Tomica PraRail Thomas & Friends Train Freight Loading Set (Model Train) (japan import)

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Gardiner, Gordon; O'Neill, Richard (1996). The Collector's Guide to Toy Cars: An International Survey of Tinplate and Diecast Cars from 1990. Random House. ISBN 978-0517159774.

The remote control is very easy to use and allows the trains to go forward, reverse and have two sound effect buttons. These are particularly good for adding some more hands on control. Age range I don’t think either sets are suitable for children below age 3. Many toys are labelled ages 3 and up as it is normally the minimum age where toys are rated due to choking hazards, but with these train sets it’s also about the interactivity; children under the age of 3 are unlikely to be satisfied in watching a train go round and are likely to want to push the trains (see comparison with Thomas Take-N-Play below). Some of the Tomica features/accessories may also be better for children over 4 years old. Comparison with other Thomas Take-N-PlayUntil 1993, Tomica models were almost exclusively produced by Tomy in their local factory in Tokyo, Japan. However, since the early years, Tomy had outsourced some production to another country with cheaper labor cost. By mid-2003, all production were outsourced and Tomy no longer produced any Tomica in their own factory. Tomica Dandy cars are larger - about 1:43 scale and were produced from 1972 until 1993. At first they were all Japanese domestic models, but similar to the common Tomicas, the Dandy line also began to offer foreign brand vehicles in 1977 (for example, a Lotus Europa). The numbering system was changed in 1984 based on the nature of the vehicles (e.g. emergency, police, or foreign models). In 2001, Tomy reissued six Tomica Dandy models in limited quantities. In 1988, Tomy combined its foreign models into the domestic series. Most of the first 40 models from the foreign series were added to the 80 domestic models. Those foreign models that got transferred were assigned a number that was its F series number plus 80. A handful of these foreign models were discontinued after a few months' appearance under the new line. Overall about half of them had been discontinued after two years. Hong Kong was the first place outside of Japan where Tomica cars were produced. The production in Hong Kong only lasted a few years. Six models issued in 1971 and 1972 were made in Hong Kong:

Chan, Danny C.Y., and Vic Davey. 1997. The Complete World of Tomy Diecast. Hong Kong: Northcord Limited. May. Limited production in China started in 1990 with a few existing models in the regular line, like the no. 35 DOME Toyota Celica and no. 73 Isuzu Dump. Large scale production in China started in 1993 with the "British Line" of 36 models that Tomy Company of UK contracted Tomy of Japan to produce by using existing tooling. As a result, regular models of the same castings were also made in China beginning in 1993. Starting in 1994, all the new models in the regular line were made in China, and in May 1995, the production of existing models started to move to China as well. This was done in phases. By July 1997, all regular line Tomica cars were made in China. There were a few exceptions to this rule: Johnson, Dana (1998). Collector's Guide to Diecast Toys and Scale Models (2nded.). Padukah KY: Collector Books. Tomy started producing motorized cars in the late 1970s beginning with the Power Tomica series. This series did not last long. In 1992, it released a new series called B/O Tomica (stands for battery-operated Tomica). This series was renamed Motor Tomica in 1997. They were produced and sold as single models until 2003. All the B/O Tomica are made in Japan, while all the Motor Tomica (including the Animated Motor Tomica) are made in China. To fit on the motorized base, these castings often have altered scales. In general, sport utility vehicles appear in their proper scales, saloons appear a bit bulky, and buses and lorries are disproportionately short. In 2005, a new series for motorized Tomica was released containing generic vehicles such as a police patrol car. This late series targets toddlers and is made of ABS plastic. Motorized Tomica [ edit ] B/O Tomica came in a picture box while the later Motor Tomica came in a window box.

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No. 20 Nissan Skyline GT-R R33, issued in 1995, was made in Japan because the model was also used for special releases under the contract of II ADO, a popular chain of minicar shops in Japan. Production was moved to China in 1997 along with others during the last phase of moving. Tomica Dandy [ edit ] Tomica Dandy Nissan Bluebird in 1/35, one of the larger scale. Most cars were 1/43. Starting from 2004, Tomytec, a branch of Tomy, started producing realistic models - more for the collector market. They are marketed as the Tomica Limited Vintage Tomytec series and are mostly 1950s and 1960s classic Japanese vehicles such as the Honda S800, Nissan Cedric, Prince Gloria and Toyopet Crown. More details are evident on these compared to the regular Tomica models or even the Tomica Limited models. In 2010, when Technology Tomica was introduced, they were initially made in Thailand. In 2012, production moved to Vietnam. The road and cars in the Tomica set can be used alongside any of the sets, but only works with the Tomica level crossing (if that is desired). They are just standard push-along cars so can be used alongside similar Matchbox cars etc.

In 2006 the Tomica Limited Vintage - Neo [TLV-N] line was created and currently includes vehicles from the 1970s and 1980s. As with the Limited Vintage series, the focus of the Limited Vintage - Neo series is on adult collectors. These models have a high level of realism, with more attention to details such as wheels, tires, paint, trim and emblems versus functions like opening parts or moving features but still has the suspension of the basic Tomica models. All the models are a consistent scale of 1/64. [8]Also, in 2004, no. 121 was available for a limited period from Mitsuoka Motors. This was a 1/1 scale electric single seater vehicle which featured a retro Citroen H Van front end and side panels. In the early years, Tomy produced cars with famous characters sitting on them, using the same castings from the regular Tomica line. The first of such was the Snoopy character cars from the 1970s. Tomy did not market and distribute these cars. Rather, they produced these for Aviva, who sold the toy under the Aviva brand name. In the early 1980s Tomy produced models with Muppet characters. Also in the 1980s, Tomy started producing vehicles with Disney characters under the Putica Disney series name. This popular series was made until the late 1990s and was also re-issued in the original style boxes sometime during the 2000s. Rixon, Peter (2005). Miller's Collecting Diecast Vehicles. London: Mitchell Beazley. ISBN 9781845330309. Production of Tomicas started to move to Vietnam in early 2009. This was also done in phases and took several years. Unlike the move from Japan to China during which no new regular models were made in Japan (besides the few exceptions), during this time new releases came from both Vietnam and China until 2013.