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.
Thanks,
LVR
1. It's what Santa brought me.
2. "Playability"
3. The rumble & the roar. You just don't get the feeling of heavy gear travelling over a railroad in H.O. or N.
Jon
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.
Bob Nelson
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.
Bruce Baker
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.
Pete
"You can’t study the darkness by flooding it with light." - Edward Abbey -
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...
Doug Murphy 'We few, we happy few, we band of brothers...' Henry V.
'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!
Ralph
O gauge. That's what my DAD bought for me my first Birthday and now my nephew has it and is enjoying it.
laz57
Kooljock11. It's what Santa brought me. 2. "Playability" 3. The rumble & the roar. You just don't get the feeling of heavy gear travelling over a railroad in H.O. or N. Jon
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 illuminated passenger cars as it ever was in 1955.
So here I am, after all these years, back to Lionel, where I started. That says something about the durability and appeal of the trains and the toy-train mode itself. Here I began and here I'll stay.
The thought of a sneeze blowing over a yard full of 500 Z scale cars is more than I can bear.
Modeling the "Fargo Area Rapid Transit" in O scale 3 rail.
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!
Fred
Screw O Gauge !
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.
Long Live Toy Trains !
Long Live S-Scale !
Rich
Alton Junction
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.
Bill T.
Grandpa gave me my first Marx at age 4 1/2 with authentic engineer's outfit. See signuture photo.
My Mom gave me my first Lionel at age 10.
Tried HO.....It's okay, but when I saw TMCC running on a layout at the local hobby store I was hooked on O.
G gauge is outdoors, but it is bigger than O gauge.
Celebrating 18 years on the CTT Forum.
Buckeye Riveter......... OTTS Charter Member, a Roseyville Raider and a member of the CTT Forum since 2004..
Jelloway Creek, OH - ELV 1,100 - Home of the Baltimore, Ohio & Wabash RR
TCA 09-64284
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.
Buckeye,
Every time I look at your Engineer Outfit in your avatar, I say to myself that your outfit has to be authentic, only a smaller size.
Reading your present post confirms my suspicions of your outfit.
As a kid, I would have loved to have an outfit like yours, especially that yours is authentic.
What are the brand names of the different articles, of your outfit, if you don't mind me asking?
Please, inform me, as I'm interested in your outfit's authenticity.
Thank you,
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.
My earliest memories are Lionel.
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.
Best, Mark
Great to read everyone's stories.
I'll ditto CoolJock's reasons.
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.
runtime
I was given my first O gauge set when I was 5 and that's what I am used to. I still have and run my original set. I have tried N and never tried HO although my brother got into HO. N just wasn't my cup of tea. It's O gauge for me forever I suppose.
Mike
I love O guage because of its heft and near non derailability, and durability. I also love it because of the all time legendary Lionel postwar and prewar trains. I am fascinated by antiques and postwar and prewar trains are obviously that so they go together hand in hand for me. I also love it for the awesome sounds and many features, like a flickering firebox as one example. You can almost feel the power of the real steam engine in a high end model from MTH or Lionel. Oh and the SMOKE. Trains are supposed to SMOKE!!!
Give me steam locomotives or give me DEATH!
Berkshire Junction, bringing fourth the cry of the Iron Horse since 1900.
Thanks everyone so far for there personal stories.
Like some posters said that HO is more for realism, the one guy at work that was "telling me to be careful to not get too invested" is one of those realism guys. But then what is funny is that one of the items that he is warning me about is the cost between HO (or N for that matter) and O. But being a smaller scale he is buying a lot more track and switches, etc than I would due to the space. Like I keep telling him, I enjoy the fun of running the trains with the accessories.
Thanks again for the posts, hope more keep coming...
For me Lehigh, I too like the Lehigh Valley railroad and I found there's just nothing available in that road in HO, so I out of necessity I went with Lionel 027!
Okay, back to planet Earth.
My story echos the others. Got my very first train set before I was even a week old... Dad couldn't wait another month for Christmas. Then, like many others, you want to relive some of those childhood memories and next thing you know, you're buidling a layout and on this forum yacking about trains again. Ah, the fun.
I really do like the Lehigh Valley. Not only do I have a lot of memories of watching the Lehigh as a kid, but it was such a non-conventional quirky railroad with their own set of rules ... the perfect line to model in 3-rail. I do a lot of repainting though, and have lots of stuff in the Lehigh. K-Line Alco FA's in the snowbird scheme and yellow jacket scheme, K-Line S-2's in the Cornell red, yellow jacket and wide yellow band scheme. A Lionel NW2 in the wide yellow band scheme too, plus some steamers and Industrial Switchers. Yeah, it might not be precisely prototypical, but again, the Lehigh Valley was in their own league.
brianel, Agent 027
"Praise the Lord. I may not have everything I desire, but the Lord has come through for what I need."
I started off in O gauge with my dad's trains, he would set them up around Christmas in the basement up north in Stratford CT. When I was about 8 years old I started setting up the track and by 10 I was helping to wire the 022 switches. Still have two trains that are my dad's, they are from 1939 & 1941, a freight set with a 249E steam engine and a passenger set with a 224E steam engine, the older engines still run when put on the track & with their respective cars.
Currently I am into three differant scales of trains; O gauge, S gauge, and H.O. What I have found to be true about H.O. verses O gauge as for space requirements, they both need the same amount of space for basic curves. 027 track is just a little smaller in diameter when set-up as just a basic set of curves than H.O, so where is the space saving?? S Gauge needs more space than 027 or 031 curves, but it looks nicer as it only has two rails. H.O. track has flexible track but then you can hardly run anything on the smaller curves.
In the past 12 years or so I have been buying differant brands of motive power and rolling stock for my layout, not one brand loyal. Williams has some nice engines at really affordable prices so I have almost a dozen Williams engines. Weaver has some nice special run freight cars every now & then so I have a few of them but they are shelf queens as I have had trouble with Weaver on my tracks. I mainly have older Lionel engines, before 1995, a few newer freight and passenger cars but that's all. Most of my transformers are older Lionel except for two MTH Z1000's that power my MTH engines.
I have tried Lionel's Fastrac and I am not that impressed with it mainly due to excessive costs for small straight pieces of track and the extremely high cost of switches for Fastrac. O gauge tubular track is much more flexible and less expensive.
Lee F.
Interesting stuff. I was born in early 1/1951. Santa actually started collecting the trains before I was born and before he knew I was going to be a boy (if you do the math). A child's sex was a surprise back then.
I am like a lot of guys and got my first Lionel when I was 4. First engine Santa brought me was the FA1 Alco AA Rock Island 2031 diesels (1952 flat roof) and 3 of the silver Streamliners 24XX series . Then I got the 2046 Hudson steamer (3 window cab from either 1950 or 1951) with freight cars. Later a new 2023 UP FA1 Alco AA set too (1950, wonder where Santa had that hidden). The play value was there at the time. Construction on the permanent 2 train layout with a siding and a handmade (paper machet/chicken wire over a wood frame) double track mountain tunnel was launched in the basement shortly after the first train arrived and soldiered on for about 2 decades. And more engines and cars too.
Picture one of those huge green Remco Bulldog Tanks with the firing cannon parked on the trainboard with those completely way too small Army guys, and the #115 train station serving as the barracks. Sky King's Cesna 310B was parked there. Some Revell 1/24 scale Big Daddy Roth hot rod custom cars (from kits). Eldon (?) 1/32 slot car track was squeezed in there as well for a time. Somehow scale and realism never trumped play value when I was a kid. Although I got heavily into slot car racing at commercial tracks and dabbled in HO for a while in the 1960s, the O gauge stuff had me hooked.
The play value was still important to me when I gave my son his first train set. More recently, the play value continued with my granddaughter, though those green plastic Army soldiers we used to haul around in the freight cars have now been replaced by her tiny dollhouse dolls and the small Disney Princess characters. Nativity figures as passengers at Christmas too. She is learning to put the cars on the track. Can't do that with HO, though I appreciate the benefits discussed......just not for me. I still have 3 unopened HO sets stored away!!!!!
The smoke, the sound, the smells, the heft, the sheer durability, the irreplaceable memories of growing up and of my family. I don't mind the three rails or the toy flavor of O gauge.. And the guests always go wild over the trains every Christmas and New Years with the under-the-Christmas-tree set-up and all of my wife's lighted village pieces. "That train is about 6 decades old and it still works?!" My buddies still have their Lionel and American Flyer iron too.
An argument can be made for any scale. One is not better than the other, just different. Whatever floats your boat. Just make sure you float your boat.
Jack
IF IT WON'T COME LOOSE BY TAPPING ON IT, DON'T TRY TO FORCE IT. USE A BIGGER HAMMER.
gauge just has something HO/N just dosnt. first of all I think the size is perfect, HO is too small to me, I want a train I can really run and have a good time with, not one that moves around a bit and I cant handle without thinking about breaking things off. the sounds and smoke are also another factor. one of the best things in the world is when someone into HO or N hears the growl of a postwar F3 and says " wow, that sounds awesome" or something along those lines.. HO is also very sensitive. I had a set or two and the train would always randomly stop because of bad track connection and what not. it was a pain. sure its cheaper, but your losing alot of fun.
"No childhood should be without a train!"
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