Department 56 scale

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

What is the most realistic scale of trains to use alongside of Department 56 lighted houses[?]

2

From what I have seen they kind of make their buildings to fit a certain size box rather than keep them all to a scale. As a rule of thumb measure one of the doorways. They should be 7’ from top to bottom. This will give you a scale comparison:

  1. A little less than 1/8" use HO
  2. A little less than 1/4" use O
  3. In between use S
  4. 1/16" use N
  5. Around 3/8" use G
3

Thank you for the great help!

4

I’ve always felt that most pieces are closest to O in terms of scale. When you look at a village set up, most tend to be in that catagorie. A lot of “tinplaters” use them on their layouts. They have even done some special Lionel offerings.

5

Hi Randy;

The most common trains used with Dept 56 is On30, specifically Bachmann. But any other O scale will work just as well.

6

S scale trains look good with the buildings my wife has. I think the train they sell for it is an On30 which is about the same size as S standard gauge. The people seem to be at least G. The bigger buildings are to a smaller scale - HO or less. Hedges, walls, gazebos seem to be G or #1.
Enjoy
Paul