A Brief History of Z Scale
 Z scale was created by Märklin
of Germany, a very old toy manufacturer founded in 1859 to make dollhouse kitchens. By 1891 they were
producing wind-up model trains, moving on to 0 Gauge around
the turn of the century, and entering the H0 scale
market in 1935. After the launch of the first mainstream commercial version of
N scale in 1960 by
Arnold of Germany (another old toy
manufacturer), Märklin elected not to enter that market, and so in 1968 Märklin's Helmut
Killian began work on something completely different, something they could claim as their own,
and in 1972 they finally unveiled their "Mini Club" line, which has since come to be
known as Z scale (the thinking was it would be the smallest possible commercial scale,
and so they picked the last letter in the alphabet; of course, since then we've seen the
introduction of T Scale, but that's another story).
At 1:220, Z is about three-fourths the size of N, 1:160.
 Inspired to enter this new market, which at the time was populated exclusively by
European products, Nelson Gray of upstate New York began tooling up some American-based Z scale
models in his garage. (He had also developed a line of Nn3 products as well.) Around 1982 he sold
all of his tooling to Kadee of Oregon, who added it to
their N scale Micro-Trains Line and introduced it in 1984. The big difference for Micro-Trains
was that their Z scale models featured magnetic coupling—Kadee's specialty, if you will—which
made operation much more viable. The downside was that they split the market into Märklin versus
Kadee couplers, but with such a small market, this didn't have a big negative impact.
Not to be out-done in its own scale, Märklin quickly began producing American-based
models as well, although to be honest they are poorly-proportioned, mostly due to the fact
that the locomotives were originally based on existing mechanisms for European models, and their
horrendous couplers forced them to move their oversized freight car trucks too far inboard
(their American passenger cars are, by contrast, quite nice—assuming you can
both find and afford them).
By 1988 the scale was at last starting to be taken seriously; the release of
Greenberg’s Guide to Märklin Z more or less marked its "official arrival" in
the world of accepted scales, alongside O, S, HO, TT and N. Still, Z scale was considerably slower
on the uptake than its next-smallest rival; this was due to a number of factors, principally
the technical limitations imposed by the small size—already high manufacturing costs were
driven higher by a market that was as diminutive as the scale. Thus Z scale started out as
something of a "rich man's hobby," which was consciously reflected in some of Märklin's
early marketing materials.
State of Z Scale Today
As of this writing, Märklin still dominates the market (not surprisingly) with
hundreds of products, nearly all of which are European, supported by droves of collectors who
regard Mini-Club in much the same way as N-scale collectors do Micro-Trains. However, Märklin is currently bankrupt, which leaves the
future of their Mini-Club line in question. Meanwhile, many of the other big-name
German model manufacturers—Vollmer, Kibri, Faller and Noch, to name a few—jumped into Z scale with loads of European
structure kits and accessories.
Micro-Trains (who split off from Kadee in 1990) remains the prime mover of Z scale in America, with
a good range of predictably fine products. During the quarter century since Micro-Trains entered the market,
there's been a slow, gradual build-up of entrepreneurs trying their hands at Z scale manufacturing.
Many of the newest products have only been made possible by advances in technology (particularly
motors), plus the spread of simple and relatively inexpensive manufacturing techniques such as resin casting. And affordable
cutting lasers has resulted in a veritable explosion of kit-makers.
However, all of these "cottage industries" face a number of issues. Often they pop up overnight,
only to disappear a year or so later. Also, they have few or no resources for marketing and distribution;
virtually the only way to find them and obtain their products is via the Internet. Thus, what's seen on hobby
shop shelves (if there's any Z at all) is a tiny fraction of what's available. Together with the limitations of
the scale itself, these factors tend to keep Z scale's market relatively small, and so Z is perpetually
teetering on the edge of obscurity—the fate of scales such as S and TT—in spite of an active and enthusiastic
core of modelers.
American Z, in a Nutshell
Starting with track, the choices are Märklin and Micro-Trains. The latter used to simply
resell Märklin sectional track; recently they've introduced their own line of roadbed-based sectional
track, now finally including turnouts, that have proper tie spacing, which Märklin track lacks.
Micro-Trains also offers flex. A couple of European manufacturers make some excellent track using finer
rail, but it's really for more advanced modelers with bigger budgets.
 Thankfully there are just enough locomotives to cover a fair range of interests. Micro-Trains
has three diesels—the venerable old F7 (now out of production), their GP35, and the recently-introduced GP9. American Z
Lines has come onto the scene with over a half-dozen modern diesels, including a wonderful
GP7; unfortunately, you'll need deep
pockets to own these beauties. AZL also makes an exquisite brass AC-12 cab-forward—for layouts with very broad
curves and owners with lots of disposable income. Märklin has an F7 and a few generic steamers, but their appearance is
compromised by gross inaccuracies.
 The freight car market is reasonably well stocked. Micro-Trains provides the bulk; they've been
joined by Penzee, Full Throttle and FR-Model, as well as kitmakers Robert Ray and E&D Models, for a
well-rounded range of products. Passenger cars used to be the exclusive domain of Märklin;
now they're being produced by Micro-Trains, Marsilius Line and AZL.
The structure situation is in decent shape, assuming you're willing to try your
hand at kits. For a long time, about the only source was Miller Engineering's
Micro Structures, which are all etched brass kits. Lately there's been an explosion of laser-kit companies,
such as BAZ, RSlaserKits, GCLaser Innovations, Paw of Bear and several others. Randy Brown offers some
southwestern cast resin kits. Paper Creek Model Works has a line of simple yet impressive-looking
paper kits. Micron Art also has a line of etched brass kits and scratchbuilding supplies. You
could check out eBay for some pre-made items, but you'll be paying a premium.
Vehicles pose a slight problem: they are either period (20s-40s) or present-day.
If you're modeling a layout set in the 60s, for instance, you're out of luck. Vehicles are available
from many sources in a wide range of quality, from solid metal castings to high-tech
laser-fused acrylic (RP). Märklin, Kibri, Noch and other familiar European manufacturers have
ready-to-run injected-plastic vehicles. MZZ has an incredible line of detailed cast-metal vehicles, some of which would be at
home on American layouts. For
skilled modelers, Micron Art offers a line of fantastic early period vehicles (think Model T) in etched brass kits.
We're in excellent shape for people, as it happens. Preiser alone has enough figures
for everybody, but they are also joined by Faller, Noch and Merten. Miscellaneous detail items,
like fences, outhouses and relay sheds, are available from BLMA, Shire Scenes and Micron Art,
as well as several European manufacturers including 1zu220-Modelle and Rolf's Brass.
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