Tank wagons are used to transport liquids or liquified gases. That typically encompasses all sorts of products or raw materials of chemical industries, such as crude oil, gasoline, ammonia, acids, nitrogen and so on. Many of such cargos are highly flammable or otherwise hazardous goods. Due to the highly different characteristics of the cargos one also needs corresponding types of tank wagons, as for example acids can react aggressively with steel and could therefore easily destroy the tank. That is one of the main reasons why tank wagons have a special role compared to other freight wagons.
Almost all other types of rail wagons had already been described and standardized in the first version of Prussia's standard by the beginning of the 20th century. Tank wagons were not. The reason was simply that the tank wagons belonged to the companies producing the very cargo they transported in them. The railways were just given the task to transport the wagon from here to there. Other wagon types were owned by the railway companies and were rented to customers for transporting their cargos. As a result there were series of tens of thousands of ordinary open wagons or closed wagons, while tank wagons were built in smallest series for the different customer companies, sometimes less than a dozen units. The result was an uncountable number of different types. On the other hand, tank cars were typically painted in noticeable colors with large lettering, turning them into eye catchers even on today's model railways.
This situation has not really changed until today. Tank wagons were classigied in class Z by UIC, including regulations that wagons transporting pressurized gas need to carry an orang horizontal stripe on the sides. Still, the railway companies rarely own lots of tank wagons. Most of the wagons in used today in Europa are actually managed by specialized logistics companies like VTG.
In addition to tank wagons, tank containers are in use today, which can be transported just like ordinary ISO containers.
DRG tank wagon (1920)
capacity 25t, 80 kph
This wagon is the first tank wagon in the set and can only be used to transport oil.
As described in the introductory paragraphs the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft (DRG) did not own tank wagons, but many companies from the chemical industries had their own fleets to have them transported by the Federal railways. The wagons were therefore classified as "Z[P]". For that reasons there were countless variants of color and shape, which can be seen when looking at the results of Google image search. Just about any two-axle tank wagon of that time could be the real-world base model for the one in the set.
Screenshots
The wagon is available in several colors which (depending on the settings of the set) are chosen randomly when buying the wagon. Naturally there are no loading stages, as you cannot look inside the tanks.
Usage
This wagon is the only one to allow transporting oil until the successor arrives in 1940. This is less dramatic as it sounds, as many players ignore transporting oil at the beginning of the game anyway. The oil fields available at the start of the game will close anyhow to be replaced by oil platforms on the map borders, which is when oil transports really become interesting in terms of cargo volume.
DRG tank wagon (1940)
capacity 30t, 100 kph
In 1940 a four-axle tank wagon becomes available, allowing transporting oil and goods (labeled "chemical products"). Still, the wagons were typically not owned by the DRG, but other companies. In Germany, the military also had a huge influence in the production of tank wagons, as they were essential for supplying gasoline. Starting in about 1940 several series of tank wagons of type "Deutz" and type "Uerdingen" were produced. After World War II, many of these wagons formed the base fleet of the specialized logistics company VTG.
- tank wagon DRG: Google image search
DRG class "ZZ[P]"
Screenshots
The wagon is available in several colors which (depending on the set parameters) are chosen randomly upon buying. There are no loading stages of course, as one cannot look into the wagons - doing so could be a rather dangerous undertaking anyway.
The wagons for transporting goods are colored differently, depending on the year they are bought in.
When refiting the wagon to transport oil, these graphics are used. Depending on the set parameters, all wagons may get the same livery, or they are randomly assigned for each wagon in the train.
Usage
There is no viable alternative for transporting oil, by 1950 there are otehr wagons that allow transporting goods with higher speed and/or more capacity. Still, it might look unrealistic to have a train with flat wagons transporting machinery starting out from a refinery...
DB tank wagon (1980)
capacity 40t, 120 kph
This wagon is an upgrade of the wagon from 1940, offering higher capacity and a raised speed limit.
In 1980 tank wagons were standardized by the UIC in 1980, being classified in class Z. So this wagon can be classified easily.
- tank wagon: Google image search
UIC class "Zans"
Screenshots
The wagon is available in several colors which (depending on the set parameters) are chosen randomly upon buying. There are no loading stages of course, as one cannot look into the wagons - doing so could be a rather dangerous undertaking anyway.
The wagons for transporting goods are colored differently, depending on the year they are bought in.
When refiting the wagon to transport oil, these graphics are used. Depending on the set parameters, all wagons may get the same livery, or they are randomly assigned for each wagon in the train.
Usage
This wagon is the best (and only...) choice for transporting oil. Transporting chemical goods is also a viable choice due to the capacity, even though other wagons come with higher speed limits later on.