Tomy PLARAIL - New Releases, June 2009

Seems this month is "kissing train" month as Tomy puts out 2 pairs of Shinkansen that can be connected by magnets hidden in retractable noses. All Shinkasen engines each require a AA battery to operate. All Tomy kissing trains can be paired interchangeably.

E3-2000 Series & E4 Max Coupled Shinkansen Set
This one features the new Yamagata servicing Tsubasa (E3-2000) which went into operation this past May 2009. The E4 Max series is a double decker shinkansen.
E2 Hayate & E3 Komachi Coupled Shinkansen Set
These two Shinkasen can be seen coupled in real life. They are used in the Nagano and Tohoku Shinkansen services. They were both built beginning in 1995. E2 Hayate is featured in front with E3 Komachi coupled behind.

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50 Years of PLARAIL!

In 2009, Tomy Plarail celebrates its 50th birthday. Coincidentally, Namikaze Toys is located in Hawaii which is celebrating its 50th anniversary of Statehood! In honor of both, we've created the Hawaii Five-O Loop and share the details of the evolution of PLARAIL!

1959 - Tomy creates Plarail, its first trains were hand powered rolling plastic trains1961 - Tomy releases the first battery powered plastic train sets1970 - The first Plarail logo is released, followed by some redesigns until they reach the modern day version below

It was interesting to read that the signature blue rail has not changed much in 50 years. The first "tsuru tsuru" is literally smooth, "zara zara" is rough, and "giza giza" is jagged.The rail's turning radius was determined by the ちゃぶ台 ("chabudai" - once a popular low tea table). It was 470 mm across and completely contains one circle of Plarail track.

So, to celebrate, Tomy has released the 50th Anniversary Commemorative C-12 Steam Train and Arched Bridge Rail Set. That's a mouth full, but onto the pictures!!!
* all information and pictures gathered from Tomy's website

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The Versatile J-04 Double Length Bridge

We really wanted this iconic blue iron bridge piece in our PLARAIL toolbox, which required buying the Eki to Tsunagaru Ippai Rail Set (literally "Train station and Connect up lots of Rail Set").  Tomy's site has some great pictures for this set here. The bridge is double the length and almost double the height of the small red bridge in the background. This blue variety is structually the same as J-04, which comes in standard red.

These double length bridges can convert to be double width bridges as well.  No extra pieces, just simple ingenious design that allows the bridge to span 2 lengths without a central support leg.

J-04's versatility can help you span those impossible gaps and diagonals.  Expand your PLARAIL imagination with an iron bridge!

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Tomy PLARAIL - New Releases, August 2008

R-28 Double-Width Turn-out Rail

Tomy decides to up the fancy this month by releasing a double-width version of the standard turn-out rail. This new piece is similar to the standard R-11 turn-out rail with the exception being that it serves as dual switch for two trains to divert simultaneously, continue forward or even cut across each others paths. Like the R-11 they can be flipped and used on both sides to divert traffic in either direction.

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And We're Open!

It's been less than three months since we first got the idea in our heads to start importing and selling Japanese toys. To us, it felt like an eternity. Creating the concept, applying for the business, deciding on our products and talking to importers-- sometimes it felt like we were never going to get off the ground. Yet, a few months and a few gray hairs later, here we are. I am proud to formally announce that Namikaze Toys is now open for business and actively taking orders!

Our passion and our beginnings lie in Takara Tomy's wonderful Plarail toy train line and that's where we've decided to start our business. Plarail appeals to both young and old, is easy to setup and has stood the test of time being first introduced in 1959. We hope that you enjoy these products as much as we do and that you continue to stop by and see what else we have in store. We're just getting started!


Namikaze Toys
namikazetoys@gmail.com
http://www.namikazetoys.com
http://namikazetoys.blogspot.com

*edit* For those of you on Oahu, don't forget to head down to the Iolani School Fair and stop by and see our setup at the silent auction. The fair starts today, and the silent auction is being held in Seto Hall, just past the parking structure and before the baseball field. See you there!

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Drowning in Plarail

Hi Folks!

Our first of hopefully many shipments to come just arrived yesterday afternoon and we are ecstatic. The last time we've seen so much Plarail all at once was-- actually, I can't even remember! We're drowning in the stuff now, with TOMY boxes full of Plarail piled high!

Of course, we had to "sample" a few for ourselves to verify quality and I can safely say, the stuff is EXCELLENT. We can't wait to get this stuff moving and into your hands. The store web page is coming along nicely and we hope to have most functionality up within a couple weeks. In the meantime, we're also looking at the possibility of selling on EBAY to get our name out there and spread the fun around to everyone who loves Plarail as much as we do.

One more thing of note-- we will be donating a preconfigured set to the silent auction at the 2008 Iolani School Fair on April 18 and 19. We'll have pictures of the layout that we're donating and it will contain multiple unopened packs of rail as well as a single battery powered train. Stay Tuned!

Namikaze Toys Staff

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Opening Soon!

Hey folks! Hopefully our store will be opening soon and we'll have some actual stock to show you. We'll be sticking to PLARAIL for now, but may add more popular items as time goes by. Until then we'll keep you posted on new releases from Tomy here at our blog. Not all the new releases you see posted will be kept in stock, but we will try to deliver as many high quality products as possible.

We'll also try to add more personal content-- showing layouts, possible modifications and some other tips and tricks to help you create the perfect PLARAIL layout.

Fans of PLARAIL and trains in general, feel free to leave a comment and stop by often!

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