Riding a miniature train

A “Nanikore” worthy miniature steam locomotive:

It took the father-son duo 10 years to complete the mini railway, which has about 150 meters of track. The whole thing was built from scratch. It actually contains a steam engine, which they feed with coal using a mini shovel (they buy the coal by the ton).

The owner modeled the train after a locomotive he loved as a kid. He started building miniature trains after his son, Takahiro was born. Takahiro became a model railway nut like his father, and they now work on building and maintaining their mini rail line. They allow fellow hobbyists to bring over model trains and drive them on the track, and also occasionally invite the local kindergarten to come over on field trips.

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4 comments - What do you think? Posted by James - December 28, 2009 at 9:47 pm

Categories: Odd / Strange, Technology Tags: gadgets, hobby, japan, model trains, rail

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4 Comments »

Comment by ruca

2009-12-28 22:39:55

OK, I really need to know now. What is the name/composer/any other information on the fanfare music that plays in that show just before everybody goes “ええええええええ！！！”? I have heard it many times here in Japan Probe! Greetings.

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Comment by linus

2009-12-28 23:37:21

ruca: According to the faq on the shows homepage, the fanfare is from this song: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pictures_at_an_Exhibition . It’s the tenth soundclip on the wikipage. The recording used in the show is supposed to be this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variations_Part_I%26II . Here’s another example, slightly different: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrw5n4V5HvQ#t=6m

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Comment by Rob A

2009-12-29 07:14:30

It’s funny because he’s drunk! lol

But seriously, I need to get one of those 珍　hats. It’s pretty damn cool.

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Comment by sublight

2009-12-29 10:24:11

It’s cool, but I don’t know if I’d risk having an actual steam engine right between my legs like that.

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