Viewing a brass site I was astounded by the prices, $4500, $2600, $3,000 etc, YIKES ! ! until I discovered they were brass ‘‘O’’ gauge, here I was thinking that only HO was in brass, well now I know, am I wrong that not many posters on this forum are into ''O" gauge brass?? or is it just me? Or is there another forum for ‘‘O’’ brass? - - - - -live and learn eh?
Don’t worry, you are not alone!! I cant believe how much info and knowledge you need to learn in this hobby.
Uh, um, yeah
Sometimes we are narrow minded, as if to have blinders on!
And no, you are not wrong.
O gauge, HO, they are both BRASS AND too expensive for my blood! I can buy a car to replace the rusted out 98 caravan we have for the price of some brass locos!
I’d be afraid I’d damage them any way. Plastic for me! thank you!
[8-|]
O brass, HO brass, N brass, S brass and everything in between (narrow and wide gauge). Think O brass is expensive? Look at N scale brass!!! I had an HO scale loco on my watch list just to see how much it went for. WOW $4300 and it was a six day auction with 49 bidders that started at 99 cents. I have noticed that Key gets top dollar every time if it sells at all. I have 4 HO scale brass steamers and didn’t pay more than $175 for any one of them. Deals are there if your patient and don’t expect a perfect loco on delivery. What is really shocking is the junk brass getting top buck! Bent, broken, missing parts, and very ugly paint jobs getting big money is way beyond my reasoning and watching a very nice, complete and factory painted loco selling for less!
Like the company I work for I will never figure it out. Just crazy!
Pete
O gauge brass is nothing new, it goes back as far as HO brass or before.
Two rail, DC, true 1/4" to the foot, scale model trains are not a new idea either. They have been around since the beginning of the hobby. And at one time were the biggest part of the “scale model” side of the hobby, back in the 40’s and 50’s.
Than HO showed up in force.
John Armstrong of layout design fame modeled in 1/4" scale two rail.
It was still well covered by Model Railroader and RMC well into the 70’s - now it is a small segment - do to cost and size. Remember these are models twice the size of HO build to similar standards - so they need curves twice as big.
Many great club layouts of the past were built in two rail O gauge - a few are still around, like the Baltimore Society of Model Engineers - formed in 1932 - the oldest continuous operating exclusively model railroad club in the country. Unfortunately their web site is not currently up, preventing me from providing a link.
Walthers started out providing parts for O gauge scale models, first making their famous wood and metal passenger car kits in 1/4" scale before making them in HO.
Atlas has made a plastic line of these kinds of models for many years now:
http://www.atlaso.com/welcome.htm
And makes two rail track for them:
I would be surprised if they were not O scale, not O gauge. Significant difference.
Fewer posters on this forum are into O scale, although there are some.
O gauge has a forum of its own here.
I elected not to go into that exercise in semantics by simply revering to it as two rail “O”, and 1/4" scale, much less confusing to many that way.
Sheldon
It is more than semantics … it is the way the hobby describes the two kinds of modeling. It costs nothing to be accurate.
My main venture into brass has been N scale wire-mesh shopping carts from Gold Medal Models photo-etched brass.
Maybe so, but simply say that without defining it to someone who does know the difference does not answer their question it only confuses them. So yes, maybe I could have “explained” the difference and used those terms - but then again you too could have explained those terms rather than just making a brief, curt comment.
I did show/explain examples, even if I did not explain the use of those specific terms.
The other confusion today with those terms is that High Rail manufacturers of “O gauge” have moved into the scale model arena and some have offered their product to both markets - building both three rail, high rail versions and two rail “scale track” versions.
This blurs the line between the two groups for those not familiar with the differences.
Sheldon
It could be O scale(the 2 rail scale trains) and tin plate meaning 3 rail Lionel type trains…
Like all things in the hobby there is several answers to the same question with no one absolute.
Also “Lionel trains” can describe any brand of “tin plate” or three rail trains.
S Scale can be known as 3/16ths or S scale.
HO is also pronounce HO(as in ho,ho,ho.) scale.[sigh]
And, just to add to the confusion, it isn’t always 1:48 scale two rail. John Armstrong’s Canandaigua Southern was outside third rail (except for his empties in/loads out iron mine, which was stud contact.)
Back before WWII scale HO could also be found with outside third rail.
Many people have a tendency to think in ‘their’ scale and forget that other scales exist. Perhaps, if they modeled in a real minority scale, they would be more conscious that their choice is one line on a spectrum, not the entirety of everything.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - in 1:80 scale, aka HOj)
New imported brass is extrememly expensive in 2013, but there are many O scale USH models that are bargains today. They list for less than $1000 in most cases and will run forever. The gear boxes are heavy duty and the motors can be replaced with a can type of you want to use less current.
By the way, most HO brass steam models now exceed $2000 the list price. Even the N.P. models of the A4 and A5 two years ago were $2150 list price. Most dealers do not ask list price for HO brass, but they are very expensive also. If they could import larger quantities of each model, the price would get much lower than the present prices.
Check out some listings for older USH or Max Gray O scale brass.
Sunset imports two rail and three rail O scale brass. They are priced very low compared to other imports but are less detailed. They are acceptable for most applications, but are not museum quality detail. If you want museum quality detail, buy Kohs and Company.
CZ
Well, to clarify: I saw on the brass site various locomotives for sale, you could find different types by looking under the column SCALES, I checked “O” and the rest of the story is above. I NOW know gauge was the wrong term, please accept my sincerest apologies.
I must remark on not knowing the difference, to the story of when a sailor is talking and using nautical terms and ship gibberish, just make sure he is talking to another sailor, for no one else in the world will have the slightest idea what he is talking about.
Same with railroaders at one time…
It took me awhile to learn real railroad speak.
Examples"
That man-another train.
The “Conway man” or any city/terminal would be used-Train heading to Pittsburgh.
Bleeder. A leaking air line or hose.
Lunatic asylum-Main Office.
Liars shed-the crew room.
Junker any ALCO.
the list is long.
It took me a while to figure out that “hack” meant a caboose - sorry “cabin car.” [:$]
S&S