Just added these

Well I mentioned in my last main post that there were two other 'special' trains coming next week, well against all odds they turned up this morning!  So I get to show them to you earlier than expected.

The first one is a really special model, a new train (and special release from Kato) the very delightful "10-1644 *JR E261 Series Saphir Odoriko 8 Car EMU Powered Set".  The below description is from Kato  themselves and tells you probably more than I would remember to type as this set has so many features - including the usual Kato attention to detail virtually every car is unique.  One thing I should mention is the special paint applied to this model, it is a special metallic 'pearlescent' paint which means that the colour you see varies depending on the angle you view it from.  This is illustrated by the pictures I've added of the driving car which looks either a teal colour through to a dark blue depending upon the angle.  Another really cool thing is the way the coaches are not only different to each other but some are totally different on each side.  Pictures 8 and 9 illustrate this totally as this is the same carriage (#5 in the consist), the feature worth highlighting is that the dining car also has table lamp lighting as well as some special below window lighting according to the description below - when I get the chance to check this out I'll post some pictures of that, this is in addition to the normal directional lights and destination boards on the driving cars.  Overall something really quite special, anyway as already said below is the Kato description;

DESCRIPTION
A scale model of the latest streamlined tour express train "Saphir Odoriko"  has been released from Kato with this logo printed on the sides of train. Saphir is a French word meaning blue jewel sapphire. E261 "Saphir Odoriko" is a new sightseeing limited express which appeared in March 2020 at the time of train schedule revision under the new promotional concept of "Experience true IZU for adults!" The body is painted in the graduated dark grey belt surrounding the windows as well as in glossy colours of blue and white symbolizing clear sky and calm sea in Izu province. The train consists of cars furnished with more comfortable seats than the usual 1st class (green) cars and a diner dubbed "noodle car" only. The cars are installed with light skylights. The seats are arranged spaciously and the compartments are roomy.

Main features
-Reproduced with coloring that imaged the beautiful sea and sky of Izu
-Reproduce the characteristic head shape, open skylight, and beautiful glossy gradation band.
-Reproduce the appearance that the skylight and body of each vehicle are integrated without steps.
-The headlights, indicator lamps, table lamps that are characteristic of dining cars, and the lighting at the bottom of the wall are lit up.
-The chair is reproduced in car 1 ... gray, car 2-3 ... brown, car 4 ... dark brown, car 5-8 ... beige.
-The coupler is equipped with a close-coupled dummy coupler at the beginning, and a body-mounted KATO hookless close-coupled coupler as standard equipment at the middle.
-Head light / tail light standard equipment. The LED lighting of the headlights and indicator lights, the table lamps that are characteristic of the dining car Sashi E261, and the lighting at the bottom of the wall are lit up. Compatible with DCC decoder installation

This set includes a specially designed  blue 8-car book case specification and a special binding sleeve.





















I should also add that there is additionally a 4 car expansion set to complete this train, I may well get this in the near future as I like to complete sets when I can.  However it is not exactly a cheap addition unless I stumble across a 2nd hand mint example like I did for the main set!  Enjoy!