The method for installing carbon-based contact strips on pantograph heads is very important from the operational point of view. Carbon contact strips are generally manufactured with a dovetail base that can be clad with a close-fitting steel sheath, or a fabricated metal holder that grips a full-length carbon strip and has installation bolts for mounting on a pantograph head. The authors have developed three other installation methods. This paper describes the development of carbon-based contact strip materials over the past two decades in Japan, and the results of laboratory or field tests on the installation methods that have been developed.