It's O-Gauge, or no gauge!

In the words of a well-known, fictional model railroad enthusiast, it's O-Gauge, or no gauge!

Actually, I have had the misfortune to acquire significant inventory in HO- and N-Gauge also.  But when it comes to something kid-friendly to run around the Christmas tree, nothing comes close to O-gauge.  I'll credit my grandfather, who passed away too young back in 1967, with planting the seeds of a love for model trains in this boy way back then.

In reply to 1988RedT2 :

Vintage Lionel has a smell that's still in my head after more than 35-years. 

Yeah, Lionel stuff is not cheap, but it looks good and it's well-made.  I don't think anything I've ever bought from Lionel has broken, with the lone exception of a very low-end transformer sold with one of their entry-level sets.

I can't get past the third rail for Lionel. Just. Can't.

A school friend had a pretty massive American Flyer setup that was pretty sweet. I think that's S scale though.

In reply to ddavidv :

Its weird. Until you realize a reversing loop requires no electrical wizardry. I fell hard for post-war lionel, particularly 45-55. The incredible thing is they are serviceable. Brushes, coms, pickups, all replaceable. 

I've managed to acquire a 2016 Adriatic, the 2046 Hudson with the early 3 window cab, and a early and late 622 SW1 switcher. None are pristine and I'd rather it be that way. 

Perhaps my biggest score was the top of the line ZW transformer, the one everyone knows and wants. 

The neat  thing is I can take tubular track from the 90s, and connect it with track from the 50s, and run a locomotive from the 70s with a transformer from the 40s.

They are toy trains, not model trains and once you realize that, then you can have fun instead of counting rivets

But I learned as a young lad that O gauge around the tree and tinsel do not mix.  lol

Still makes for great trains.   And ddavidv, never touch the third rail.  (A subway joke there...)

I always thought it looked sort of strange myself.   Just why is there three rails anyway?

For a toy train under a tree nothing beats Lionel. I normally have two reversing loops on the longest train and people are fascinated by it every time.  They are durable and will run 24/7 if you let them. My oldest is from '47 and it's likely been used every Christmas since and hums along like new.  

In reply to noddaz :

Only the center rail is powered. Unlike 2 rail systems with a positive and negative rail, you never have to worry about shorts in polarity. Take a 2 rail track and loop it back through a switch. Without insulating joiners and electronics to flip the polarity,  the locomotive shorts out when it gets to the other side of the switch.

Another advantage of 3 rail is automation. If an accessory such as a crossing gate is wired to an outside rail that is insulated, when the train grounds it when it rolls over the rail, it will trigger said gate. 

To put it, 3rd rail simplifies wiring. 

this post was well timed...we've been running our lionel 2026 kit around the tree as a tradition for years now.  this set was handed down to me from my poppop when i was a kid.  i think its from '51 to '53, so its getting up there in years now.  but you know what?  i throw some 3-in-1 oil on the motor, gears, and drivers every couple years and this thing gets down.  original transformer and everything.  smells like an old hairdryer and makes an incredible racket for something so small, but its just magic and you simply can't walk by it while its running without stopping to see it go around at least once.  we try to do a different track layout every year.  i have a ton of old HO stuff waiting someday for the right timing to do a father/son layout if he wants to pursue it.

In reply to ScottyB :

The pic is absolutely perfect. 

The 2026 came in 2 distinct versions. If it has the 2-6-2 wheel arrangement, eccentric cranks, and sliding shoe pickups for center rail, it's from 1948-49.  If it's a 2-6-4 wheel arrangement, no eccentric cranks, and roller pickups, it's from 1951-53. 

Either one will probably outlive us both.

Appleseed said:

In reply to ScottyB :

The pic is absolutely perfect. 

 

The 2026 came in 2 distinct versions. If it has the 2-6-2 wheel arrangement, eccentric cranks, and sliding shoe pickups for center rail, it's from 1948-49.  If it's a 2-6-4 wheel arrangement, no eccentric cranks, and roller pickups, it's from 1951-53. 

Either one will probably outlive us both.

its the latter with the 2-6-4 arrangement, which i've heard is the less valuable/desirable one (not that it matters to me, its staying in the family).  i've never tried the smoke pellets but i've been told it'll chooch like a chimney.

you're absolutely right though, given how hard i played with it as a kid and how much it shrugged that off, it'll be around for another 100 years.

I spent my childhood with my dad building HO LGB train sets at the holidays. He has gone small scale lately though to make things easier. I want to setup t a huge train track in his backyard with all the HO stuff we have.