I promised to post
A photo of the Lionel Hall class (as in the Hogwarts train, etc. - this is the Hallow's Eve one) which is 1:43 scale, and how it looks with 1:48 scale locos, in this case the Lionel Atlantic. Overall I like this loco a lot and plan to repaint mine.
And photos comparing its "stickout" at the front. Here is the Atlantic and the Hall class each on the same curve (O-36 Fastrack).
The Hall really is not any worse than the Atlantic, it just looks worse because the shape of its front end.
and finally a video of the Hall class running. This shows it just finished a 12 foot climb and entering a 36" curve. It then continues around the loop. Note particularly how it slows on the far side of the loop, as it encounters O-36 again after a brief straight, and then how it speeds up as it encounters a straight again before once again slowing just a tad on the curves. This loco runs on 36" curves fine, but it looks and runs smoother on 48" and wider.
