Lionel Super-O Track

I've always had great luck selling Super-O. Judging by the prices, there must be a lot of people still using it.

Check out the very active SuperO group, on the groupsIO email listing. Join up and you can see all kinds of nice Super O layouts.

Lionel superO track is super.  The track is great, the switches not so much.  I have a section of the layout that’s SuperO.

Hey Steve. I have been using Super O for the last ten to fifteen years with other added loops of tubular and sometimes Fastrack thrown in for a few scout sets I have owned.  It is a great looking track and while some switches can be a little balky still love it.  I am currently in the rebuild process slowly but eventually should hopefully get it running.  There is a good Super O group as mentioned in the Groups IO as mentioned and I do believe you can find information here.  There is also a page on Joe Mania’s web site on SuperO.
Frank

FYI: The switch problems that are common to Super O track, have been discussed on IO groups several times. There are ways mentioned there, to make the Super O switches work well and be reliable.

dorfj2:  More videos please!  Very cool to see trains running Super-O!

Super O is my favorite track of all time. I built many holiday layouts with it including an 8ft x 8ft layout that I displayed for a few years at the Bear Mountain State Park Christmas Festival. I also built small display type layouts for store windows. Over the years I was able to get a lot of brand new Super O from Madison Hardware, a little at a time. But as you can see in the photos it was always brand new.

The only real draw back for me is that I can't run today's big scale stuff on the tight 036 curves. I only wish that Lionel would have resurrected Super O track, in a variety of radii, instead of coming out with Fastrack. If they had, I would still be using it on my layout today.

Super O has been the best looking track system IMHO since the late 50’s. I have been using it since 1958. In my early years annually under the Christmas tree. Than in the early 70’s for my basement layout.

Now currently on my “The 48 Club”.

In my experience the switches have been very reliable and required minimal maintenance or adjustments outside of replacing the flex wire from the switch controller due to dry out. Larger radius Super O track is possible if you want to bend it or purchased already bent. There are instructions out there on how to accomplish this. I personally have never attempted this.

I like Super o and returned to the use of Super O last year when Atlas O54 was unavailable

Frank posted:

"Hey Steve. I have been using Super O for the last ten to fifteen years with other added loops of tubular and sometimes Fastrack thrown in for a few scout sets I have owned.  It is a great looking track and while some switches can be a little balky still love it.  I am currently in the rebuild process slowly but eventually should hopefully get it running."

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Frank:

Thanks for the gorgeous photos -- what a marvelous looking layout -- and, boy, does that bring back memories!  When I was about 10 years old, my father was at a hardware store getting some items for a job site.  The hardware store was selling out the remaining Christmas merchandise, and was planning to discontinue the sale of Lionel trains in the future.  I learned later upon returning home from school that my father had purchased all of the remaining Super "O" track for .10 per section - rather than .50 per section!  By the time I arrived home from school, my 5' X 9' train table had doubled in size.  A brick mason, it was too cold for my dad to go to work that week (< 20 degrees), so we spent the afternoons, after school, painting the large table, and building a double-tracked mainline, Super "O" layout.

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Steve:

I had a large Super "O" Layout in the late 80's, but transitioned to track systems that would more easily accommodate the large, scale sized locos.  (Now, of course, some people make and sell wide radius Super "O" curves.)  I currently have a second layout that I plan to use at various times for different gauges.  I have my sights on rebuilding a Super "O" layout on that second table over time.

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Thanks for the other great photos, video, and wonderful comments.  A first class effort by all!

Post War Lionel looks great on Super O.  O Scale Lionel would require O54 and O72 curves in my opinion. The Allegheny , GG1 and 21 inch passenger cars would require O90 or larger. I also love the conductivity you get with Super O compared to the other brand of track that I have. I actually had a 14 X 6 Supper O layout from 1976 t0 1982 before Lionel seduced me with O72 switches and scale strains before

Not a good video or good layout. Was experim

I switched to Super O about a year ago.  It takes a little more fine tuning but the conductivity is great and the trains just glide on it.  It also also has a retro feel that is hard to beat.