Mine track size

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Doc Holliday

Member
Oct 27, 2002
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Big Valley, California
Hi,
I've ventured over from HO land with a question for those with better eyesight than I have. I originally planned on having a mine with workers pushing small ore cars by hand on my circa 1880 Old West HO layout. Now I'd like to kitbash some type of stream powered unit (not a loco exactly, but smaller and pieced-together looking) and a couple of ore cars to run a continuous circle in and out of the mine. Anybody have any suggestions about sources for the engine and ore cars? Would something in N scale work? Or would Z scale be better? Could someone here let me know how wide standard gauge track is in N and Z scale? I'd be mighty obliged for any help.
Doc
 
C

Catt

Doc,if memory serves me right most mine trackage was 18" gauge or maybe even smaller.Since your looking to have a powered loco and ore cars I would suggest you look at Z gauge track .I think Merklin has some small locos you could bash and scratchbuilding the ore cars wouldn't be impossible.
 
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tillsbury

Member
Jul 18, 2004
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NZ
Z is 6.5mm, but you'll have a whole lot more problem finding things. Why not try narrow gauge HO (HOn30?), where you stick to the HO scale and use N-gauge track? There are a lot of kits and even RTR trains available in that size, particularly relating to mining and logging cars...
 
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Will_annand

Active Member
Jan 12, 2004
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Huntsville, Ontario
www.muskokacomputes.com
Doc,

One of the guys in the Muskoka Model RR Club has an HO layout with a small mine done in N Scale. The track is N Scale, with small ore cars, he cut hoppers down, took out the middle section. Basically mounted the front and back on one truck. He has it set up with a (non-working) cable and winch to simulate how it would be hauled.

In your era, it would have been a couple of mules. :D
 
S

shortliner

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Dec 23, 2004
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Doc - woke up this morning with a thought - on Carls Site http://www.carendt.us/scrapbook/page37/index.html there is a railway built on top of a music box, which is "powered" via a wire that runs in a slot. If you use a small stepper motor, this might work if you used rails made from wire, IE no ties, and had a LPB pushing a mine tipper car - or even two of them 180 degrees apart another possibility is a chain running round two cogs under the track with the tipper connected to it. If you can get rotating wheels you could have a tiny rare-earth magnet in the tipper, and another attached under the track - that way you could use Z track with ties and no visible connection.
Trying to think "out of the box"
Shortliner(Jack)away up here in the Highlands
:thumb:
 
Dan Vincent

Dan Vincent

Member
Aug 14, 2003
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Sanford, FL
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Doc,

N-scale track scales out to HOn30. AHM used to make mining stuff in that scale.

I believe there is still quite a following for HOn30 with cottage-type kits available.

Do a search on HOn30, you should find something.
 
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