Kato 10-431 Seibu E851 Cement Train 8 Cars Set (N scale)

In October 1969, with the opening of the Seibu Chichibu Line, Seibu Railway introduced the E851 class, the first F-class (6-axle powered) electric locomotive for a private railway, to handle both passenger transport and cement transport from the Chichibu region. Additionally, Mitsubishi Mining Cement introduced the TAKI 1900 tank freight car and TEKI 401 bogie covered freight car, initiating freight transport. The cement train operations initially covered the route from Higashiyokoze (freight station) to Kokubunji and Ikebukuro, and after the Japan National Railways Musashino Line opened in 1973, it became the Higashiyokoze to Shin-Akitsu route. Due to a continuous gradient of 25‰ between Higashiyokoze and Ashigakubo, double-heading the E851 class, the largest and most powerful for private railways, was necessary for pulling fully loaded 1,000t class freight trains, showcasing the full-scale mountain route freight transport.