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Welcome to Z Scale Rail in New Zealand

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By way of introduction... Z Scale seems to be the Cinderells of modelling scales in NZ. It offers unique challenges to its fans: it is fiddly to work with, expensive to buy, and accessories are often hard to find. But for those willing to get past these minor obstacles, it can be very rewarding. It is compact, cute, and commercial rolling stock is reliable and uniformly of high quality. My first Z layout (since demolished) started in 2015 - 8 metres of track, 8 metres of catenary, long tunnels - and working wind turbines - all in a 1200 x 600mm footprint. The outflow pipes at the front hide the switches for the points. The buildings are all laser-cut models of iconic NZ buildings: Plischke's Henderson house in Alexandra, John Scott's Futuna Chapel in Karori and Philip King's Ohura Bowling Club. The bridge in the centre is a laser-cut model based on the Oresund bridge joining Denmark and Sweden. Back then, DCC for Z scale was still a distant dream because no-one made decod...
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Restoring a 1978 Märklin Dealer Layout

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  Apparently the principal national Märklin dealerships in each country had a demonstration layout based on the 8930 toporama. This layout utilised the standard basic and extension kits, and showcased all of the model buildings available in the Z range at that time.  The layout did not however include a turntable, transfer table or road level crossing, nor did it feature any signals or relays. This one was supplied to Haseldens Hobbies & Cycles in Palmerston North in May 1978. At that time, Haseldens was located in Main St, but the following year they moved to new premises in The Square, Palmerston North.  The model was supplied by H.W. Clarke Ltd, a distributor that also stocked radios, refrigerators and other electrical appliances. I purchased this off TradeMe in early 2020. Only two of the nine points were operational, many of the catenary mast bases and wire trees were rusted out and at some point a heavy weight - probably a transformer - had been dropped on the c...
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