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Author Archive: John Cubbin

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Z-Panzer Eyeing North America?

Z-Panzer Eyeing North America?

I received an email earlier today from Andy Hart of Z-Panzer, a company based in England producing WWII military models in Z scale. I own several of Z-Panzer’s models including their BP42, Panzerzug armored train set; it’s an amazing thing to see on the desk in front of me. I also have Andy’s recent model […]

June 20, 2011 0 Comments More
Beginning In Z Scale 1:220

Beginning In Z Scale 1:220

The Marklin Company of Germany has been making model trains since the late 1800’s and in 1972 introduced their Z scale model trains to the world. At 1/220 (commonly written as 1:220) the size of real […]

June 10, 2011 0 Comments More
Santa Fe Diorama

Santa Fe Diorama

Our new desktop wallpaper is brought to you by Ztrack Magazine and features two very cool recent Santa Fe releases. We have a pair of Santa Fe Budd cars by AZL and these are traveling over the Micro-Trains Line through-girder, Santa Fe bridge. The scene is a recent diorama I completed here at Ztrains to […]

May 28, 2011 0 Comments More
Dave Frary | Blue Ribbon Models

Dave Frary | Blue Ribbon Models

If you’ve ever walked into a hobby shop and looked at the book rack or picked up a copy of Model Railroader, you’ve likely seen Dave Frary’s work. Dave has written the definitive guide to model railroad scenery in his book, How To Build Realistic Model Railroad Scenery, now in its 3rd revision. In addition […]

May 14, 2011 0 Comments More
The Three Foot Rule

The Three Foot Rule

The three foot rule in model railroading generally means that if a model or scene looks good from three feet away, it’s a good enough piece of work. An alternate definition comes from a Linn Wescott article and defines the three foot rule as the distance the average person can reach comfortably into their layout […]

May 8, 2011 0 Comments More
Tim Warris | Fast Tracks

Tim Warris | Fast Tracks

With the the continuing growth of Z scale model railroading we’re seeing new products and techniques that only a short time ago were the sole property of the larger scales. The Fast Tracks company of Ontario, Canada now brings us a wide array of fixtures, tools and instruction on how to build our own Code […]

May 7, 2011 0 Comments More
Lance Mindheim | The Shelf Layouts Co.

Lance Mindheim | The Shelf Layouts Co.

Just when you think you know a little something about model railroading you find there’s always more to learn. Personally I find this one of the more fun aspects of the hobby. There are always new doors opening, always new and interesting facets to dig in to. I recently drew up a small plan for […]

May 1, 2011 0 Comments More
Waterfront Project | Part 1

Waterfront Project | Part 1

I’ve got my Waterfront Project kits all lined up from Micro-Trains, lots of really good water-themed structures here… now I need to design the layout around this theme, I need a look. As I wrote in the previous article this is going to be a protolance layout, so I have some wiggle room on prototypical […]

April 30, 2011 0 Comments More
Waterfront Project | Introduction

Waterfront Project | Introduction

Welcome to the Z Scale Basics Waterfront Project, a freelance (or protolance) Z scale project layout featuring the Waterfront series of laser cut building kits from our sponsor, Micro-Trains Line. This series will take us from our protolance planning right through to the completion of a fully operational and sceniced Z scale layout. […]

April 21, 2011 0 Comments More
Our New Z Scale Camera

Our New Z Scale Camera

If you’ve read my previous articles on choosing a good camera for use here at Ztrains.com you’re probably thinking… just buy a camera already!!! I know, I know… but I can be a little picky and I’m sort of a research junkie when it comes to things like this. During this process I’ve also driven […]

April 17, 2011 0 Comments More
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