Kato - 10-1623 - Passenger Train, Electric, 43 Series - Japanese National Railways - 6-Pack

Specific Item Information: A prototype of a car belonging to the Nagoya Passenger Car Zone around 1975-1982. Mani 36 and Suuni 61 are prototypes of cars belonging to the Nagano Passenger Car Zone. Ohafu 46 reproduces the appearance unique to the former intermediate car. The Naha 10 900 reproduces the characteristic ribs on the wife's face and the appearance after modernization and remodeling equipped with the TR50X dolly. Suuni 61, Ohafu 46, Mani 36, Ohafu 45 have tail lights on (with a light-off switch). The garland ventilator is reproduced with separate parts (excluding Ohanefu 12, Suhane 16, and Naha 10). Each vehicle has the car number, destination, type, and nickname Sabo printed. The destination is "Nagano" only for Ohanefu 12 and Suhane 16, and "Naoetsu" for other passenger cars.

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.

Road Name History: Japanese National Railways (日本国有鉄道 Nihon Kokuyū Tetsudō), abbreviated Kokutetsu (国鉄) or "JNR", was the business entity that operated Japan's national railway network from 1949 to 1987.
By 1987, JNR's debt was over ¥27 trillion ($280 billion at 2009 exchange rates) and the company was spending ¥147 for every ¥100 earned. By an act of the Diet of Japan, on April 1, 1987 JNR was privatized and divided into seven railway companies, six passenger and one freight, collectively called the Japan Railways Group or JR Group.

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).