Having seen some very nice looking Atlas O scale engines, I noticed that Atlas offers their engines as either 2 rail versions or 3 rail versions.
Is 2 rail newer form of O scale[?]
If I were to start in O scale, is one version better, or more popular than the other to model[?]
3 rail is more for nostalgia of Lionel.
For realism, go 2 rail unless you’re nostalgic.
3 rail is actually much more popular but 2-rail O is catching on fast.
2 rail has been around a long time. Not a newcomer by any stretch. Just much more available now.
There’s currently a move to make 2 and 3 rail compatible. I believe Atlas is involved. A very very recent development.
One other thought, do they use the same track, or is there a specific track for 2 Rail?
THat’s one of the things they’re working on to make them both compatible.
The short answer, however, is yes, specific 2-rail track of code 148 and smaller.
Generally 3 rail track is code 215 or greater (a great variety actually) but I’ve run 3 rail trains on code 148 handlayed.
Dave Vergun
There’s also a version of “3 rail” where the 3rd rail is an outside rail, purely for electrical pickup. Is that too called 3 rail or just outside rail? I’m not an O scaler, so I don’t know the answer to that question. I do recall the fine layouts by Frank Ellison and Minton Cronkite were of the outside rail variety. I think John Armstrong (the master of track planning and prototype operations) is also an O scaler of the outside rail variety, or perhaps was at some earlier time. Take care.
Greg
There is a club in my town that uses 2 rail exclusively, and one store that sells 2 rail. It appears to me that 2 rail is very hard to get ahold cars, and specific engines, as not many manufactures deal in it. I personally would like to go back to O scale and try 2 rail, but I am concerned about the low support for it.