Mopac: "Select" is the operative word. I've checked out every WalMart in Springfield, Peoria, Bloomington, Princeton, and LaSalle/Peru several times since I saw the first announcement, but never found any. I wish I could have had the original low price, and the Clearance price would have been even better, but I've gone with what was available. As for the range in scales for the various pieces, I'm not too distressed about them all not being exactly 1:160. The bulldozer is about 1:120 and is noticeably bigger than N-scale if everything is set side-by-side, but I'm planning on positioning everything to minimize that contrast, not maximize it.
oldrk, nice shot!That would look good in a work train going to or coming from a worksite, or sitting in a siding in the yard.
In a telephone conversation with the VP of Norscot, he told me the company has no plans to extend the mini line to more accurate 1:160. If anything he said, the company will be focusing on 1:50.
Why am I just finding out about these ??? DAMN !!! As far as the dozer, it probably WOULD be to scale if you change the model number on the hood and the cab. We have a CAT plant here in Joliet and I have seen one model that takes four to five HD lowboy semis to move them. These things are "GI-MASSIVE" !!! Absolutely ridiculous !!! The blade literally dwarfs my '74 Suburban !!! Obviously, they are assembled on site. I've seen 5 or 6 of these things, but don't know where they were going. Somehow, I doubt any local landscapers have one !!!
Since this thread went "dormant" in 2007, there has been several sets of 1:150 scale construction sold by Maruka, F-toys, Fujimoto and TomyTec. While some of the machinery in these sets will not be appropriate for North American scenes, many of the pieces are. This link will take you to photos the F-toys Construction Set No. 1, and a very usable Komatsu PC200-8 excavator. http://nscalevehicles.org/resources/f-toys_collection.php The TomyTec construction sets are even better than the F-toys set, and it looks like they are still available at Hobby Search. http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/image/10102674a/20/1 http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/image/10131855a/20/1 While these models are still too big, they are closer to 1:160 scale than the Norscot models. Carter
Then there's this little Cat; it's vintage, but they're still in use. More information: http://www.nztproducts.com/nd-018.htm
Sorry David, I should have included the following link as well. http://nscalevehicles.org/new_products/new_products.php It's just that I thought everyone knew about your great little Cat! Carter
The GHQ Cat D8-8R tractor and log arch just landed: http://www.ghqmodels.com/store/53019.html Here is a photo of the prototype: http://www.flickr.com/photos/69288932@N02/6420931799/in/photostream/ This is a good transition era tractor that would fit in well with NZT's D2 as a tractor load.
