The thing that appeals to me about the Japan Rail Pass is the freedom to go where I want on the spur of the moment. I used a one week rail pass last year and enjoyed that freedom. Right now my thoughts are to travel around Kyushu and Hokkaido, obviously with some stops in between. I fly out of Osaka, so will probably make Kyoto my last stop. I spent 4 days in Tokyo on my last trip. I enjoyed it, but don't feel the need to spend much time there. Maybe a day or so as a stop to Hokkaido.

Thanks for finding the old thread - I didn't find it in my search. The pics are about what I expected the "free" sleeper seats to be. I can give it a try for a night. If real bad, I'll pay more for the better sleeper seats.