There is no such thing as a Z channel in structural steel. They are just plain "Z's  There are channels, Z, angles, and Ts.  Check any engineering handbook and you can find the dimensions of standrad rolled sections.
 There are also special "railroad sections" such as thr "bulb angles that are used on the top edge of most gondolas.
 
Also large Z sections that are welded together to form the center beam of freight car underframes. I haven't looked at my well worn copy of "The Steel Handbook" but I think the shallow channel used as the side sill on many older box cars was a special railroad section

Plastistruct angles, etc are clearly cast or extruded. But while I don't really know, I think most all Evergreen sizes, andles, channels,etc. are milled or sawed.much like the Northeastern and other wood shapes.  On some sizes you can clearly see the marks from machining,
 
As far as I can see all the "hat sections" that modelers want are stampings on the real cars hence they don't appear in any catalog of rolled steel structural shapes.
 
Chuck Yungkurth
 
From: "timboconnor@..." <timboconnor@...>
To: STMFC@...
Sent: Friday, June 15, 2012 12:36 PM
Subject: Re: [STMFC] Evergreen--hat section? And more?


 

Does "Z" channel have 90 degree corners (basically, two L's) or does it have acute (less than 90 degree) corners like the letter "Z"?

Either way, I agree Z channel is needed.

Tim O'Connor

----- Original Message -----
From: "Charlie Vlk" <mailto:cvlk%40comcast.net>

Z-channel! CB&Q used Z-channel instead of hat channel for framing
single-sheathed boxcars.

Still a sticking point after 50 years!!! I got into N Scale when I
realized that even Northeastern Z-channel was too big to scratchbuild the
stock cars, boxcars, and gons I would need to model the CB&Q properly...on
the theory that nobody in their right mind would ever attempt to model a
prototype in N.

That was back in the days before fabricating fine structural shapes out of
styrene was not an option and RP production of entire carbodies wasn't even
a dream.

Charlie Vlk

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