American Flyer S or O Gauge?

[rrlineman]

Gilbert used the same boiler dies for the postwar S as the prewar O gauge. new steam chests and motor frames were the main changes. the plastic 280 series and the metal 290 series are actually narrower then the prewar/postwar boilers. a lot of guys will use S gauge parts to restore Prewar O pieces.

[stebbycentral]

lionelsoni

Three-rail O gauge before World War II, two-rail S after the war.

 

It's a teeny weeny bit more complicated than that, because in the late 1930's Flyer experimented with 3/16 scale trains on O-scale three rail track.  The idea was to create models with a more realistic length and height but still capable of using the industry standard track.  Post war they converted their entire line to two-rail track that was also 3/16 scale, and that was what they continued to manufacture through the 50's and 60's.

[lionelsoni]

Three-rail O gauge before World War II, two-rail S after the war.

[skippygp123]

Forgive my ignorance, but are the old American Flyer trains (from the 50s or 60s) S Gauge or O Gauge? I know the trains ran on 2 rail track instead of Lionel's 3 rail track. But, don't know anything else about them. Can someone explain this all to me? Thanks so much! Ed