Need help from those running Z-Scale

Hello to you all.

This is a bit off topic.

Reason for posting here, "first link that came up in google" (Lucky You !)

Recently my father passed away and for 40 years was an avid Model Rail Roader.

(Avid is by far an understatement.)

Sadly I must disassemble his vast "HO" scale layout.

Yes I know this forum is for Z scale.. but I had an Idea.. (Not good most times.)

Cleaning up his home. I came across an old Milk Bottle. Some of you may remember those.

And thought, how cool it would be to put a Train in a Bottle rather than a Ship.

HO scale is too big and thought of Z scale (The Smallest scale that I know of.)

I know putting a train in a bottle is silly but, this to me would be in some small
way be in tribute of his life, and what he enjoyed.

The maximum length of "Train" that would fit comfortably into the Milk Bottle.
would be 6 Inches.

It would be nice to have a Steam engine "2-8-2" wheel base North Amarican 40's Era & style

Canadian National - (Would be a bonus.)

Reason why is a long story. (Basicaly, his favorite)

Then a mix of cars, ending with a caboose. (of course)

My question "How may cars with caboose" and with above style of engine, would fit. ???
into the restricted length of 6 inches (Give or take half an inch.)

---

Your participation in my little project would be very helpful.
as I am too lazy to do the math for 1:220 scale.

Also..

If one of you would have "a steam engine" that I described above that you
would be willing to part with..

(Does not need to be working) just looks good from the outside..

and perhaps some of you have a few cars, with a caboose that you could spare.

I would also need a Foot of spare Z-Scale track to work with.

My vision (Give or take a car.)

Steam Engine - Box Car - Flat Bed - Box Car - Tanker - Caboose (If they all would fit).

I Have never seen Z-Scale so.. Not sure if the above is possible.

----

Thank you for taking the time to read my post, and I hope that some of you will
help with Zee project.

Kevin

Hello, Kevin, and welcome.

First, you may want to visit this website: www.unbrokenhome.com/index.htm

Be sure to poke around; it might give you some idea of what can be done with similar bottles.

Now for the "math" part...

A Marklin 2-8-2 American steam locomotive is a little over 4.5 inches long. That leaves only 1.5 inches behind it--not even enough room for a caboose.

Now, working from the other end...

A Z scale caboose is about 2 inches over the couplers. A single boxcar is 2.5 inches. So, you've already used up 4.5 inches, leaving only 1.5 inches for a locomotive. You can find locomotives that long (or short), but they would be European switchers.

Hope this information is helpful!

David K. Smith wrote:

Hello, Kevin, and welcome.

First, you may want to visit this website: www.unbrokenhome.com/index.htm

Be sure to poke around; it might give you some idea of what can be done with similar bottles.

Now for the "math" part...

A Marklin 2-8-2 American steam locomotive is a little over 4.5 inches long. That leaves only 1.5 inches behind it--not even enough room for a caboose.

Now, working from the other end...

A Z scale caboose is about 2 inches over the couplers. A single boxcar is 2.5 inches. So, you've already used up 4.5 inches, leaving only 1.5 inches for a locomotive. You can find locomotives that long (or short), but they would be European switchers.

Hope this information is helpful!

Most certainly helps "Thank you" Z is a larger than I thought.

Guess this was just another of my bad Ideas.

Maybe, I'll Just put a "N" scale engine alone .. But that would be fun getting it
into the bottle.

"I'll check out the link you provided", Thanks.

TTY to ya all later perhaps.

Chow.. Kevin.

Kevin,

Instead of the milk bottle, how about visiting an antique store for a larger bottle.

Robert

loadmaster wrote:

Kevin,

Instead of the milk bottle, how about visiting an antique store for a larger bottle.

Robert

Thanks Rob.. but, no antique store close by..

I would need one with a large neck opening (like a milk bottle)

Would not want to rebuild a full engine piece by piece inside a bottle.

(That's not for me.)

Hard enought to put an HO scale together. Z'd must be a killer.

Or... "How long" would a Z scale C.N. Diesel with 2 pasenger cars be. ???

"Bagage/pasenger combination, and End car." C.N. Diesel style from 50's/60's era.

Kevin

kds12345 wrote:

loadmaster wrote:

Kevin,

Instead of the milk bottle, how about visiting an antique store for a larger bottle.

Robert

Or... "How long" would a Z scale C.N. Diesel with 2 pasenger cars be. ???

"Bagage/pasenger combination, and End car." C.N. Diesel style from 50's/60's era.

Kevin

A CN GP7 is 3 inches long and a SD70 is 4 inches long and one passenger car is longer than that and none have been made in CN. So you need a much bigger or taller bottle.

cheers Garth

Hello Kevin,

welcome here also from Germany...

If a milk bottle dosen't fit, maybe you can take a light bulb or a neon light as a container...

A friend of mine did just that as can be seen on his website .

He even did it with a round neon light .

In both links scroll down a bit...

ULie wrote:

Hello Kevin,

welcome here also from Germany...

If a milk bottle dosen't fit, maybe you can take a light bulb or a neon light as a container...

A friend of mine did just that as can be seen on his website .

He even did it with a round neon light .

In both links scroll down a bit...

Thanks Garth for those measurements, looks like the Milk bottle is out of the question again.. (Ohh well.)
Unless I just put the "Steam engine" by it self, and some nice scenery.

----

Hi ULie

That first light looks like it would be perfect, but don't know where to get one.

3000Watt Bulb Maybe I'll ask the guy accross the street, he worked for hydro,
maybe a halogen "Street Lamp"

HUmmm.. (not sure.) it they are the right shape.

Any way.

An old florecent light tube "What a great Idea."

I'll have to try to cut one.

Any other time I have tryed to cut glass .. Hummm

Thanks for those two great Ideas..

(Will have to see if I can find a large 3000 Watt halogen bulb.)

Any one have one they want to give away. ??

Kevin

I would not recommend trying to cut a fluorescent tube. The glass is very thin and prone to shattering. Also, the interior is coated with phosphors that can be toxic.

You may simply want to do a search for glass bottles--you never know what may turn up:

images.google.com/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=glass+bottles&gbv=2&aq=f&oq=&aqi=g2g-m8

Just to throw my 2 cent's worth into the thread. If you are looking for a halogen bulb, check with an elecrtrical contractor and they my have a used one they replaced. also a electrical supply house for a cheap bulb. I think it is a great way to honor your father. good luck

Steve aka "Slugger"

David K. Smith wrote:

I would not recommend trying to cut a fluorescent tube. The glass is very thin and prone to shattering. Also, the interior is coated with phosphors that can be toxic.

You may simply want to do a search for glass bottles--you never know what may turn up:

images.google.com/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=glass+bottles&gbv=2&aq=f&oq=&aqi=g2g-m8

Thanks David, Yupp.. I know of the Phosphorous coating.

As for finding a glass bottle on the net, would be a lot of snooping.

---

Hi Steve aka "Slugger"

I plan to, and hope to find something that I could use..

We have no large stadiums around in my area so the big ones are going to be rare.

Also love your animating Icon.. Looks like the "Big Boy."

Thanks for you two cents, I'll try not to spend it all in one place..

Chow

Kevin

kds12345 wrote:

As for finding a glass bottle on the net, would be a lot of snooping.

Often the hunt is as much fun as the capture!

Hello Kevin,

my friend did the opening of the fluorescent tube at work, he also didn't recommend to do this at home... sorry that I forgot to write that earlier, since his website is only in German...

The halogen bulb he got from a soccer stadium where she was used in the big lights. Perhaps you have a contact to the nearest football or baseball stadium in your area. Or maybe those who maintain the streetlights in your town can help you out on this...

I thought he described it on his website but it isn't there so he must have told me personally that the opening of the circular tube was a pain in a certain body area...

The tube has a cutout at the back hidden by the plate between the two supports in the back. The opening is just big enough to put the engine into the tube. This diorama is fairly simple in its making (except of the glass cutting...). The base is a left over part of a kitchen countertop, the back is a plain board painted with airbrush, and the supports are shelf holder from the next DIY market.

David K. Smith wrote:

kds12345 wrote:

As for finding a glass bottle on the net, would be a lot of snooping.

Often the hunt is as much fun as the capture!

I knew there was something somewhere...

this is me with my son 4 years (back in 2000) with the world biggest bottle for Bordeaux vine:

unfortunately it's a dark bottle...

...if it was a clear bottle it would be good for a whole layout...

talking about a layout in a bottle, those water dispenser bottles could be an idea...

...just surfing through the Google picture link

ULie wrote:

David K. Smith wrote:

kds12345 wrote:

As for finding a glass bottle on the net, would be a lot of snooping.

Often the hunt is as much fun as the capture!

I knew there was something somewhere...

this is me with my son 4 years (back in 2000) with the world biggest bottle for Bordeaux vine unfortunately it's a dark bottle...

...if it was a clear bottle it would be good for a whole layout...

No kidding, you could almost do "O" Scale.

Would also be fun drinking the contents.

---

I Seen those water dispenser bottles also ULie, to bad they have those ridges
that would distort the view.

Humm.. Maybe a smaller one.. Will have to think about that the next time I go uptown.

Will have to see what comes about with the large Light Bulb also. (If I can find one.)

Lots of options.

I have a thyratron "Radar" vacume tube from a military radar base.. but, is about the same size as the milk bottle.

How ever, I want to keep it. Cuzzz it's cool just by it self.

www.e2v.com/assets/media/files/documents/thyratrons/thyratron%20product%20safety.pdf

But any way.. (Will have to do some snooping.)

I may just settle for the steam engine (Only) in the milk bottle. (I have my heart set on using it.)

Does any one have a non working 2-8-2 with tender.. (That looks good)
for a reasonable (Non working price.)

Fingers crossed.

Kevin

OK.. I guess if no one has a non working 2-8-2 wheel configuration

Does any one have a non working 4-6-2 with tender.. and 1 box car
(That looks good) for a reasonable (Non working price.)

Kevin

Kevin,

Great project. I know those old milk bottles. We even had a milk shute beside our back door in the house I grew up in. Some winter mornings we'd forget to bring in the milk and by noon, it had frozen with a column of milk rising from the bottle top. Those were the days

I was in my local hobby shop last year and they had the most beautiful N scale Canadian steam locomotive and tender that I've ever seen. Don't recall the name of the set, though, but seeing it "almost" made me switch to N Since you're not yet dedicated to a particular scale, I'd suggest finding a locomotive that you love, in whatever scale, and working from there.


David,

Thanks for the Z scale bottle builder's page. Inspirational, to say the least. Picked up a few tips about how I might do my ZPBL Challenge dioramas.

Hi Beverly56

Yup, those were the days, (And most recently.) I wish I could turn back time
And save it in that Milk Bottle.

I am clearing and sorting my Fathers layout of the engines and cars trying to price
them (Reasonably) Not an easy task when trying to find some of the older ones.

30 plus engines, and over 200 cars. (Plus hand made buildings, Scale People.. Ect.Ect.)

The vast layout takes up 1 quarter of the basement.

Impossible to move, so I must disassemble it. I won't be able to save any of the track
as it's so imbedded in the roadbed with glue pins and ballast. it will all be damaged.
(Too bad as it is all Nickle silver flex). The trees are so dry they crumble
when you touch them.

It all began in 1971, when I was young my self, and enjoyed the hobby with my father
(I'm glad I didn't have to pay for it.)

In fact, it all started with, my figure 8 train set.
He said he bought for me. (Hummmm, I wonder.)

He developed alzheimer's, and in the later stages didn't recognize the layout
and couldn't understand how it got there.

It was sad to hear him say, "what's all this stuff for?"

But any way..

With luck I should have a web site with the "stuff" listed by end of summer.
(I hope, but time hasn't been on my side lately.)

As for a fave scale "HO" would be the one.. but it takes up a bit too much space.
(For My home.) -- I would be all set with trains if it could.

"Z" sounds too small for my old eyes.. being an electronics tech, and
working with the small stuff for years, and sometimes in poor light conditions
may have been a causing factor. My MagniClips are now my buddies.

I Hope to build an "N" scale in the near future.
(By near I mean 3 years, give or take a day.)
Manual control, and automated by a Basic Stamp.

Maybe I'll go a bit nuts, and use a propeller chip,
I have a few Ideas, as it has [RGB] video output.

LCD Screens are free, from old discarded cell phones.
one would make a very nice dynamic status board.

I'm a bit old school when it comes to model railroading, but I'm going
to look into that new fangled DCC suff a bit as well.

I Love to modify, and poofy things up.

Kevin

Kevin,

Sorry to hear about your dad. Alzheimer's is devastating for the entire family. Having to dismantle your dad's layout must be a pretty tough job emotionally. On the one hand, you have these wonderful memories of your dad and his trains and probably a whole bunch of other events. On the other hand, he's now gone May he rest in peace.

Don't despair about poor eyes with Z scale. I wear bifocals and sometimes use one of those magnifiers that have a round light around it. Often extra, direct lighting is all I need to work in Z. And a good pair of very pointy tweezers found either at hobby stores or in the make-up department in drug stores

What attracted me most to Z scale was the quality of Marklin steam locomotives and cars at fairly reasonable prices. I'm a huge steam fan, and it's too bad Marklin doesn't manufacture Canadian roads, but what can you do? I decided to go with German layouts which has provided me with an opportunity to take myself out of the N. American box I've been living in for the past half century. I'll never have the opportunity to travel to Europe due to health reasons, but with my pals Google, Google Translater and GoogleMaps, I get around Germany pretty well with my computer. I've met some wonderful folks in Germany on my Internet travels, plus plenty of great N. Americans and other international folks on this board

I guess all I'm trying to say is don't give up on Z until you do a little more research