Category Archives: Freight: Liquids

Z -Modellbau: “Vanoli” Koff II

One of the smallest locomotive types offered by Z-Modellbau is the Kof diesel who’s line-up includes this Swiss one plus German, Austrian and Norwegian variants. Painted and lettered for the private firm “Vanoli” this class Kof II features dark gray and yellow paint scheme.

Z-Modellbau Kof II “Vanoli (#3107) + Marklin 82484 + Administration Building from Marklin set 89982
Z-Modellbau Kof II “Vanoli (#3107) + Marklin 82484 + Administration Building from Marklin set 89982

Locomotive features full metal construction and brush-less motor making this one of the smallest locomotives in Z with its own motive power. Unique coupler design interfaces with Marklin, it is otherwise unobtrusive. Non functioning headlamps are very precisely painted in. Fully glazed operator’s cabin plus separately applied parts include coupling hoses.

Z-Modellbau Kof II “Vanoli (#3107) + Marklin 82484 + Administration Building from Marklin set 89982
Z-Modellbau Kof II “Vanoli (#3107) + Marklin 82484 + Administration Building from Marklin set 89982

Because of its short length the locomotive can potentially have difficulty thru turnouts otherwise the operation is smooth with very sensitive braking characteristics.

Z-Modellbau Kof II “Vanoli (#3107) + Marklin 82484 + Administration Building from Marklin set 89982

Paired with a funnel flow car the scale of this locomotive is truly impression considering it too can easily pull a line of freight cars through a yard. Unique in recent offerings by Marklin are second release freight cars which feature authentic ‘weathering’. The Swiss firm Wascosa has been featured numerous times in the Marklin mini-club line-up, but for the first time Wascosa’s paint and lettering scheme was applied to the newly produced funnel flow car type in set 82530 (2013) which included 4 blue Wascosa cars as part of the 20 car set, it was later released in ‘weathered’ variants (item #82482- 82485).

Z-Modellbau Kof II “Vanoli (#3107) + Marklin 82484 + Administration Building from Marklin set 89982

Administration building for the DB can be seen along the tracks, this laser cut building was included with Marklin turntable 89982.

Z-Modellbau Kof II “Vanoli (#3107) + Marklin 82484 + Administration Building from Marklin set 89982

Marklin Magazin: Limited Releases for Marklin Z

Marklin 88953 (One Time Series-2015) class 74 tank locomotive

One of the many benefits of Marklin Insider Club membership includes subscription to Marklin Magazin (English text). The glossy well produced magazine features articles helpful to HO and Z gauge modelers as well as Gauge 1 from layout design and scenery tips to historical background. I look forward to getting the big white envelope with this magazine as well as Insider News magazine. Plus twice a year up to date news from Marklin is delivered on DVD with English subtitles and beautiful videography. And then there is the Club card and free club car in your choice in gauges: HO or Z. So that is my plug for Marklin Insider Club, it is a very good deal and investment in your hobby: $99/year.

Marklin’s Magazin releases are easy to spot featuring characteristic Prussian blue paint scheme sometimes basing their designs on the magazine’s printing heritage. Releases also highlight newly tooled cars sometimes for the first time.

2001 marked the occasion of the first such release of a freight car in Z, and the series includes one locomotive. So without further ado I will present each release starting with the first one:

Marklin 80811 (2001) type Rils car with tarp cover for transporting steel coils
Marklin 80812 (2002) type Lgjs 598 flat car with 5 tanks corresponding to printer’s ink
Marklin 80813 (2003) type Eaos 106 high side gondola with load of wood chips for paper production
Marklin 80814 (2004) type Sammp 705 heavy duty flat car with replica of a machine glazing cylinder
Marklin 80815 (2005) type Re 687 four-axle flat car with system containers painted to represent colors used to print Marklin Magazin
Marklin 80816 (2006) type low side car with brakeman’s platform loaded with reams of paper used for printing
Marklin 80817 (2007) type diesel/heating oil tank car
Marklin 80818 (2008) type Bt 10 flat car loaded with Efkr Pa containers for raw materials
Marklin 80819 (2009) type Shimmns 708 sliding wall box car

Marklin 80820 (2010) type Lb 576 flat car loaded with 3 type Eoskrt coal container
Marklin 80821 (2011) type acid transport car with acid tanks
Marklin 80822 (2012) type OOTZ hopper car

Marklin 80823 (2013) type VH 14 livestock car
Marklin 80824 (2014) type refrigerator car based on German Railroad Association Drawing A2
Marklin 80825 (2015) type Tms 851 two-axle sliding roof car with brakeman’s cabin
Marklin 80826 (2016) type Eanos high side gondola for transporting wood chips
Marklin 80827 (2017) type Fas 126 side dump car
Marklin 80828 (2018) type Zans four-axle funnel flow tank car
Marklin 80829 (2019) type E 037 2-axle gondola

In 2015 Marklin released the first locomotive painted and lettered for the Marklin Magazin series, it would no doubt include the latest developments in Marklin Z locomotive design including improved running gear of the class 74 (former T 9 K.W.St.E and Prussian T 12) tank locomotive. It is a stout little locomotive with sharp lines and handsome Prussian blue paint scheme.

Marklin 88953 (2015) Marklin Magazin special one time series
Marklin 88953 (2015) Marklin Magazin special one time series Note: trailing lights are non-functioning and painted white

FR: SJ BP tank car uniquely paired Marklin MSI

Ever wonder how many Marklin MSI’s have been produced? I have and one extraordinary collector has them all, his audacity in acquiring them is an achievement in itself winning him the Guinness Book of World Records for the feat in 2006, his name is Gilles Monk of Belgium.

One relatively obscure Marklin Special Imprint is a tank car lettered for BP and used on the SJ: type 8612 mini-club tank car lettered for BP Svenska released in 1989 with Koll’s #89717 and Miba/Monk #423 released in an edition of 200.

Here the 1989 MSI tank car (top) is paired with a superb repainting and lettering for BP/SJ by FR with item number 46.396.01 and produced in a total edition of 35 with black paint scheme.

This is a reworked Marklin mini-club tank car that is infrequently offered by FR to round out various types of Scandinavian rolling stock. Reworked and repainted includes newly designed and richly detailed metal add-on parts (more intricate than the original) and complete removal of original paint and lettering. This type of production is labor intensive from research to final car thus making these releases attractive historically, and small batch release makes them ever more collectible.