[PRCo] Re: Gas Prices

[Bill Robb]

You're right to some degree.  I understand that the reputation for cheap goods came from the ability to produce items at very low cost.  The Japanese themselves rejected these goods as "Yokohama hin."  It was only the American or European importers that insisted on producing the cheap goods.  In the 60s, the Japanese government began an effort buy out the foreign exporters of the  very cheap goods.
Speaking of the brass trolleys, like Ken Kidder used to import, you will still find web sites for shops making the brass models. It will be a hobby shop, but instead of selling mass produced models it will sell brass models of Japanese electric cars as their EMUs and streetcars are referred to. Very much a craft business. Here are a couple of Japanese language web sites for these shops.  They can be read with a machine translator like Google Translate. I'll forewarn you that these shops can be almost impossible to contact or order from because of the language difficulty and Japan's cash based economy. Here's what I found on Models Imon, major Japanese model train retailer.

Kings Hobby is a shop producing brass electric cars.

http://www1.odn.ne.jp/kingshobby/

KTM produces brass models and has various retail shops.  Click on 'shop' to see photos of the stores.

http://www.ktm-models.co.jp/cp2.html

Art Products produces HO electric car models for 12mm gauge and 9mm gauge.  Many of these cars could be found running on small lines in the late 1990s.

http://artpro.jp/

Hobematooca makes N, HO, and O cars including  1/80 HO Hankai Electric Tramway (Sakai) 351 and 501 series streetcars. Many of the cars shown on their pages either were or still are running in service. A Hankai tramway 161 series is in development, and 10 of those cars still run in Osaka. These will be very expensive, being brass,  with the high Yen--and if you can get them--Japanese production runs are very short and warehousing is prohibitively expensive.

http://oka.axisz.jp/

http://oka.axisz.jp/HO/nankai501.html

http://oka.axisz.jp/HO/nankai161.html

Fukushima Model Factory produces drives, pantographs and various other components.

http://homepage2.nifty.com/fukushima-mokei/

The brass model maker that comes the closest to the mass produced Tomix and Kato lines is World Kougei which produces many N gauge steam locomotives and electric locomotives along with a few streetcars.  World Kougei products can be reserved through English language dealers  with credit card processing ability like Hobby Search.

http://www.world-kougei.com/

Amagi Modeling Idea is another craft brass model maker that is available through Hobby Search.

http://www.izu.co.jp/~amagimi/

Tomix owns several  factories in China. Kato seems to still produce many items in Japan.  The really low cost production has moved on from China (which was forced into labour reforms before the Olympics) to Vietnam. But the manufacturing that has moved is low value manufacturing.  High value manufacturing remains in Japan (at government direction)  and after some leakage of technology in China, the high tech production may move back to Japan.

Bill


Japan had a reputation for cheap products.  It wasn't until the 1960s that there was a national emphasis on improved quality, focusing on what today we would call 'niche' markets.  Suspect cameras and electronics came early, and then cars.  Remember the brass trolleys from Japan?  When Japanese labor rates increased, then manufacturers looked for cheaper labor markets, such as Korean.  Suspect some of this manufacturing has since moved to China.

John  


> Date: Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:24:30 -0800> From: bill937ca at yahoo.ca> Subject: [PRCo] Re: Gas Prices> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org> > The preoccupation with getting everything cheap is what puts us at an economic disadvantage against Asian economies like Japan. > Japanese consumers reject low quality products. It's part of the culture. Many day to day products were once hand made by artisans. If fact at one time producing cheap items could get you killed. > > Asian governments focus on the strength of their national economy instead of on the consumer. Japan has no fossil fuels of its own, so anything involving energy other than electricity has to be imported. > > You also find a much greater focus on service in Japan that in the west. Trains are routinely expected to be within 3 seconds, plus or minus, of arrival time.> > I think the sole focus on the consumer is one of weaknesses of the Western system.> > Bill> > > > >
 ________________________________> Edward H. Lybarg!
er wrote:> > It's not just about money. Wanting everything cheap is part of what got us> into the economic pickle we're in right now.> > -----Original Message-----> From: pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org> [mailto:pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org] On Behalf Of John> Swindler> Sent: Monday, December 29, 2008 9:38 AM> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org; Bruce Bente; Al Schneider; Philip> Craig> Subject: [PRCo] Re: Gas Prices> > > > I'm disappointed in you, Fred, for quoting a $854 price for round trip to> west coast. Trying to scare people away from traveling so you can get a> better rate?> Phil's problem was that a specific holiday and specific travel days got in> the way of finding a good price. (and these are nice problems to have,> particularly given Phil's current employment situation - plus visiting> family) Delta has a $187.99 price for round trip to San Diego with 14-day> advance purchase from White Plains airport. Change
 in Detroit outbound!
  and> change in Atlanta inbound. And it is a real airplane west of the
> Mississippi. The quote is from Travelocity.> > For a real airport, probably looking at around $300 round trip.> > And as for driving, I'd like to sleep in a comfortable room a few times and> have a few meals while heading west. That has to be factored in. And my> car would be due another oil change upon return. Don't forget that cost,> because maintenance is factored into the airline ticket price. And I don't> think the airlines get their planes for free - yet.> > We were in New York over the weekend, and paid $1.45 per gallon for gas in> New Jersey. The traffic was incredible until we got to Pennsylvania. Enjoy> these gas prices while they last, because these rates are not good news for> those who advocate alternate energy sources. I would not be surprised if> government policy will try to raise energy costs during 2009. Make us feel> more pain in the wallet.> > And how about those Steelers? Great games yesterday to sort out the> playoffs. Pittsburgh
 probably has the best!
  backup quarterback in the NFL.> Scored 24 unanswered points after Ben suffered his concussion. There are> some very good 'wild card' teams this year. (just to struggle for at least> a Pittsburgh connection)> > Cheers> John> > > > To: bbente at bellsouth.net; pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org; > > alschneider2 at juno.com; philgcraig204 at yahoo.com> From: > > fwschneider at comcast.net> Subject: [PRCo] Gas Prices> Date: Sun, 28 Dec > > 2008 13:40:45 -0500> > Now I'm really getting scared by this > > "recession."> > Gasoline in Lancaster is now down to $1.54, the lowest > > price, > adjusted for inflation by any means (including the CPI) in my > > > lifetime or even my father's lifetime. If we were to adjust the 8 > > > gallons for a dollar from the middle of the Depression, today's price > > > is still almost 25% under that once adjusted to the Consumer Price > > > Index. If adjusted to wholesale prices, the drop since the 1930s is > > > far greater.> > Phil Craig
 was telling me that t!
he best price he could > > find to visit > his daughter from Newark ai
rport to San Diego for > > Hanukkah holiday > was $854. I figure the cost of gasoline for a round > > trip to the > west coast is now an unprecedented low of $300. > >> _________________________________________________________________> Life on your PC is safer, easier, and more enjoyable with Windows VistaR. > http://clk.atdmt.com/MRT/go/127032870/direct/01/> > > > > 
_________________________________________________________________
It’s the same Hotmail®. If by “same” you mean up to 70% faster.
http://windowslive.com/online/hotmail?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_hotmail_acq_broad1_122008