Just curious why others run O gauge instead of HO or N…
I really like the O gauge myself due to the “playability” and easier wiring. (not very good at electrical issues) What I mean by playability is using the log dump and coal dump cars. I someday would like to get the Log Loader and Coal Loader for the layout for more fun. I run my locos conventional. Now that I have a son who is almost 11 months and seems to really enjoy the trains, well at least the ones running around the tree. He says “WOW” every time it went by Figuring that O gauge would be a better scale for him to play when he gets of age.
I talk to others that I work with that have HO layouts and they both are mention to me that I should not get too invested in O gauge due to the Higher costs and limited space. The one guy even mentioned that he wished he started collecting N gauge so he could have a more functional layout in even less space.
Too a point I agree with him, about the space and if I ever moved to a bigger home I would love to make a large O layout. But due to the economy I probably wont for a while, a smaller layout would be more suitable. And as of now I am not making any big purchases due to a tight budget, so starting a HO or N collection is out of the question. Well at least for now. Maybe I will hit the lottery
I was just curious why others use the O and not the HO or N.
I was driving in Nevada some years ago and spotted a tiny train running parallel to the road, but far away across the desert. My immediate impression was that it looked like an N-scale model.
I think it’s hard to get the illusion with smaller scales that you are actually there with the train. Instead, you see it at what seems like a great distance. The shortness of our trains and the sharpness of our curves are often denigrated. But it is unusual to see an entire train as I did in the desert. When you stand near the track, it is hard to judge the train’s length, or even the length of one car or locomotive. And, because of this foreshortening, any curve seen down the track looks much sharper than it really is–just like the trains and tracks that we use.
The accuracy of a scale model, while all to the good, is not all there is to realism.
To me, the difference between O and HO or N is the difference between toy trains and model railroads. The HO & N scale guys almost always are making model rail roads. I like to play with trains. I am not interested in making a lot of scenery. I run my trains on the carpet, and the way I make my layouts is not like anything in the real world. I don’t make multiple loops, but rather use a lot of switches and make the layout very complicated. Why? Because that is what I like to do.
In addition, I like the realism of a larger train. My son bought a lot of N scale about a year ago, and after he got a layout of multiple loops put together, he got bored in a hurry. He would like to sell the N scale, but hasn’t seriously looked for a buyer. He spent $2800. It is all boxed up now.
I have both O and HO trains. With the O it’s the “toyness” of the postwar style that I like so much. I love the look of tubular track, especially those O-31 switch lanterns, and I love the action accessories. I am in the process of designing a 5x10 table layout with O-31 tubular track. It’s amazing how much action can be packed into such a small space with those tight curves!
The HO is intended for “realistic” modeling on a shelf layout. But ever since I set up my Polar Express set in Christmas of '08 that’s been on the back burner.
I love threads like this because I like reading the stories. I think many O gaugers prefer this gauge because they have a family legacy or history with it. I enjoyed a season or so playing with a Tyco HO Burlington passenger set and Santa Fe freight set in a figure 8 my dad set up on a pingpong table in a spare bedroom. I rediscovered the hobby as an adult through MR magazine I found in our library - that moved me into N gauge because of a lack of space in our home. I enjoyed it but found the trackwork and electrical set-ups finicky. After moving into a basement with a house above it, I immediately dumped the N and bought an O set. I love the ‘heft’, the sound, the lights - the spectacle of it all. I appreciate the size of the scale with my aging eyes and hands. Lastly, everyone of my generation recognizes the name: Lionel. It triggers their own memories. Visitors love the layout. Not that it really mattered, but there was more the sense of visiting a museum with guests in N. My friends in the smaller scales were more scenery-ists who had trains moving through the gorgeous vistas they created…
‘O’-Gauge is what my father had, what one of my Uncles modeled in, when it came to trains and what Santa Claus brought my brother, two male cousins and me for Christmas Day in 1950.
Besides, I like it’s heft, detailing and especially its size, in the ‘Full’, ‘Big’, ‘1/4’, ‘1:48’, ‘O’, ‘O-27’ Gauges, Gauge- ‘Standard’ Scale sizes.
Why, didn’t the powers to be, just leave a particular scale size designation alone, instead of creating different size designations for sales promotions of the different manufacturers products. Not, because of available space size, to fit trains in.
All they did was cause confusion!
And last, but not least, my BIG FAT hands are too clumsy for smaller trains!
First of all, I think I’m correct in assuming that what folks here are calling “O gauge” means “Lionel and its competitors.” I also do the occasional modeling in O scale, so I want to be straight on that.
That said, I agree with Kooljock. I got my first Lionel train in 1951 – also from Santa. I’ll be retiring in a couple of months, and I’m still buying LIonel equipment. I can’t say that about any of the various scales in which I’ve dabbled over the years.
And “Playability?” I guess that means being able to do things with the trains other than watch them go around in circles (although that can be fun, too). But yeah, it’s a lot of fun watching these 50+ year-old toys herd cattle in and out of their pens, or unload milk cars, or pump oil or push barrels up a ramp. Even better is the laughter and smiles from others as they see the accessories in action. Most of them have no idea that 1950s technology could accomplish such things, and they’re delighted when they see it.
Rumble and Roar: Yeah, there’s no substitute for actual mass. Even though my Lionel trains aren’t scale, they behave more like the real thing than small-scale models do.
Over the years, I’ve modeled in (and accumulated) O-scale, HO-scale and N-scale. (I’ve also got some G scale [1:22.5] equipment, but doing anything with that will have to wait till we move to our next house and I can lay some track outdoors).
But throughout all of it, the one style of model railroading I keep coming back to is Lionel. My interest is in postwar 027 locomotives (though I’ve bought some modern 027 rolling stock), and it’s still just as much fun to watch my 675 pulling a string of
After having always been into N scale and having had N scale as a kid, I am switching to O. It’s not a matter of wanting toy trains though. I am absolutely into modelling. With N scale it is hard to get that last little detail item. It can look very nice but you don’t see tie plates or spikes. You don’t see fine details in buildings. At least not without a magnifying glass. I am switching because I want to put far more effort into each structure. I like scratch building and love handlaying track of all kinds. Since I’m working on marketing a stud rail track system for O scale I should probably have a display piece. I want to model the insides of buildings and see what is on a workbench. Keep in mind while I may sound like a rivet counter, I actually don’t mind a 3rd rail or an O-27 train running through. I’m tolerant of it all. I just like creating things and want it to be large enough to really detail and enjoy. I am doing this in a room that is 14’ X 10’ with a short wall of 8’ and an unusable 4th wall. Fit a nice O scale layout into that space!
I never liked the unrealistic look of that 3-rail stuff.
As a kid, my parents bought me an American Flyer steam engine in 1948 and a diesel engine in 1957. My mother packed it all away when I got married in 1966, but all these years later, I have pulled my S-scale stuff out of storage and have begun rehabilitating my engines, freight cars, transformers and track with a lot of help from the guys on this forum. My plan is to set up a double mainline under the tree next Christmas, running one train on each track.
When my son was around 7 years old, I bought some N-scale stuff and set it up, but it was too finicky to run and too small to enjoy. I quickly dumped it all. Around 6 years ago, I got into HO scale and have now built a 25’x42’ empire, fully landscaped and prototypical. I love it and it is very realistic, so I guess I am a typical “model railroader”.
But my first love was American Flyer and I am having a ball getting back into it.
Its what I grew up with in the fifties and sixties. Fortunately I or my Mom never got rid of the trains when my interests wandered over to cars and girls. After a 2 year stint with President Johnsons travel club I got back into trains and never looked back. If I was getting into electric trains today I would give the MTH HO locos very serious consideration.
Unrealistic O Guage Rich ! Guess you’ve never seen any high end or BRASS O guage engines or cars . Sure Lionel is mostly " toy trains " but check out their high end engines … and other manufacturers like the Williams Brass and 3RD rail … and K-line. Realism on HO is only on the high end also … Brass only … 99% plastic engines in HO … including their steamers … trim pieces break and fall off extremely easy … the number of rails DOES NOT dictate realism in the train itself … you should check out some 2 rail and ON3 also … I dumped HO a few years ago and never looked back … and am glad I did … every little kid had an HO set in a box in his play area … and one of those styrofoam layouts . Realism with plastic engines is not what I consider realism . My first train was an American Flyer steamer … over 50 years ago .
I’m 99% into engines and cars … not layouts … even though I have cases of layout items and track stored I never set one up yet .
I was an “HO” modeler for many years. It is a great size to build a “realistic world” in a relatively small space and to be able to operate trains with precision like individual cab control on multiple consist tracks and side lines. The power requirement is minimum and generally the cost is viable.
That being said: I am running “O27” on Tubular Track for a couple of reasons. I have become a “player” instead of an “operator”. The larger stuff is easier to handle and I am less inclined to be concerned about the layout and actual trains’ inperfections than I was with the smaller stuff.
“O” does have its drawbacks such as space and cost but it makes up for these with the enjoyment of the running. One other thing…the guys, gals and knowledge on this Forum add to the fun.
O gauge is fun I had tried other scales, but O is where the fun is. As for scale, I have been having fun with the 3/16" on O Gauge However, I also run conventional O semi scale, Marx tinplate…it’s all fun.
But, that is the beginning. The locos were the dads. The cabooses were the mothers. The cars inbetween were the children. They went down the road into the future, surrounded by a perfect world.
Contrast this with “realism” of the other trains. Not a happy world.
Also, Lionel had lights–many lights–which brightened many a long winter.
Lionel was a metaphor for something beyond trains. Nothing out there can duplicate this.
I did dabble in HO briefly before my dad ‘released’ the O-Guage to me. 2 rail HO is a different animal electrically, sort of wish I had tried Marklin instead, since it has a phantom third rail. I’ve seen some very nice Marklin layouts; unfortunately, all the trains look/are ‘foreign’.
Always thought I would one day, when I build my ‘permanent’ O- guage layout, run an HO line in the background, to add perspective, and to get some use out of what I have had packed away for over 20 years.
But my bonds to pre and postwar Lionel O-guage are interwoven with the thread of my life - which makes it somewhat more than a hobby.
Figuring that O gauge would be a better scale for him to play when he gets of age.