I run primarily traditional Lionel .... is 1:43 the appropriate size automobile for Lionel trains??
yes but be careful as a lot of those avertised being 1:43 on the bay are not and its not the sellers fault really as its what is printed on the bottom of the cars.
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I use Plasticville or Ideal or other small, not-particularly-to-scale automobiles made in the early Fifties, because I like the period-correct look for my PW trains.
The good news is, I can usually pick some up at train shows and even antique shops and flea markets.
The bad new is, they seem to have become collectible in themselves, and are seldom cheap.
1:43 offers a huge selection, and it's close enough to our 1:48 trains (remember that our "O" track is 1:44). People who are into model trains are a "drop in the bucket" compared to the total people worldwide that collect model cars. Therefore, don't expect a company to start making 1:48 cars. Also, people with train layouts RARELY want to spend over $7. per auto. A car model collector thinks nothing of spending $30- $100.+ per car.
Our 1 1/4-inch gauge is correct for modeling 56 1/2-inch prototype track in 1/45.2 scale, not 1/43. A scale of 1/43.5 is the O scale that HO is half of and corresponds to a gauge of 33 millimeters.
Bob Nelson
Check out www.diecastdirect.com hundreds of vehicles 1:43 & 1:50
IMO, 1:50 cars look much better with traditional sized O-gauge stuff than the 1:43 cars. Note that stuff like the 6464 boxcars and the like are not true 1:48, they're closer to S-scale. 1:43 cars just look totally out of place with them.
an other thing to also consider, as we in model railroading consider the word "SCALE" as being exact to the prototype, in diecast cars, this is far the the truth. Many diecasters consider the size of the model to being the near scale of the car. Here is a pic of the same car by two different manufactures and you can see the difference in length.
The two car on the left is a Chrysler 300 and the two on the right is a Cadillac.
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gunrunnerjohn IMO, 1:50 cars look much better with traditional sized O-gauge stuff than the 1:43 cars.
IMO, 1:50 cars look much better with traditional sized O-gauge stuff than the 1:43 cars.
Could you tell me WHO makes 1:50 cars...or 1:48 cars, for that matter? Trucks yes, cars ???
I agree with gunrunnerjohn about 1:50 scale cars looking better with traditional sized trains. Corgi, Mattel (comics inspired), WSI, Ertl (mostly farm equipment) and Maisto are the first ones to come to mind. I have found some Hotwheels and Matchbox cars in this scale as well. The Corgi and Diecast Direct models can be pricey, but I have found good deals on 1:50 cars on eBay. I have also found okay looking 1:50 cars at dollar stores and thrift stores as well; usually they are not any major name brand but they work. Lastly, if you wanted a more whimsical look besides the comics inspired cars, Disney has cars in this scale, specifically the Cars movie cars.
I hope this helps.
Joe
If you run only traditional Lionel you should start with 1:64th scale autos.
Andrew Falconer
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To ME, even with Scale size locomotives and rolling stock, the 1:43 scale autos just look to BIG, though I concede that there is a greater variety available in 1:43. The 1:48 naturally look the best, and the 1:50 are much closer than the 1:43, which tend to draw attention to themselves and away from the trains, which to me are the Star actors and the autos in a supporting role.
Another disadvantage of the 1:43, besides the appearence, is that to look "Right" your streets and parking lots have to be that much larger, and how many of us have as much or more room for our layouts as we want? For the vast majority of us layout real-estate is in short supply, and I hate to use more than needed on roads and parking lots.
Athearn did some 1930's era Model "A" Fords in 1:50 they made coupes, sedans and pick up trucks in nice variety of colors, and were/are very nice looking models. I don't know if those are still in production or not, but I would sure like to see them add other makes and models to the line up. Athearn also did a 1950's (1956, I think) pick up that IIRC was also a Ford .
Doug
May your flanges always stay BETWEEN the rails
I use 1/50th scale vintage Matchbox Superkings, Kingsize and Corgi Vintage and newer diecast vehicles. I also use Lionel and Plasticville autos. They all look and work good together.
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