Marklin produced special imprints cars and locos since the 1970’s in limited editions. This section will document many of these items categorized by car type and chronological order. Chronology and details concerning each are based on the two “Koll’s Spezial Katalog’s” from 1996 and 1997 as well as the well known archive of Gilles Monk. The Koll’s catalogs listed each item by car type in sections starting with the earliest and ending with those produced up to and including 1997, with few exceptions it is a nearly complete record for “mini-club’s” first 25 years. All ‘Z’ items listed in the Koll’s catalogs are numbered by a unique number assigned by the authors of the Koll’s catalogs: first two digits correspond to the release date followed by a sequence of numbers corresponding to chronology of release in a given year. Gilles Monk without question is the world leader in collecting Marklin Z, he is officially recognized with this title by the Guinness Book of World Records, it is quite a feat that one person has been able to collect all releases of special imprints. For the public record Mr. Monk has generously made available his list of special imprints in chronological order which correspond to his unique numbering system. There are some discrepancies with chronology between Koll and Monk for releases within a given year, but each is in agreement for release years; photographs depict the order presented in the Koll’s catalogs. The photographs that I provide depict my collection which is not complete, as my research continues I will upgrade details about other cars not currently in the collection. Very few photos exist of SMI’s, they were never documented in catalogs by Marklin. The internet provides scant photo review of these wonderful cars. And if you have the Koll’s catalogs they only presented good black and white photos of most not all cars. For the first time I hope to help other collectors of SMI’s see these graphic and wonderful cars in full color. As a point of reference I have made every attempt at providing accurate information, some details may change over time based on my continued research.
Author Archives: garygraves
Statens Järnvägar or SJ – Swedish State Railways an introduction!
Two hat Badges for the Swedish State Railways include a late 19th century example in gold thread with the “Three Crowns” and a 1950’s example in heavy pressed brass.
Founded in the late 19th century (1887), Swedish State Railways known as Statens Järnvägar or SJ was a government owned railway company that discontinued operations in 2001. Today the Swedish government owns three divisions of SJ assets: SJ AB (passenger), Green Cargo (freight) and Jernhusen (real estate holdings). In 1887 steam locomotives ruled the rails for the first 28 years of SJ’s history. In response to Sweden’s dependence on imported coal for steam trains a successful proposal was made to electrify Sweden’s iron ore line at Malmbanan with electricity produced through hydroelectric generation, its source would be the Porjus Power Plant. In 1915 the first complete electrified rail line in Sweden was operational. For 101 years electric locomotives have hauled freight and passenger trains throughout Sweden, but diesel locomotives are also used for freight hauling, shunting, and specialized locomotives including snow removal; Harald Freudenreich of FR is soon to release an exciting example in ‘Z’ of a specialized snow plow diesel locomotive class Tc/DLL: https://eshop.t-online.de/epages/Shop46559.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/Shop46559/Products/46.135.xx
Two famous locomotive builders from Sweden include: NOHAB ((Nydqvist & Holm AB), Trollhättan and ASEA (Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget), Västerås each disbanded in 1979 and 1988 respectively. NOHAB’s first trains were steam, but they later built diesel/electric locomotives with licensing from the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors characterized by their resemblance to the American F7. Marklin has produced 4 exquisite examples of this NOHAB series in Z: 88630 (SNCB), 88631 (CFL), 88632 (DSB Era V), and 88633 (DSB Era III). Please note all 4 locos were limited release “One Time Series”, they are highly sought after. ASEA produced two very successful electric locomotives with one type still in use today: SJ RA and SJ Rc. The SJ RA has a characteristic design that suggests the American F7, built in 1955-1961 with two designations: “Express” and “Rapid”. FR produced a limited release (32 units in total of the Express), it is sold out and hard to find, FR will be producing the “Rapid” later in 2016 which will surely become very collectible and sought after. The second ASEA locomotive type that is in widespread use in Sweden is the Rc series with numerous variations that follow a numbering system of Rc1- Rc7 respectively. The RC prototype locomotive has endured as a reliable electric motive design incorporating thyristor controls. Amtrak and MetroNorth have used variants of the Rc in the United States. Marklin has produced models of the Rc series in HO, but FR rules ‘Z’ with a broad range of variants of the Rc in Z surpassing anything Marklin has yet produced in HO. FR’s soon to be released Rc6 in ‘BlueX’ paint scheme is a striking example of a late series variant of the prototype.
Intro. for new collectors: European freight train consist
Advanced or experienced train people need not read this brief introduction about assembling a train consist, but for those new to European trains modeled by Marklin and others an introduction is a helpful way to get you started. First their are two types of freight trains designated as ‘unit’ or ‘mixed freight’. Unit trains are comprised of similar car types hauling one type of freight, unit trains of hoppers typically haul minerals such as gravel or coal as well as tank cars hauling liquid or gas. Mixed freight trains are made up of various car types: tank cars, container cars, flat cars with machinery loads and numerous others. In the United States freight trains may comprise rolling stock of various railroads as well as cross border cars from Canada, but in Europe freight trains frequently pass from one country’s border to the next and often times include cars that vary from the country of origin. European trains are shorter in length compared to a 100+ car train set you might see crossing the ‘Great Plains’ in the United States. In creating an accurate train consist based on European prototypes keep in mind correct Era’s attributed to cars by Marklin. And consider including not just German rolling stock in your train set.
Steamtown in Scranton, PA
Steamtown in Scranton, Pennsylvania is a National Historic Site situated on the former yard of the Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western Railroad. Building on the original collection assembled by F. Nelson Blount in the 1950’s and 60’s Steamtown today comprises a large roundhouse and 90 foot turntable and exhibits illustrating the history of steam locomotives in the United States.
Steamtown National Historic Site was established October 30, 1986, it was deemed as the “most flagrant pork barrel project” using Park Service funds by many including Kenneth R. Clark of the Chicago Tribune. The project contributed millions of dollars into the depressed coal mining region of Scranton, PA and without it this important site would not be preserved today. A nominal fee of $7.00 for adults allows entrance to the grounds and exhibits which are sequenced along the spokes of the roundhouse, they eventually lead to the workshops with numerous steam locomotives in for repair and restoration.
Set of pilot wheels and side-rods awaiting installation.
This is an educational experience, but one can also be inspired by the impressive mass of walking next to the behemoth locomotives including a Union Pacific ‘Big Boy’.
A display locomotive not to be missed has cutaway sections revealing the fundamental engineering of a steam locomotive and tender.
Displayed outdoors is a rare diesel for this museum, an A-A F7 diesel of the Reading Railroad.
A separate museum located across the parking lot of Steamtown is the Electric City Trolley Museum, if you time it right you can take on ride on one of the trolleys for $2.00!
A rare sight is this electric shunting locomotive, it is part of the Electric City Trolley Museum’s collection and displayed just outside the museum.
Playing its part with the railroad theme of this museum are the ‘T’ rails used in the parking lot’s perimeter fence.
A day at the museum can include rides on a steam train and electric trolley. Trains don’t run everyday, you will need to plan ahead by checking the schedules.
In Pennsylvania we are lucky to have a number of excellent train museums, in future posts we will be visiting others including a narrow gauge railroad and the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania.
How A Steam Locomotive Works
Every once in awhile a book needs to be mentioned that relates to railroading history. One such book is one I found at the book shop at “Steamtown” in Scranton, PA. Aptly titled How A Steam Locomotive Works – A New Guide is a fine textbook on all functional aspects of steam locomotion by the author Dominic Wells published in 2015 by Ian Allan Publishing. The author begins with a simple description of creating steam in a pot before embarking on a clever description of adapting it to train locomotion, a simple but highly complex system of engineering. Expertly written with numerous illustrations this book is the reference guide for all interested in steam trains. More than 150 pages covering every important function and design of the steam locomotive. I highly recommend this book above any other on this topic.
Collecting Marklin Z and Preserving Train History: 88300, 88301, 88302
from top – side 1:
Marklin 88300: V300 Diesel Hydraulic Loco, Insider Model 2009
Marklin 88301: ML 2200 C’C’ experimental loco, builder: Krauss-Maffei, 1957 paint scheme
Marklin 88302: ML 3000 C’C’ factory paint scheme after 1957-1958 rebuild
side 2:
Collecting Marklin Z is bigger than acquiring model trains, it is a collaboration with Marklin: preserving the history of trains. Every collector of trains in all scales is participating in train history simply by collecting model trains, books and ephemera. Our passion for trains is passed on to the next generation, thus block by block trains are well documented and understood thanks to model train manufacturers and their collectors.
Historical preservation is at the heart of some Marklin Z releases including the experimental locomotives: ML 2200 and ML 3000.
The German locomotive maker Krauss-Maffei produced a variant of the 4 axle V200 locomotive in the 1950’s for the Yugoslav Railroad with lower axle loads and improved air conditioning thus the 6 axle ML 2200 was born. Delivery of three ML 2200 locomotives 1.77 meters longer than the V200 took place in Belgrade May 27, 1957. Marklin’s One Time Series 88301 is a model of the ML 2200 prototype.
The ML 3000 represents a rebuilt ML 2200 with increased power and improved transmission. The failure of negotiations to secure an order for ML 3000’s with the DB ended any potential success this locomotive would have for load restricted routes in Germany, the surviving prototype was used in Bavaria before it was leased in 1963 and later purchased by the DB. Marklin #88302 is modeled on the ML 3000 prototype.
In 1963 the DB leased the ML 3000, it was reclassified V300. The locomotive was repainted with the DB color scheme otherwise unchanged. In 1964 the DB purchased the V300, it was used in express and freight service. The service life of the V300 lasted roughly 17 years before it was scrapped. Marklin model #88300 represents the V300, it was a limited production release for Insider members.
As a point of comparison there were 4 total locomotives produced of the ML 2200/ ML 3000/ V300 variants and 86 total locomotives produced of the V200. Maybe the V300 would have been more successful than the V200 if negotiations with the DB had not failed to secure an order for them.
Blue? Prussian Blue rolling on the rails
Marklin Magazin has been published by Marklin for a number of years, it is a glossy well produced magazine with contents covering Marklin trains and train history. And it is included with your ‘Insider’ membership! So what’s with the title of this post Prussian Blue? Prussian Blue is the traditional blue used in blueprints and since 2001 the characteristic color used for Marklin Magazin’s special edition cars. Marklin Magazin’s “Car of the Year” is often Marklin’s car with new tooling for that year, pigmented in Prussian Blue and lettered for Marklin Magazin. Sometimes a theme is introduced such as the 2002 release 80812: type Lgjs 598 flat car loaded with tanks corresponding to printer’s ink used in the production of the magazine. Or the 2006 release 80816: type low side car with brakeman’s platform loaded with real rolls of paper, Marklin notes 20 metric tons of paper are used for each issue of Marklin Magazin. New releases of Magazin special edition cars are available from your dealer through Walthers, but they sell out quickly.
Faller 222114 turntable for goods depot
Utilizing a small motor the new Faller 222114 is a working turntable for a freight depot. Packaged as a multi scale turntable modifications are made for z scale following Faller’s instructions. This item is currently available from Micro Macro Mundo for $42.03, I just ordered mine.
Faller 2016 Releases: 282780 + 282781
Available later this year (2016) are two laser cut kits by Faller featuring half timber and stucco townhouses with further variations in roof sheathing. Kits 282780 and 282781 build on the continuation of new laser cut kits offered by Faller and other manufacturers. The realism achieved by laser cut kits is completed by correctly pigmented cardstock and architectural correct designs. Matte surface features are more closely related to original architecture than has been previously available for modelers.
Faller July 2016 Release: 282704
Several very interesting new releases have been announced by Faller for 2016 including the Bahnhof Hulinghausen train station. Borrowing from the manufacturer’s website is their description: A monument! Laser-cut model of the station building in Herscheid-Hüinghausen put into operation in 1915, with a characteristic hipped roof à la Mansard and an adjoining half-timbered goods shed. The station area forms today the operating central point of the museum line Sauerland Local Railway. The proposed release is July 2016.
*Available as a pre-order from http://www.ajckids.com/products/Faller/282704 .