. The eBay set's terminal track was missing one of the posts, while the Straco's was intact. And they were different types. The Straco's terminal track had plastic ties, while the other piece had fiberboard ties.

So I know now that the plastic track goes with the Straco Express, which means that the Bandai fiberboard track belongs to the two earlier sets (I'm assuming that the Straco Express was made after the other two -- it seems newer).

As always, if you happen to know something about these trains -- or know someone who might -- please leave a comment. I'd really like to know more about these toys!

#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 25 - The Oldest New Addition

Traffic continues to increase on the Straco Express layout (read more about the whole project here). I recently found another small Japanese tin toy car to use on the display. (click on images to enlarge)

Like many of the cars I've found, the identity of the manufacturer is unknown. But the general style of the graphics and the colors of the lithography suggest to me that this toy might be from the late 1940's - early 1950's.

My understanding is that most Japanese toys made in the immediate postwar era were marked "Occupied Japan," so I'm guessing the early 1950's. Which makes this sedan one of the oldest on the display. Its patina suggests it might even be older than the red, white and blue cars (see Part 20 - A Patriotic Traffic Pattern).

Similar, but not identical. Note the hood ornaments and crests.

Initially, I thought the car bore a strong resemblance to those patriotic pair of cars I added recently. The hood ornament and grille seemed to be the same.

Placing them side-by-side, it's clear that there are similarities. But it's most likely the cars were made by different companies.

I suspect that both drew inspiration from Cadillac. Both have winged hood ornaments and crests that bear more than a passing resemblance to Cadillacs of the era.

Those hood lights don't look
street-legal to me.

One odd thing about the new car, though. It has roof lights that would be appropriate for an emergency vehicle like a police car or fire chief car, yet the family of four riding inside clearly show this is an automobile for civilian use!

Ah well, it was a simpler time. The sedan is a nice addition to the layout/display, so I'm happy. And it's added a little to my understanding of vintage Japanese toys.

The not-Cadillac sedan (center) fits in nicely with the Straco Express layout/display.

Total cost for the project:

Layout construction:

• Pegboard: $4.95
• Flathead Screws: $0.40
• Molding: $2.49
• SilClear: borrowed from a friend
• Green Paint: left over from another project
• Wood Screws: $3.60
• Felt Pads: $1.99

Power Pack: $5.90
Small Houses: $3.00
Testor's Gray Paint for road: $1.29
Bandai Areo Station: $8.99

Vehicles:

• Two Japanese toy cars: $2.00
• A.W. Livestock truck: $4.99
• Taxi: $2.99
• Ambulance: $2.99
• Two Japanese patriotic cars: $6.99
• Namura Police Car $2.52
• Haji three-wheel sedan $3.00
• Namura lumber truck $3.48
• 1950's  sedan $2.99
  

Total Cost: $64.56




#Straco

Straco, Bandai, and Cragstan -- the hookup

No, it's not a band -- nor a law firm. As near as my limited research can tell, these are the four firms involved with the three disparate toy train sets I own. As I explained last post, these three sets have little in common, save the track supplied with them (click on the images to enlarge).

Left to right: Bandai set, Cragstan set (?), Straco set

So here's it goes: the set on the right, the Straco Express was made in Japan for the J. Strauss Company (Straco). The one on the left was made by Bandai, while the one in the middle was made by Bandai for Cragston (perhaps -- my info on this one is a little sketchy). I've also seen Distler and/or Karl Bub credited with similar trains. In all cases, the names attached were those of either the supplier or the distributor. And the supplier was simply putting their name on product manufactured for them in Japan.

So did Bandai make all three sets? Not sure. The track is identical, but the designs are completely different. Did each company commission a new design from scratch? It's possible, but it seems to me that Bandai would have reused some basic parts for all three -- such as couplers, trucks (wheels), or even car frames. But as you can see from the following comparisons, that's not the case.

The Cragstan(?) set uses directional coupling -- each car has a hook on one end, and an eye on the other, so the cars can only be connected in the same orientation.

Detail of the Cragston(?) box car's couplers.

 The Straco Express features a similar concept, but a different coupler design entirely!

Detail of the Straco gondola car's couplers.

 On the other hand, the Bandai set uses a universal coupler, with both the hook and eye incorporated into the same piece of metal. These cars can be connected facing either direction. It's much cheaper to use the same coupler on both ends, so if Bandai did make all three sets, why not use this design across the board?

If the same track wasn't included in all three sets, I wouldn't be asking these questions, but it seems odd that costs would be saved with track, and not with other measures. It's what led me to wonder if Bandai got the track from another Japanese company. Curious.

Next post we'll compare and contrast the rolling stock of the three sets.

#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 19 - Ambulance (and taxi) chasing

Can a toy train layout have feng shui? I think so.

I'm always on the lookout for more vehicles to add  to the Straco Layout (read more about the whole project here). Small Japanese tin toy cars pop up on eBay all the time. But there are reasons why I don't often bid on them.

First, the starting price is often higher than I'm willing to spend. The guiding principle behind this layout is cheap -- cheap toys, cheap materials, cheap expense.

Second, for a lot of the items that start at the $0.99 level, once the bidding gets going the price shoots past what I'd be willing to spend (which is when I drop out).

But recently I was able to snag two small cars that worked on all levels. First, they were inexpensive (I was the only bidder on both). Second, they were in great shape. Third, they met two other requirements I was looking for -- color variety and additional railroad station-related transportation.

I have to wonder what the quality of care is
with patients riding sitting up in the back of
a two-door ambulance.

The Ambulance -- a splash of color
This layout is unabashedly for toys, and is filled with vibrant primary colors. The problem was that the traffic on the highway didn't have a lot of contrast. The fire chief's car was red, the bus was red, the stake truck was red and yellow, and the cattle truck was yellow. No blue, green, or orange to break things up.

That's why I purchased the ambulance. Its bright blue body is just what I was looking for.

The Taxi - serving passengers
A lot of these small Japanese cars came in sets of four, and were basically variations on  a theme. The same stamped tin car would be decorated as a police car, an ambulance, a fire chief's car, and a taxi. Since I had a busy-looking terminal (judging by all the people lithographed on the sides), I thought a taxi would be nice, especially as a compliment to the bus I picked up at York.

Taxi, anyone? Two in the front, and two in the back.
That cab's packed!

Although the taxi was red and yellow (see above), it still served its purpose. I now have two vehicles serving the station.

A problem of projection
After I received the cars, I noticed something quite interesting -- there's an error on the lithography of the taxi.

The front shows a male driver and female passenger. But the driver's side window shows a female at the wheel. Whoops. The left-hand side of the car repeats the error -- female passenger in the front, male passenger in the side.

So who's really driving? The man or the woman?

It's certainly not a deal-breaker. And conversely, it doesn't make this some kind of super-rare variation that's worth thousands. It's just the way the car was made. And I think it's part of the charm.

Total cost for the project:

Layout construction:

• Pegboard: $4.95
• Flathead Screws: $0.40
• Molding: $2.49
• SilClear: borrowed from a friend
• Green Paint: left over from another project
• Wood Screws: $3.60
• Felt Pads: $1.99

Power Pack: $5.90
Small Houses: $3.00
Testor's Gray Paint for road: $1.29
Two Japanese toy cars: $2.00
Bandai Areo Station: $8.99
A.W. Livestock truck: $4.99
Taxi: $2.99
Ambulance: $2.99

Total Cost: $45.58

#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 7 - Laying down track

I said these screws were tiny!

Read all the installments of the Straco Express layout project here.

Figuring out how to secure the track to the board took some thought. I needed a method that would both hold the track tightly to the board, and do so in a non-destructive fashion. This was important, as later on I (or someone else) could remove the track from the board and have intact track sections, thereby not lessening whatever collector or historical value they may have.

The solution turned out to be very tiny screws. For both the Straco Express locomotive and the Bandai diesel, the gear mechanisms hang fairly low, so I needed a screw head that both had a lip to it, yet was small enough to clear the trucks (wheel and wheel bracket assembly) of the engines.

I did a simple test with a spare piece of track and some of the screws. Looking at the track straight on, I could see that the engines cleared the screws easily. And so I was in business.

 Note the placement of the scews between sections. This
helps keep the joints tight. The middle screw of each
section (far right) prevents lateral motion.

Since each screw only holds down one side of the tie its next to, I placed each one carefully. Every section of track is secured by three screws. The two outer screws are set to the inside of their respective ties (relative to the center of the track section), preventing the track from shifting back and forth. Because the screw for the adjoining section is also set on its tie's inside, the sections are securely held together.

A third screw on the middle tie of the section helps hold the track flat. For the most part, (save where pegboard holes made it impossible), I put the outer screws close to the inside rail, and the middle screw near the outside rail. This helped prevent the track from sliding from side to side. I also alternated which side of the tie I placed the middle screw on, to further limit any potential motion.

The end result was what I had hoped it would be. I don't think the track had ever been that level before, and the trains didn't bob up and down when I did some test runs.

Just a few things to finish up, and then I'll be ready for the post we've all been waiting for: running the trains!

#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 17 - Let's Run Some Trains Again!

The Straco Layout project has been going well, recently (read more about the whole project here). It seemed like a good time to run some trains -- after all, that's sort of the purpose. I'd added a new station (Part 16 - Station-Aero) and had all the locomotives in good repair, (see Part 14 - Bandai band-aid) so it was time to send them around the track and watch what happened.

One thing you'll notice in this video is that all three trains are loud.

The Bandai diesel sounds better than previously thanks to its recent cleaning, but it still made a racket. The worst of the lot was the Cragstan Santa Fe set. It sounded like it had been buried at the beach, unearthed and put on the track. Yikes!

The Straco switcher was still the best runner, but for some reason during the day I shot this, the cars had problems staying on the track, so its segment is the shortest in the video.

Oh well. These are all inexpensive toys that were marginally operational even when new. Nevertheless, I enjoyed getting these trains up and running them again. And I hope you do, too.


#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 5 - Bracing for Impact

Back

Read all the installments of the Straco Express layout project here.

While I was happy overall with using the pegboard as the base for the Straco Express layout,  there was still one problem: stability.

Because of the inherently flimsy nature of both the rolling stock and the track, everything has to be optimal for this cheap little Japanese train to do more than one circuit around. For that reason, I added bracing to the pegboard.

As you can see, it's nothing fancy -- just some screen door molding repurposed. I was also trying to balance between adding  strips to firm up the pegboard and keeping the whole thing as light as possible for portability.

Front

The solution was to go around the outer edges with the molding, and then cross-brace through the middle. I used the existing holes in the pegboard for my screws, which helped keep the whole thing symmetrical, as you can see from the pattern of screw heads when viewing from the top.

I'm still straightening out track sections, but the next significant step is to get the layout board finished. After that, I'll start laying down said track.

#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 1 - Outlining the plan

As if there was any doubt, I've decided to go ahead and build a simple layout for the Straco Express. This cheap Japanese HO-scale electric train is only marginally operational, and needs as many favorable conditions as possible to work.

You can read more about the strange origins of this train set -- possibly built by Bandai for the J. Strauss Company -- in my earlier posts.

What I'd really like to do is just let the train run around a completed circle of track -- at least once. But there are some basic issues I need to address:

1) The metal that the track's made of is very thin, and easily bent. I need to straighten virtually every piece I intend to use.

This is what I have to work with.
Note how the rail at left is splayed out,
compared to the one at right.

2) The metal that the track's made of is really thin, so every time a section was disconnected over the years, it pulled apart a little bit. This meant that when sections were reconnected, they didn't fit tightly together, weakening the electrical circuit. And each time the track sections were pulled apart, the connections just got looser. I'll need to crimp the tubular track back into place with needle nose pliers.

3) The track's old, so there is some corrosion (which hinders electrical contact), and there's some dirt build-up (which also hinders electrical contact). I'll have to give the exposed metal a good cleaning.

4) The track's mismatched. I'm actually having to use track from at least two different sources, and there's a small difference in height. Which means I might have to shim up the slimmer pieces to ensure a smooth transition.

5) The rolling stock's too light. While the locomotive has plenty of weight, the cars it pull don't. So it takes very little irregularity in the rails to have the wheels jump the track. I can't really add weight to the cars, as the locomotive's motor has just enough power to pull them as is. I'll need to make sure the track is as flat and smooth as possible.

So the plan is to build a simple flat surface I can affix the re-straightened and cleaned up track to. It may take a little while. I'll provide updates as the project progresses.

Everyone needs a hobby, I guess!

Read more about the whole project here.

#Straco

Straco Express - The Antiques Roadshow Version

Even if you've never watched "Antiques Roadshow," you've heard this story before. Here's my version:

At a recent toy train show I spotted this 1960's Japanese toy train on a table. It was an HO gauge electric labeled the Straco Express. I'm not normally interested in such things, but there was something appealing about it (possibly the bright colors of the lithography). The set was priced at $25.00, but I was able to talk the guy down to $20.00. When I got back home and looked it up online, I saw that one had recently sold for $2,500! I'm rich!

(Sorry for the screen shot. I wasn't able to get the full entry before it was removed from the site. Click on the image to enlarge.)

Many people have a similar story in mind as they search out antiques and "collectibles" at yard sales and thrift shops. And many definitely have it in mind when they price their stuff!

But such situations are extremely rare. And often -- as in the case of my purchase, not quite true. I did indeed purchase a Straco Express tin toy train. And while it's identical to the one sold in Canada for $2,500, there are critical differences.

First, I don't have the original box, nor do I have any of the little railroad signs and accessories that came with the set. Especially for ephemeral items such as cheap Japanese toys, original packaging seldom survived. That makes it rare, and accounts for a large part of the value. Same with the small accessories, which often disappeared into the vacuum cleaner.

While my Straco Express does have the original transformer (operated by two D cell batteries), I don't have a complete circle of track. So even though the engine runs, I can't really run it -- if you know what I mean. And that also decreases value.

And there's something else. That sale took place on ebay. If I were to put mine up for auction, there's no guarantee I'd get anywhere close to that amount. In fact, there's currently a similar set for sale online, with the original box, and most of the accessories, for $26.00. (Click on image to enlarge.)

The short, Antiques Roadshow-style story is great, but I'm not really $2,500 to the good. But I am in possession of an item that I was happy to pay $20.00 for. And one that has an interesting story of it's own -- which I'll share next post.

- Ralph

#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 8 - Let's run some trains!

Read all the installments of the Straco Express layout project here.

After affixing the track to the board, there was really only one thing left to do -- run some trains. The three Japanese-made trains I had for this setup ran the spectrum of operability.

From left to right: the Bandai, Cragstan, and Straco train sets.

My childhood Cragstan engine would barely move. Early in its life, we had lost the powerpack (Mom wasn't one to keep our toys continually supplied with batteries),  so the engine was mostly just pushed down the track when I played with it. When I put it on the layout, the locomotive whined a great deal, but hardly moved. I suspect internally there are either stripped or misaligned gears.

In the middle of the performance spectrum was the Bandai set. This locomotive had not been run for quite a while, and even with lubrication, it was somewhat balky in its motion. The longer I ran it, the smoother that motion became, but not by much. Here's its inaugural  run on the layout. As you can see, it still has problems with the slight voltage drop on the straight section.



The best-running set was the Straco Express, the toy train I had bought on a whim -- and the one which started this entire project. As you can see, it ran very smoothly. I soon learned, though, not to let the train go too fast. It didn't take much for those featherweight cars to fly off the track!



Although this is the end of this project, it's not necessarily the end of the series. I'd like to find some Japanese tin cars and buildings to add to the layout -- things that are in keeping with the look and the era of the Straco Express.

Total cost for the project:

Pegboard: $4.95
Flathead Screws: $0.40
Moulding: $2.49
SilClear: borrowed from a friend
Paint: left over from another project
Wood Screws: $3.60
Felt Pads: $1.99
Power Pack: $5.90

Total Cost: $19.33


#Straco

Straco Tracks -- the mystery continues

I've written before about the adventures surrounding a vintage Japanese tin train I bought on a whim. In my last post, I debated whether or not to build a simple layout for the Straco Express set. Well, I decided to go ahead, and soon discovered another little puzzle.

As you may recall, I actually have three different HO gauge Japanese toy trains, all apparently from different manufacturers, yet all using the same track. At least, that's what I thought.

As I was looking through the track pieces to find the best ones to use for the layout (which will be a simple loop). In the process, I discovered that the track was made two different ways. What appears to be the earlier version has ties stamped out of fiberboard. The later version has beveled ties made from injection-molded plastic.

Here are some shots of the two types of track (click on the images to expand them to full size). From the top, both pieces look the same (although if you're observant, you'll see the ties have slightly different widths).

 

Turn them over, and the differences are a little more obvious. The rail construction seems to be the same for both (note the tab placement), but the plastic version (bottom in the image  below) is thinner than the fiberboard kind (top in the image below).

The image below provides a little more detail. The plastic version is on the left, and the fiberboard version on the right.

And more detail, still. Here are the fiberboard ties closeup.

And here are the plastic ties. Note how they're beveled. I suspect the reason was to make them easier to pull out of the mold.

Now here's the thing. I have three different trains by (supposedly) three different manufacturers. Which track goes with which? Since I didn't notice the difference right away, I'm not sure.

When I bought the original Straco Express, it came with some track. We dug up an old set I had at home -- the train was completely different, but the track seemed to be the same. When I purchased the third Bandai set, it came with some track, too. But I couldn't say which pieces came with which set.

The only clue is on the back of the fiberboard-tie track. On the straight pieces of track (not the curved) is embossed with the Bandai trademark in the middle of the phrase "Sign of Quality." (no comment)

So the mystery continues. I had originally assumed that -- because these three sets had the same track -- that either they were made by the same Japanese company for different companies stateside, or perhaps there was a Japanese subcontractor who was supplying the track.

Now I'm not so sure. Was the plastic tie track just an improvement by Bandai over their older design, or was this a knockoff by somebody else?

If anyone has answers, please let me know. In the meantime, I'll be cleaning track and checking connections (those closeups show just how badly rusted this track is).

#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 6 - Painting and getting to the point

 Read all the installments of the Straco Express layout project here.

The next step was finishing the board. I had some Douglas Fir green paint left over from  a previous project, and I felt it was the perfect color for the Straco layout. It's a bright green, and rather than depicting realistic ground cover, it presents a more toy-like representation of grass that's in keeping with the bright colors of the Straco Express itself.

That's gonna leave a mark.

After the painting was completed, I worked on another little problem I had. I had purchased the shortest wood screws I could possibly find, but they were still a little long, as you can see.


One option would have been to file them off flush with the wood, using a Dremel tool. But I didn't want to put that much time into the project, plus I wasn't sure I could get the screws down level with the wood without gouging the wood at the same time.

I'm really not that bad a photographer.
The registration's off on the packaging,
which is why the lettering looks funny.

So I purchased some  furniture pads, and the problem was solved. I twisted the pad onto the exposed screw until the pad's adhesive made contact with the wood. Then I just pushed down and a little bit, and the screw tip was completely covered.

Problem solved. And I don't have to worry about the
bracing scratching the table top.

Now on to the next step... laying down the track  (in a way that will ensure it will work).


#Straco

The Straco Layout, Part 18 - Keep on Truckin'

A new vehicle for the Straco layout.

There's been a new addition to the Straco Layout (read more about the whole project here). I've been on the lookout for a few more compatible vehicles to add to the layout. I had a truck from my childhood I could use (Part 11, Truckin' ) and I found a few inexpensive  vehicles at the TCA Eastern Division Toy Train Show at York, PA, (Part 12, Gridlock!).

Since then, I haven't had much luck. eBay seemed a logical choice, but it's also where all the collectors look, so I often lost out to folks who were serious about Japanese toy cars.

I did win an auction recently, though, and it was well within my comfort level (cheap these were originally, and cheap must be my purchase price).

A side-by-side comparison with the truck I had as
a kid (left). Size is comparable -- build quality isn't.

The new purchase is a truck that I'm sure was part of a set. These were often sold in packs of three or four -- identical models with different colors and lithographic designs. If anyone knows anything about this A.W. Livestock truck, please leave a comment -- I'd like to have some information about this toy.

When I added it to the layout, something unusual happened. A pattern emerged. All of a sudden I had two cattle trucks, and one of the trains has a cattle car. Voila! Instant industry.

I'm still looking for vehicles. They must be Japanese in origin, and made in the late 1950's to early 1960's. They must be approximately 2.5"-4" in length. And what I really need is some color contrast. I have two red vehicles, one that's red and yellow, and another all yellow. So the search continues for a blue, green or orange car or truck. That's cheaply made.

We've gone from a random collection of Japanese toys
to depicting a budding cattle industry.

And cheap.

Layout costs:

• Pegboard: $4.95
• Flathead Screws: $0.40
• Moulding: $2.49
• SilClear: borrowed from a friend
• Green Paint: left over from another project
• Wood Screws: $3.60
• Felt Pads: $1.99

Power Pack: $5.90
Small Houses: $3.00
Testor's Gray Paint for road: $1.29
Two Japanese toy cars: $2.00
Bandai Areo Station: $8.99
A.W. Livestock truck: $4.99

Total Cost: $39.60

#Straco

Straco, Cragstan, and Bandai -- the comparison

I've been puzzling over these three toy train sets that have come into my possession. They all share the same track, but not much else. I know that one set was made by Bandai, and that the other two were made by Japanese companies for American importers. Did Bandai make all three, or did they all buy their track from a Japanese subcontractor?

Front to rear: Straco, Cragstan (?), and Bandai sets

If anyone has any info about these sets, I'd love to see it!

In the meantime, here's a comparison of the three sets. All are approximately HO scale, and all three operate off a battery power pack. The Bandai set consists of a diesel, a tank car, a gondola car, and a caboose. The Cragstan(?) set (I'm not sure it is Cragstan) is made up of a diesel engine and two box cars. The Straco set has a fairly detailed diesel switcher, a box car, gondola car, and caboose. Here's how they stack up.

Cragston(?) diesel (top) and Bandai diesel (bottom)

While the Cragstan diesel is more proportionally accurate, the Bandai engine required more involved manufacture. Cragstan's engine is basically a flat surface with applied lithography. Although it's not very clear from the photo, the Bandai has windows punched in the frame, as well as embossed detail. Both have a two-part body assembly (although it's easier to see where the nose section attaches on the Bandai piece).

Bandai gondola (top and Straco gondola (bottom)

As you can see, the Straco cars are shorter than those in the Bandai set. It's difficult to say which was more expensive to manufacture. The Bandai car has the entire frame painted black, including the interior. The blue sides have raised details stamped into the metal. The Straco car has flat sides but is lithographed both inside and out. Plus the ends are a more complicated folded metal shape.

Bandai caboose (top) and Straco caboose (bottom)

As handsome as most of the Straco set is, the caboose almost looks like an afterthought, especially when compared to the Bandai version. Both have bent ends, but the Bandai caboose has punched out sections to better simulate railing. The Straco caboose has smooth sides and roof for easier application of the graphics, while the Bandai used a stamper to provide detail (and open windows). It seems to me that if Bandai was contracted to produce the Straco set, they could have saved money by reusing the frame of their older caboose, and just putting a smooth metal body on top of that.

So are these three sets all products of the same company, or do they all have different sources?

#Straco

The Straco Express and the Mystery Train(s)

The problem with being interested in ephemera is that few others are (hence the designation) -- even the folks that created it. Take, for example, the cheap train set I picked up at a toy train meet. I'd written before about the Straco Express, and how -- remarkably -- it shared some characteristics with another train I'd owned for years. Specifically, they had exactly the same track (like the section at left).

Recently I found another toy train online, and successfully won it at auction. I wasn't necessarily interested in the train, just the track. Because between the track that came with the Straco Express and that still with my childhood train, I was exactly one curved piece short of a completed oval. Although the trains were approximately HO scale, they wouldn't work on modern track. The flanges of the wheels were too wide. Only the track that came with the trains had rails tall enough to accommodate the wheels.

The strange thing is that this train bears no resemblance to either of the other two that I have, as you can see from the photo, below (click on the image to enlarge). My suspicion is that the same Japanese company was contracted by three different firms to create an inexpensive HO scale train set. It would explain the use of the same track.

But that's where the resemblance ends. Even if the trains needed to look a little different for each client, I would expect some elements of manufacture to be recycled to further cut costs. If all three had the same couplers, for example, no one would really notice. Or the same trucks. But each of these trains using completely different tooling.

A recent discussion in the Train Collector's Quarterly publication had some additional information about these trains. The one I recently purchased was made by Bandai back in the early 1960's. Did Bandai make the other two as well, or did they further sub-contract and purchase the track for their sets from yet another Japanese firm?

Next post I'll go into more detail about what I've discovered so far about these mystery trains, and how they differ from one another.

#Straco

Straco Express - A closer look

Here's a little bit more on this toy train I've been nattering on about.in the last two posts.

The Straco Express was an HO-scale electric train imported by the FJ Strauss Company around 1960. The set consisted of a locomotive, a boxcar, a gondola car, and a caboose. It also included an oval of sectional track, three railroad signs, and a battery-operated transformer.

Below are photos of each of the cars (click on each image to enlarge), and a special bonus video!

The locomotive is the most detailed component, and -- as it's all embossed metal -- the most complex to assemble. It mostly resembles an EMD SW-1, a very popular switch engine (especially among toy train makers) at the time.

The boxcar is also embossed metal and shares the same frame as the gondola car. I'm not sure the U.S. Mail ever had boxcars painted red, white, and blue -- but Lionel did. Their 6428 U.S. Post Office boxcar was offered in the early and middle 1960's.

The gondola car shared the same frame as the box car. It had a lithographed floor -- an impressive amount of detail for such an inexpensive item. The edges of the body are curled in, giving the sides added strength. And although very hard to see the white letters against the pale yellow sides, the gondola is marked N.Y.C. (New York Central)

To me, it looks like the creative team ran out of gas when they got to the caboose. The locomotive and freight cars are fairly well proportioned, but the caboose is a little small. Nevertheless, it still has an impressive amount of detail, particularly the railings on the ends of the car.

Although I don't have a complete circle of track, I did have enough to do a test run. The battery-powered transformer's control isn't very subtle -- it's basically on or off. Here's the Straco Express, barreling down the track across the wasteland of my desk. All aboard!


 - Ralph

BTW - If anyone has an extra curved section of track from an FJ Strauss, MRK, or Americo tin toy train set, let me know!

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