Certain factors have rightly kept me a little too busy to post lately. I can’t say that I mind. Several weeks ago, I received two eagerly anticipated releases from Micro Ace: A3251, which consists of two KOKI 106 container cars, each loaded with two U47A “Eco Liner 31″ 31′ ISO containers; and A3252, which consists of one KOKI 50000 and one KOKI 106 container car, each loaded with three UF15A “JOT Cool-25ºC” 12′ domestic refrigerated containers. Overall, I like these sets, but not without reservations.
Micro Ace A3252 is an interesting set. This set comes with KOKI 51716 (コキ 51716) and KOKI 106-957 (コキ 106-957), and six individually number UF15A containers. These containers have been manufactured by others (by Platz, I think), but I do not own any to compare them with. I wish I could find more information on the UF15A: At the top of these is a warning not to load more than three onto any container car. I am unable to tell why—hints and suggestions welcome! The quality of the containers compares well to other 12′ containers by Tomix and Kato (more on this below).
The KOKI 106, in an interesting twist, has working end-of-train lights on one end. A bright LED illuminates two tiny little red pinpoints that really stand out in the dark. The electronics are all hidden under one of the containers, and the only thing giving it away are the pickup springs in the trucks, which are just visible.
Secondly, Micro Ace A3251 has two KOKI 106 (コキ 106), nos. -210 and -216, and four “Eco Liner 31″ 31′ maritime containers. This set doesn’t have any gimmicks, no fancy lighting or the like. The draw of this set is the popular Eco Liner containers, which until recently were not otherwise available in n-guage (Tomytec now offers one as part of the Truck Collection vol. 4—It will be interested to compare quality).
Both sets come fitted with Micro Ace’s new semi-permanent coupling system, designed to at least evoke the prototype knuckle couplers. I haven’t tested them to see if they work with Kato’s knuckle couplers (and I don’t have any Tomix couplers to compare with). They also come with easily-installed Rapido (Arnold) couplers for compatibility.
The good, first. The containers are all well-detailed, with good quality printing. Each container and car is individually and uniquely numbered. Some of the details, such as the foot-holds on the ends of the cars are painted, unlike similar Kato and Tomix models. The lighting in the one KOKI is a nice touch. Moreover, for limited issue models (as nearly all Micro Ace releases are), the price was no more than similar models from Kato or Tomix.
However, there are a couple of marks against these sets. Least important are the following. The cases they come in are fitted closely to the containers they are carrying, and so you cannot store the cars with alternate arrangements of containers. The container covering the electronics on the lit KOKI does not come off, meaning that if you run this car, it will always have UF15A-827 at the end. This could be a problem if you want to use this car for operations (something I’ve been thinking about).
There are significant problems, however. Although Kato containers fit well on Tomix KOKI, and vice versa, and while Micro Ace uses the same tabbed mounting system, the Micro Ace containers are a tighter fit on Kato and Tomix KOKI. The pressures necessary to remove the 31′ containers from non-Micro Ace KOKI can be a little hair-raising. Likewise, Tomix and Kato containers fit a bit too loosely on the Micro Ace KOKI.
Moreover, the level of detail on the KOKI themselves leaves a lot to be desired. Above is a photo of (from top to bottom) a Micro Ace KOKI 106, a Kato KOKI 104 (one day they will release that 106 model that they’ve been promising for so long…), and finally a Tomix 106. Notice how the Micro Ace is almost devoid of detail from the top (although there is a bit more visible from the bottom). Moreover, notice that what detail there is is not very fine, compared against the Kato and Tomix models.
Here are the trucks of the three models, from left to right: Tomix, Kato, Micro Ace. The 104 uses slightly different trucks than the 106, but the level of detail on the Tomix and Kato is comparable (with Kato slightly edging the Tomix out); the Micro Ace truck is very coarse and undetailed compared to the other two.
I couldn’t get a good photo, but the handbrake wheel on the Micro Ace is also notably oversized and chunky, even from a distance, where the Tomix and Kato handbrakes are not. Also not so easy to photograph is the quality of the printing on the side: The Kato wins hands-down, having the most detailed printing, including several small inscriptions that neither Tomix nor Micro Ace even attempted. But while the quality of the Tomix printing is certainly good, the printing on the Micro Ace KOKI leaves something to be desired.
So, the fineness and amount of detail on the Micro Ace KOKI is really disappointing. That said, I’m still satisfied with these sets: the poor detail isn’t terribly noticeable at three feet, the unique containers are of good quality and are nice to have, and the end-of-train light is a fun touch.
Update 9 September 2008. I’ve found another review (Japanese language; use your favorite translation service) of these models, with lots of pictures. Turns out you can remove that one container, but it has cutouts, so you can’t put another container in the last position on the lighted KOKI without modifying it significantly. Anyway, the writer’s conclusions largely mirror my own. There are also lots more good comparative reviews on that sight, too.