Author Archives: garygraves

Faller Z 282704: Bahnhof Huinghausen

A new building kit for 2016 was Faller’s 282704. The prototype for this station kit was built in 1915, it features a Mansard roof and timber goods shed with covered loading dock. Today the station serves as Sauerland Local Railway Museum.

The building kit is a combination of materials including laser cut real wood and cardstock. It is a very good kit of an interesting historic railway architecture. The challenges for this kit are the complexity of assembling the main building with its various roof surfaces. Faller kits feature window masks to add realism when lit, the window details in this kit are limited diffusion materials. All in all a very good kit for those with experience assembling laser cut buildings in Z.

All sorts of interesting detailing can be applied including shipping products that can be stacked on the dock and ready for the next train.

Lighting buildings these days has progressed to a great extent with the advent of LED, and Woodlands Scenics offers the solution with their Just Plug Lighting System. Before LED’s only a very bright and hot light bulb would illuminate the masking material of Faller buildings. Now with LED’s it is solved with bright LED’s that can be dimmed according to your preference. Add the long life (10,000 hours) and reasonable pricing lighting buildings in Z is now possible.

“All Is Not Lost”: 82540- Sugar Beet Harvest gets a fix

I was excited to get to the recent release of 82540, it came with cars of a superlative quality and as an extra bonus a card-stock build kit for beet loading machine of the prototype installed along a railway siding in Germany. Just the other day I wrote about the revelation of getting this freight set and building the kit, I made a few mistakes with the beet loader kit that were easy to rectify hence the title of this post. All is not lost many times with railroading, we modelers figure out a way to modify and fix problems in design or construction and sometimes the reconfiguring is big and sometimes small, but it is a good process and rewarding just the same.

I came across three excellent photographs on the web of the prototype for the build kit that gave me a better idea how to fix the loading area of the machine, the prototype features a angled sides for the beet loading which form a tub. I decided to go with this and add two strips that accentuate this design feature of the prototype using parts saved from the kit. With cardstock kits we are left with numerous parts that can be incorporated later so I save everything for future projects. My repair worked out great and I am happy with the result, weathering with dirt will follow and even some small areas of rust. As for the prototype it is a small machine built to a permanent foundation along a rail siding. And as a difference with the kit the roofing sheathing is translucent to block rain and sun, the build kit’s roof is opaque. The prototype sees a fair amount of use therefore I suggest heavy weathering is appropriate with dirt, grime and even rust along areas the have wear.

As can be seen in these excellent photographs the new build kit included with 82540 is very accurate, but you may pull your hair out building it due to the small parts. Nimble fingers are your best tools along with those all important magnifying goggles.

Note: I am researching the photo credits for these three excellent photographs which I found during a Google search for this beet loader. For research and educational purposes these photographs fully illustrate the scale, location, and construction of this specialty rail siding machine. The photographer will receive photo credit when I locate them.

Siding: Manufacturers of card stock kits recommend wood glues for assembly, but common white glue can also be added to that list which is mildly acidic. I use PVA (poly vinyl acetate) which has neutral ph, it is available at all art supply stores. I like PVA for its consistency and thickness, plus it sets up very quickly, and the neutral ph guarantees no future discoloration of paper.

Photographic Grey prototypes in Marklin Z

Marklin 88091: KPEV Class P10 (Insider Model 2003)

Marklin has released a number of locos in “photographic grey” paint scheme not limited to steam locos, but for this post only a few of the steam examples will be depicted. Historically “photographic grey” also known as “works grey” was an application of paint to a newly built and designed locomotive which would be photographed for the purpose of archiving as well as publicity. Why grey? Depicting a new loco in sharpest detail before the advent of color photography, 19th century locomotive builders relied on photographers who produced black and white photographs from large format negatives. The range of tones produced in black and white photography range from black with no detail on one end and white with no detail on the other with grey in the middle. This mid range gray is referred to as 18% gray which means its reflectance for photographic purposes is 18%. Photographs that are predominantly in this tonal range do not have strong shadows or highlights. Photographers realized many more details could be recorded if the subject in this case steam locomotives of the 19th and 20th century were painted in this mid range gray. Locomotive builders painted the early example of a new design in this gray tone, and they also attached all locomotive plaques before the photograph was made. After the photograph was made the builder removed the plaques and treated the gray paint scheme as a primer coat thus applying engine black and other paint colors as the final coat. Lighting was also an important consideration, an overcast sky with low contrast supported a better outcome by reducing distracting shadows. And then there were the retouchers who could masterfully remove distracting backgrounds including engine house, people and anything else that detracted from the locomotive in all its glory. Eastman Kodak probably provided the film which would have been perfectly flat silver nitrate coated glass as well as the retoucher’s pigments which would have included Kodak’s “Opaque Black” one of many specialist items devised by Kodak. Marklin gave me the opportunity to experiment with these observations with their historically accurate modelling so I have come up with several examples depicting a locomotive with “engine black” paint scheme, a locomotive depicted with rail yard buildings, and simulated overcast lighting.

Two locomotives with “photo-grey” paint scheme depicted with buildings in a rail yard: 88832 + 88040.

One locomotive with “engine black” paint scheme. Note loss of detail in 88092:

Locomotives depicted isolated from distracting background, bright overcast lighting, and “photo-grey” paint scheme.

82540 “Beet Harvest” car set and building kit

A long anticipated new freight car set has arrived for mini-club: 82540 “Beet Harvest” car set. Included in the set are 5 EANOS gondolas with completely new tooling. Also included in the set is a building kit identified by Marklin as the loading facility at Behringen, Germany. I am writing this post after having completed the building kit, and I decided to split the post into two parts: freight cars and building kit.

An introduction to this new release should first start with an historical perspective concerning sugar beets, its history is interesting. Sugar beet discovery in the mid 18th century with the support of the King of Prussia are the sweet alternative to tropically grown sugar cane. Today Russia stands as the world’s largest producer followed by France, United States and Germany respectively. Sugar beet harvest in the United States starts October 1st employing seasonal workers that help with the two week harvest. Two machines are used in the field including a defoliator to remove the green leaves and cut the beet top. A second machine is a “pinch wheel” harvester that pinches the root and lifts the beet to the harvester with some soil removal. From the harvester in the field the beets are offloaded to trucks for transport to a large processing plant. The Marklin model suggests a loading facility which would have been located near a rail siding for loading into high sided hoppers. Presumably a large farm or a group of farms can make use of this loading facility to expedite the transport by rail of this crop to the processing plant.

“Complete or partial new tooling” we hear a lot of from Marklin in recent years relating to the mini-club line-up owing to the many great advancements with new classes of locos, new types of rolling stock, motive power and in this case too a new building kit thrown in to an already outstanding set of 5 freight cars of completely new tooling. Set includes 5 type EANOS high side gondolas lettered for SBB with loads depicting sugar beets. The finely lettered cars feature loads that are every bit accurate to real sugar beets in color and scale, google sugar beets and compare. Set gives a mighty fine impression of thousands of beets headed for the processing plant. A new advancement these days are close coupling featured with these cars.

A building kit is included with this set that Marklin describes at a loading facility from Behringen, Germany. Assembly instructions for the kit indicate Modellbau Laffont as the manufacturer, it appears that a similar car set was released previously by Trix with an identical ‘N’ scale loading facility. It is great fun to get cars with a building kit and vice versa, but this building kit is far from fun to assemble. First it is a building with filigree parts which form the framework along with several parts that require bending if you are to follow the instructions. Individual parts are numerous and made of construction paper thickness which can be difficult to work with. Add glue which expands and softens these parts along with their small size and your task is not going to be fun if you compare this kit to other manufacturers like Archistories. I give credit to the manufacturer for coming up with an interesting building, and I fully appreciate the tight budget that follows. If you get through the rather difficult construction you may be surprised at what an interesting finished building it is. Deciphering the illustrated instructions would be far easier a second time around so some mistakes I made would be avoided during a second build. I have a few suggestions and modifications that I would follow if I made another. So with the mistakes and modifications I am happy with the building which will be a great addition to my future layout alongside other laser cut card stock buildings which are rich in detail and color.

Note: modifications that I made to the kit include two with the back wall – no angled roof partition and addition of brown strip to lower track side to hide cardboard bend marks. The first was a mistake and the second was to hide a rough part.

Start with the right tools, there are not many but don’t attempt to assemble this kit without magnifying goggles (not pictured)! Notice the exclamation mark next to the last comment.

Kit comes delivered in 8 part sheets of various color including one that are decals for “warning” stripes. Care should be taken separating parts as they are of very light gauge paper. Notice the large number of parts for this assembled model of just 1 1/8 x 2 13/16 inches overall.

Following the instruction manual I would make these comments in order of appearance to hopefully add some enjoyment and success for others putting this kit together: Steps A and B depict the filigree framework construction and attachment to the base, small drops of glue with a pin is all you need, I would suggest gluing after you have these parts in place followed by single drops below base where posts engage in holes in base. Step E requires bending conveyor belt, paper fibers will break in jagged edges plus may separate, I would suggest a small drop of glue to soften the ends of these fibers and bend back in place thereby smoothing the bend. Step F gives instructions to bend and contour a large part that goes across base and conveyor identified as part #D1, this part is flimsy paper and all the bends and contouring will give poor results and you may not be able to center the conveyor properly, I suggest cutting this part into three parts: along treads, beginning of conveyor, and back wall. After this part is carefully cut into four parts carefully glue in place starting with the conveyor which should be centered with the vertical conveyor shoot. Note: gaps can be filled with glue applied with a pin. Step M illustrates placing electrical box and storage box below conveyor, at this point it is awkward to place them, I suggest placing the electric box and carefully applying a drop of glue after placement followed by storage box. Step N part G4 is a roof partition for the back wall, it should be installed on an angle. Step P illustrates roofing material, fill gaps between sheets with glue. Lastly if you want to add realism consider weathering with dirt and grime, moving parts would be greased attracting dirt dust and static parts would have a layer of dirt. During loading a cloud of dust would be present. Dry brush techniques for dirt and grime on structure and conveyor, and application of dry pigments to roof and base by careful rubbing.

Siding: loading facility gives sense of scale to the massive size of these gondolas, a few figures and tractor with trailer or truck would give the impression of the operation. Wespe Models make a couple of nice tractors, a prototypical tipping trailer will be harder to model.

BR 94, BR 194, BR 1020: Marklin 5 Pole Motor Upgrade

Marklin’s 5 pole motor upgrade for 8812, 8822, 88221, and 8824 uses Marklin Part #E211906. The original motor for these listed locos was 3 pole with part number 268200, the original 3 pole was a good motor for this loco design which featured cast metal frame and end units thus making for a well balanced and heavy locomotive. Improvements with the upgrade include finer slow running performance and quieter operation.

This upgrade will be performed on 8824 which is the BR 194 lettered for the DB with turquoise and cream paint scheme. 8824 was produced for 5 years starting in 1989. If your loco was stored for many years without running it may need a full restoration in addition to the motor upgrade. If nothing moves, the motor does not run, and just the lights work it could have “hardened oil syndrome.” Restoration of locos with hardened oil require complete breakdown and cleaning.

*******DO NOT INSTALL NEW 5 POLE MOTOR IN LOCO THAT DOES HAVE FREELY MOVING GEARS, MOTOR COULD BE DAMAGED BEYOND REPAIR IF POWER IS APPLIED AND THE MOTOR MEETS RESISTANCE FROM NON MOVING GEARS.*****************

Motor upgrade for this loco will require a little patience and time, but generally speaking it is a fairly easy repair. To start: 1. pull off middle cast plastic shell with very thin plastic guitar picks.

2. Note: circuit board does not have a retaining screw as other mini-club locos have, it is held in place with 4 clips. Carefully release the circuit board from clips with gentle pressure using a small screwdriver.

3. Wires soldered to either end of circuit board should be carefully pulled from center between pick-ups to outside of pick-ups. Solder points maybe brittle due to age, there is the possibility at this point that one may break necessitating soldering.

4. With circuit board gently pulled to one side unscrew clips holding motor to chassis.

5. Note: original motor and new 5 pole motor are basically the same with differences including heavier gauge wire for capacitor and different coating on capacitor. I have made this upgrade a few times already, and I have noticed manufacturing differences with this motor including a larger coating on the capacitor plus varying length of wire for the capacitor. The nature of the capacitor with this motor can create a few challenges for the repairman. It is required that the capacitor is bent low enough to not impede placement of the circuit board, and the new motor with heavier gauge wire is more difficult to bend than its forebear. Plus manufacturing differences with capacitor coating may add another layer of difficulty. In this example the capacitor is of normal size, but one I recently installed in the 8812 was large which made for a challenging placement of it just above the worm gear while still being low enough under circuit board.

Note: black housing in the new motor.

Note: original motor’s capacitor wires are bent with a slight curl near motor with capacitor nearly touching worm gear.

6. Next: add one drop of oil on each worm drive before installing clips. Circuit board and wires should return to their original position with great care to avoid bending pick-ups. Circuit board clips back into place and then shell goes back on with catenary screw peaking out of hole in shell.

Siding: a brief break-in period for the motor is recommended before installation at low, medium and high throttle for a couple minutes both directions.

Photographic Gray Paint Scheme and Mini-Club

Marklin 88091

We are probably all familiar with builders’ photographs of steam engines depicted in black and white photographs and some of us may have had the rare opportunity to buy one. Usually large and well produced photographs depicting a recently built locomotive captioned with all the technical specs and dates of production accompanying such photographs. The commissioned photographers were charged with producing a record in crisp detail for the builders’ record as well as publicize locomotives built in their shops. Although the age of steam has passed these photographs help us understand and research the locomotives that were built a 100 years ago, and the incredible achievements and innovations that were made. The photographic record is just part of the research tools available to manufacturers of model trains, but Marklin has treated this part of railroading history as an integral part of Mini-Club’s offerings including locomotive prototypes modeled in “Photo Gray” as they would have been seen for the first time.

Marklin 88981

Photo gray or works gray is a particularly interesting paint scheme, it seems to coincide with the middle gray zone between highlight and shadow referred in photographic literature as 18% reflectance of the visible world. This being a speculation of mine, my research does not point to an exact paint formula that measures its reflectance, but I would place the reflectance of locomotive photo gray roughly as middle gray if one starts with black on one side and white on the other. Why is this important? It was important from the standpoint of recording as much detail as possible through reduced tones within the range of “low contrast” without dark and light tones. Lighting is also a factor with this discussion, and the photographer’s choice between overcast skies or sunny days would have been overcast skies thereby keeping the tonality of these photographs on the flat contrast range. Isolating the locomotive in the composition was also a consideration with few seen near train sheds and yards, manipulating the photographic negative could have achieved this effect as well. For a follow-up post I will be recreating builders’ photographs of two mini-club class 52 locomotives, one with photo gray paint scheme and the other painted black. Photo ready locomtives were not dressed in photo gray paint scheme for long, after the photographs were made they were painted in most cases in engine black which was chosen to minimize the appearance and dirt and grime thereby making the photo gray paint scheme a primer coat for the eventual top coat.

Marklin Z steam locomotives in photo gray: 88040 (“Franco Crosti”) – BR 42.90 DB Insider 2003, 88091 – BR P 10 KPEV Insider 2003, 88832 – BR 52 DRG Insider 1997, 88836 – BR 52 DRG, 88841 – BR 50 DRG, 88981 – class G 8.1 KPEV MHI Insider 1998.

Created for photographs, the photo gray paint scheme adorned the first examples of prototypes with some offered in mini-club.

Repair Notes: mallet locos 88290-88294

A very interesting Marklin Z loco of the ‘mallet’ type was introduced in 2004 as Insider Model 88290.

The class 96 loco has been released in 5 versions to this point in time, but Marklin did not limit the release of a ‘mallet’ type loco to this class, they also introduced the class 53 in 2007 as Insider Model 88053.

What characterizes a mallet locomotive is first an articulated frame along with two independent wheel sets. Invented by the Swiss engineer Anatole Mallet this type of locomotive was highly successful in mountain railways, and in the United States this loco type was used in coal trains. The articulated frame allowed for negotiating sharp turns while high and low pressure steam powered two sets of driving wheels. The front set of driving wheels form the ‘Bissell’ truck which received low pressure steam through a receiver after high pressure steam powered the second set of driving wheels first. Variations between European and American ‘mallet’ locos follow the basic design principle, but each varies by other factors including length and power. Marklin’s two mallet designs represent very large and powerful locos one of which never existed beyond blueprints as is the case with versions of the class 53: 88053, 88054, and 88055 (pictured).

To repair the mallet locos of class 96 some patience and practical experience in the repair of mini-club steam locos is required. Marklin Z steam locos have one set of driving wheels, the mallets have two sets and therefore one must treat each as independent by repairing one at a time. These are complicated locos, but they are so well designed that taking one apart and reassembling is relatively easy for those with some experience repairing locos with side rods. Note: wheels must be correctly orientated to allow free movement of side rods, side rods bow out when wheel sets are improperly installed in all locos with side rods.

This post came about rather by accident, I recently purchased an 88291 thereby completing my collection of this type loco, but it arrived with hardened oil syndrome which can be expected with dealer old stock. Tell tale signs of hardened oil syndrome are lights that work without a hum of motor or movement of wheels. The oil Marklin uses will harden over time which is compounded by improper storage. Hardened oil gums up the gears not allowing them to move, it looks like a crust, but it can also be sticky to the touch.

Note: white gunk near center of photo

To remove hardened oil a mild solvent is required, toothpicks work to loosen up crustiness and soaking NON PAINTED surfaces in “Original Windex” (blue). Improperly storing locos includes side down, they should always be stored wheels down. The one I just received was one such example of a loco stored long term on its side: hardened oil pooled on one side throughout gears and truck housings.

One can see the appearance of hardened oil as white crust, it can otherwise be fluid or congealed as a sticky substance all in the same loco: weird!

One gear is sometimes the culprit at least with this example. Part #226 646 is an interesting gear that sits mounted on a post cast into each truck frame of this loco, thus two are included in this design.

Note: gear can be seen mounted inside truck frame in two photos with yellow background

I have come across this gear on more than one occasion, Marklin’s class E 94 and 194 locos including all versions have this same gear in their design so repairing this loco is a good primer for repairing those. Time and time again it has been proven to me that if the German “krocodil” isn’t moving this gear is completely stuck due to hardened oil. Very careful attention needs to be applied to wriggle off this gear from its post, I use a toothpick over a dish to catch the part.

The transmission in this loco is very long with two worm gears, it comprises two extensions attached to the the tip of the motor (226 631).

So many parts that are required to move in the smallest space comprise a flawless design that includes a sensible tear-down and reassembly design.

Reassembly includes close adherents to correct order of things: no matter loco type small connecting gears always go in truck frame first followed by driving wheels.

Photo shows one truck’s correct assembly without oil pan attached. Note the two connecting gears which are standard with all locos in Marklin ‘Z’, and because they are small it is a good part to have spares of (part #226 645). Coupler and spring are not illustrated in photo, but they would be located on the right side. Side rods slide into black housing and only work one way: side rods of the third pair of wheels are orientated correctly in photo to allow correct distances in the truck mount for all gears. After coupler and spring are placed into their mount the oil pan slides over coupler end, and it is attached by a single screw.

It is always a good idea to keep an inventory of spare parts even though you may never need them because we are talking about the brilliant engineering and manufacturing by Marklin. That being said the motor for this series of locos is part #226 631, it is soldered directly to the pick-ups and solidly held in place to operate the very long transmission.

After each truck is cleaned, oiled and reassembled test it to make sure all gears move freely with the retaining pin and nylon gear installed too! Note: the nylon gear comprises two sets of teeth, one set engages with the worm gears on the transmission and the second is small running on one side of the nylon gear and engages with the post mounted gear previously mentioned. Recommendation: the nylon gear is another part to keep spares of, it is part #223 493.

Last note: if you know the loco is new and never run. And you have the loco taken apart, this maybe a good time to break in the motor and brushes independent of the motor’s engagement with the gears. Break-in: slow speed followed by medium speed, followed by high speed, and then reverse order. About 5 minutes of varying speeds will do.

Good luck and have fun!

Siding: required tools for repairing Marklin Z locos: pliers with micro tips, magnifying goggles, set of jewelers screwdrivers, foam work cradle, dish for holding parts, and guitar picks can be used to help remove plastic shells or shells without retaining screws.

Quick Notes: BR 74 tank locomotive

Marklin introduced the German BR 74 tank locomotive for mini-club in 1982 as a Serie 96 painted and lettered for SNCB. Since then there have been 8 individual releases plus 5 trainsets with this locomotive type. New tooling effectively changed the appearance of the BR 74 with the recent releases of 88953 (Marklin Magazin), 88954 (SNCB) and 88956 (SNCF-not pictured) thereby granting this tank locomotive detailed running gear and side rods. One of the great advancements at Marklin is reworking the mini-club line-up of steam engines with advanced side rod tooling and detailing, it is remarkable that this new generation of mini-club steam locos has so many moving parts successfully moving and rotating in such small scale: lively action and even closer to the prototype than ever before. And LED’s are now installed in the latest 3 offerings. The LED’s are bright and non directional necessitating some masking to prevent light spillage outside the loco shell, this is achieved with heavy duct style black tape. Routine maintenance on this loco type is achieved by carefully removing shell by gently holding front end and lifting up, the headlamp lens also functions as a clip for the shell. A little gentle pressure is all that is needed to lift front end first. To reinstall simply slide tender side of shell over motor and pivot front end onto chassis. To secure shell use a very small screwdriver and gently wriggle the headlamp clip until shell engages. *Applying enough pressure to reattach shell without wriggling the clip a bit could result in it breaking or coming unglued. As of this writing you may start to find it difficult to locate the three new releases, they were produced in a limited number and collectors seem to be going head over heals for these and their respective car sets. The Marklin Magazin release is stunning in “Prussian Blue” paint scheme.

Z gauge LED signals by Marklin

Marklin introduced a couple of signals that lasted in the line-up for years, they were the 8939 (block signal) and 8940 (semaphore). The 8939 block signal was the first, it was introduced in 1972 when Marklin announced z gauge, then in 1979 the 8940 semaphore was added. Realistic train control was created with these signals, starting and stopping a train on a mainline was achieved by wiring an isolation track and adding an 8945 relay or 8946 manual control for the 8939. The 8940 semaphore used a control box instead of the 8945 or 8946 controls. 24 years later the 2nd generation of signals was introduced for mini-club that included yard and mainline signalling capabilities, some signals even feature up to 4 aspects. With sophistication comes complexity and wiring schematics that are unprecendented in z gauge, thus the fun of real train operation. Signals are their own field of study and adding realistic signalling will make a great layout even greater.

Before delving into the world of mini-club signals important comments need to be made, first is the expense, and second is the commitment of time. Non semaphore signals come with 2, 3 or 4 aspects, as the lighting functions increase there are also an increase in parts and wiring. For example the 89391, 89394 and 89395 are 2 aspect requiring 1 relay (7244), 89390 and 89392 are 3 aspect requiring 2 relays (7244), and 89393 requires 3 relays (7244). Cost is expanded with the addition of each 7244 relay which retail for $45. The 7244 relay also operates on 16 volts only therefore purchasing a separate transformer is required (Marklin 6001-110 volt or 6002-240 volt). A 7272 control box is also required for every 4 signals. And two feeder tracks per block is required (8590). Plus 8954 plastic rail joiner insulators. The commitment of time can be quickly suggested with one photo illustrating all the wires required for hooking up one 2 aspect signal 89391.

To keep costs affordable shop for used relays and transformers. Used relays sell on Ebay for about $15 a piece while used 6001 transformers sell for no more than $75. If you buy the 240volt 6002 transformer for the European market it can be converted to 110volt with the addition of a Pyle 100 watt step-up/step down converter for $20. Used signals are also a possibility from a reliable dealer who gives a warranty.

Wiring schematics are provided with each new signal sold, but I will provide written instructions for each on a separate post if you bought one used without instructions; those instructions are too lengthy to include here.

Since this post concerns LED only Marklin z signals let’s start with a basic description for each.

89390 – “Distant” signal warns engineer of next signal’s indication and prepares the train crew of an oncoming stop command. Located a distance from other signals on a mainline.

89391- “Block” signal located along a mainline with two indications: stop and proceed.

89392- “Entry” signal used at the entrance to train stations with three aspects: stop, proceed, and proceed slowly.

89393- “Exit” signal used at stations for departing trains with 4 aspects: stop, proceed, proceed slowly and switching allowed.

89394- “Yard” signal used to indicate movement of trains within a switch yard with two aspects: do not proceed and proceed but prepare to stop. Ground level signal.

89395- *Same signal type as 89394 but high mounted on a pole versus ground level.

The type of layout will determine how many signals are required prototypically, but the cost to equip a layout with each prototypically wired will quickly add up to big bucks. An alternative is to wire important signals on the layout and perhaps leave others on permanently as green or red. Or another solution is to manually turn two aspects on and off without train control using a control box.

Signal wiring tips: 1. Each signal is equipped with a varying number of wires, following the wire schematic will indicated where those wires go. 2. Standard braided wire by Marklin is color coded, it is important to stick with correct color coding in case a mistake is made and retracing one’s step. 3. The strands of braided wire need to be twisted to make good contact with plugs and terminals, but I suggest one step further: tinning the wire will keep the strands together better than twisting alone, simply apply solder to the braided ends of your wire thereby filling the wires with solder and making a single strand. 4. Signals come equipped with several wires that have capacitors installed to a solid wire, this part of the wire heats up and should not be taped over thereby preventing a potential fire. Also never remove the capacitors. 5. Wires with capacitors and solid wires will need to be trimmed for their connections with the relay (7244) terminals, this wire is far longer than required. 6. Control box 7272 is correct for signals. 7. Two feeder tracks per block are required.

Freudenreich Feinwerktechnik (FR) : SJ Tc307

Harald Thom-Freudenreich just released a z gauge 2 axle loco with new tooling and design of a unique Scandinavian diesel-hydraulic snowplow: Tc307 for SJ Railways.

Built by NOHAB from 1969-1971 there were a total of 20 Serie Tc locomotives lettered for SJ bearing this paint scheme. In 1988 SJ’s Tc locomotives were transferred to Banverket and thus repainted and lettered for Banverket: yellow car body with white roof. A specialty locomotive for clearing the ever present snowfall in Sweden during winter it doubles as a general purpose loco in months without snow whose duties include maintenance of way and regional freight service.

The model features superb detail and coreless motor, but due to its unique design lights were not possible.

Sharing the rails with the Tc307 is the FR SJ Rc2 1103 which is comparatively larger than the Tc307.

Released this month FR’s 46.135.11 will be available in the future as kit form only for advanced modelers who have attained a high level of soldering and air brushing skills.

FR website: www.fr-model.homepage.t-online.de/

Z Trains Weekly

World of Z scale trains!