Category Archives: Siding

FR Locomotives: Switzerland

Switzerland is home to many exciting railway adventures. And many model railroaders gravitate toward modeling Swiss prototypes and scenic byways. FR’s first foray in Swiss z locomotion was modifying Marklin locos, one such example is the class Ae 3/6 electric. Not a great runner out of the box, FR redesigned it with an FR custom circuit board and motor with a flywheel. In order to allow the flywheel to spin freely window glazings had to be removed on that end of the loco. But another very interesting loco for Switzerland was designed and built from tip to toe by FR for the railway Rorschach Heiden Bergbahn, the model is entirely constructed of metal with separately applied details, and the first model of a cog railway prototype in ‘Z’ scale. It also incorporates the new technology of coreless motors.

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Marklin 8851 loco modified by FR with upgraded FR circuit board and motor with flywheel. The brass flywheel can be seen in photo #3. I purchased this second hand, it was missing all the glazing. Later I found a shell with complete glazing, and I was able to file the bottom edge of glazing, with very careful positioning I was able to keep all glazing intact. The running characteristics are very good with the FR modifications.

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FR – Rorschach Heiden Bergbahn (RHB) class Fzeh2/4 cog railway locomotive privately owned and lettered for RHB in Epoch 2 paint scheme.

*Siding: FR recommends teflon based oil instead of Marklin oil for its locos available from Hightech Modellbahnen.

FR Locomotives: NSB

The first and only NSB locomotive to grace z scale is the EL-18 produced in partial kit form by FR. FR delivered this loco with the shell painted and lettered, it was up to the new owner to make modifications in order to install the snowplows. What is an NSB locomotive without snowplows, and these are very well cast metal plows painted yellow. The modification of the FR EL-18: 1. remove shell 2. trim and level bottom edges of shell either end 3. spot/retouch paint if defects arise from leveling 4. using only epoxy attach each snowplow and hold in place until epoxy has become permanent (plastic glues will melt the shell making for poor results) 5. set shell aside after assembly of both plows are completed 6. chassis: remove both trucks 7. truck modification: trim each just behind coupler (couplers need to removed to allow shell with plows to be installed) 8. holding truck together make a very small pilot hole into the outer edge of truck which will be held together with a screw 9. install screws in each truck, epoxy maybe applied to screw head it is at all loose.

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FR #47.198.10 – Norges Statsbaner AS (Norwegian State Railways) NSB, class EL-18 electric locomotive with snowplows. Edition size: 30.

Siding: FR’s NSB EL-18 is based on the Marklin SBB 460 locomotive series which is another very successful series by Marklin. And a great performance loco in ‘Z’. The prototype is also similar to the SBB 460 with modifications, it has proven itself as highly successful locomotive for Norway being used to haul freight and passenger coaches.

Sidings

An idea occurred that might be useful for organizing related notes about information contained in these posts. This section will be titled “Sidings” which can be searched under this category. A Siding is a special note given with a post that connects with things outside the post.

MSI’s: DB passenger coaches

Very few Marklin Special Imprints of passenger coaches exist in comparison to other car types. Many of these never made it to the United States dealers, and today they are usually only available through secondary market or German dealers. Part of the fun is the search, and Ebay can sometimes be the only option, but a careful eye on dealer websites can sometimes be helpful. Some dealers are now featuring a category for consignments on their websites. Putting a special imprint in your train set can add uniqueness and specificity that not everyone can lay claim to. Pull up a chair with a cold refreshment and start hunting!

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1a. 87295 – German Railroad, Inc. (DB AG) type DABz 756 1st and 2nd class coach in “Traffic Red” paint scheme. Two sided special imprint car: side 1- idee+spiel – 1000 Spielwaren-Fachgeschafte.

1b. 87295 – German Railroad, Inc. (DB AG) type DABz 756 1st and 2nd class coach in “Traffic Red” paint scheme. Two sided special imprint car: side 2- EUROTRAIN – Modellbahnen 1. Klasse.

2. 87296- German Railroad, Inc. (DB AG) type Dbz 751 cafe car 2nd class in “Traffic Red” paint scheme lettered ZugCafe. Destination signs: RegionalExpress RB50 Dortmund Hbf. One Time Series 2001/02.

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3. 8716.1728 – German Federal Railroad (DB) “Silver Coin” 2nd class coach commemorating MIBA’s 40th Anniversary.

4. 87399 – German Federal Railroad (DB) type 2nd class coach with special imprinting: KUNSTHALLE TUBINGEN. Special edition car produced to mark the occasion of Marklin Exhibition at Kunsthalle Tubingen art museum, Tubingen, Baden Wurttemberg, 11/15/2003 – 2/15/2004.

*Siding: Marklin 87399 coach is same car type as the coaches found in Marklin’s 8135 train set “Dompfeil”. It is also a compatible coach for repainting for SJ service, FR has a stencil kit available to convert these coaches to SJ.