Kato - 10-1570 - Passenger Train, Diesel, Japan - Japan Railways West - 10-Pack

Specific Item Information: With its art-deco inspired styling, the Kato N Scale Twilight Express Mizukaze is a finely made replica of the luxury excursion train that was put into service on five different routes out of Honshu, Japan, in 2017. This 10-car train boasts exquisite accommodations that are meant to evoke the feeling of a moving luxurious hotel, with two distinctive observation cars with sweeping 5-section railings that conjure to mind the designs of famous industrial artists and evoke a feeling of nostalgia for trains from a bygone era. The Twilight Express Mizukaze is a Hybrid Diesel Multiple Unit train that allows it to run on non-electrified tracks as it runs five different tour routes on the western edge of Honshu, Japan's largest island. With one-day tickets starting at around $2250, it is designed with luxury in mind, making this sparkling green beauty a rare piece of Japanese railroad history. This standard DC Twilight Express Mizukaze 10-car set comes in a pair of bookcase style collector's sets with a printed collector's style slipcover.

Model Information: Kato boxed sets for Japanese Prototypes come in various shapes and sizes. These may contain complete train sets with track and power pack or may be as simple as a pair of passenger coaches. Many of the sets use "bookshelf" boxes with cardboard sleeves and carefully cut foam inserts.

Prototype History: In 1987, the national railroad system of Japan was broken up. Japan National Railways became six independent regional private companies. The provide passenger rail transportation in most parts of Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu.

There are 27,268 km of rail crisscrossing the country. The most prominent trains are the Shinkansen, also known as "bullet trains". However, there are many different commuter services that use less impressive electric motive power as well as a number of routes that cross less densely populated areas that use diesel electric locomotives. The major usage is of urban and intercity lines, and around the time of the privatisation of JNR, many unprofitable local and rural lines were closed, especially in Hokkaido and Kyushu.

Road Name History: JR-West was incorporated as a business corporation (kabushiki kaisha) on April 1, 1987 as part of the breakup of government-owned Japanese National Railways (JNR). Initially, it was a wholly owned subsidiary of the JNR Settlement Corporation (JNRSC), a special company created to hold the assets of the former JNR while they were shuffled among the new JR companies.

For the first four years of its existence, JR-West leased its highest-revenue line, the Sanyō Shinkansen, from the separate Shinkansen Holding Corporation. JR-West purchased the line in October 1991 at a cost of 974.1 billion JPY (about US$7.2 billion) in long-term payable debt.

JNRSC sold 68.3% of JR-West in an initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in October 1996. After JNRSC was dissolved in October 1998, its shares of JR-West were transferred to the government-owned Japan Railway Construction Public Corporation (JRCC), which merged into the Japan Railway Construction, Transport and Technology Agency (JRTT) as part of a bureaucratic reform package in October 2003. JRTT offered all of its shares in JR-West to the public in an international IPO in 2004, ending the era of government ownership of JR-West. JR-West is now listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Nagoya Stock Exchange, Osaka Securities Exchange and the Fukuoka Stock Exchange.

From Wikipedia

Brand/Importer Information: Kato Precision Railroad Models (関水金属株式会社 Sekisui Kinzoku Kabushikigaisha) is a Japanese manufacturer of model railroad equipment in N and HO scales. The Tokyo-based company manufactures models based on Japanese prototypes (such as the Shinkansen bullet train) for the Japanese market, North American prototypes for the North American market and European high-speed trains for European market.
The Kato (pronounced kah-toe) model railroad companies were founded by Yuji Kato, father of current president Hiroshi Kato, of the parent company Sekisui Kinzoku Co., Ltd.

The design and distribution of models for the North American market are handled by their U.S. subsidiary, Kato USA, located in Schaumburg, Illinois.
The design of special models for the European market is handled for some of them by their partner, Lemke, whereas the general distribution of Kato products in Europe is handled by NOCH; both companies are located in Germany.
As a result, some Kato European models are sold as Kato Lemke and others as Kato (alone).