It seems like everything closest to the right size for O Gauge is 1/43- too big, I think. Does/ has any manufacturer released 1/48th scale vehicles??
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Mike Wyatt posted:It seems like everything closest to the right size for O Gauge is 1/43- too big, I think. Does/ has any manufacturer released 1/48th scale vehicles??
Vehicles in true 1/48 for O-Scale are pretty rare. I tend to use 1/50 for close-up scenes and occasionally a 1/43 vehicle in the distance. What are even harder to find are correct vehicles between, say the 1940s through the mid 1950s.
Hot Water posted:Vehicles in true 1/48 for O-Scale are pretty rare. I tend to use 1/50 for close-up scenes and occasionally a 1/43 vehicle in the distance. What are even harder to find are correct vehicles between, say the 1940s through the mid 1950s.
Athearn made a few...none recently, though. 1:48 die cast cars aren't very common, though.
That's somewhat because the die cast car industry is a hobby unto itself. That, and the fact that much of this industry is based in Europe, where 1:43-1:45 is closer to their interpretation of O scale.
But, more importantly, I'd suggest for 'forced perspective' use of 1:43 and 1:50 models in a 1:48 scale setting you put the larger close to the front, the smaller to the rear. That's what conveys distance in the viewing perspective...objects seem smaller the farther away they are from the viewer.
OTOH, doing it your way will provide somewhat of a balanced perspective if you're trying to achieve a limited distance....e.g., shelf layout of limited depth.
Of course, in the Lionel so-called "Traditional" category of O, you're on your own.
Plasticville has the same problem...trying to straddle the Lionel (O-Traditional) and American Flyer (S-scale....sort of.) And, as for those folks in that Strange (
) scale, they've got the best deal when it comes to vehicles!
1:64 is that magical realm of Hot Wheels, Johnny Lightning, et al, which is a PERFECT match with no shortage of choices...period!
And, re vehicles from the middle of the last century....that's our demographics kicking in. Since the die cast vehicle industry caters principally to a different group....generally younger, I'd say...it only makes sense they would have a more contemporary mix to their product lines.
Hey, it's not the only set of compromises we employ for the enjoyment of the hobby.
KD
I use 1/50 Cars and trucks and for your timeperiod I would at Ertl and Vitesse for the Cars.
Mikey
I've found that Corgi vehicles seem to work the best, followed by Road Champs, Athearn and Greenlight. Corgi, Athearn and Road Champs are getting harder to find since they are now long out of production. Vehicles by IXO and NEO are nice, resin-based, but more 1/43 and are quite large. These are also on the expensive side. Matchbox Collectibles also produces some nice vehicles, but scales seemed to be all over the place, and more towards 1/43. I've used these specific manufactures for specific purposes on my layout -
Corgi - Fire trucks, busses and transport
Ertl - 50's & 60's cars
Greenlight - 60's cars and 'entertainment' vehicles
First Gear - Construction equipment
Matchbox Collectibles - 50's & 60's vehicles
Road Champs - 50's & 60's vehicles
Minichamps - 50's & 60's vehicles
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Live with it...like you live with 1:45 track.
The Lionel 1955 Tractor trailer semi truck's are true o scale. They are pricey though. They sure look good riding a flatcar though.
With my small layout, I have a primary rule: I only buy scale railroad locomotive and freight cars, that are surrounded by support scenery that is never larger than 1:48 scale.
Athearn 1:50 are only four percent smaller than 1:48 while Road Champ and others at 1:43 are about ten percent larger than 1:48. A few moons ago, Hallmark (of greeting cards fame) had a Christmas ornament of a 1950s GMC/Chevy pickup truck which was quite close to 1:48. Franklin Mint has a wide selection of scale highway vehicles. Weaver (hence Lionel) trailers were scale height and width. Berkshire Valley trucks are 1:48, Tim's Toys BB-157s are about 1:50 and Road Champs DIVCO trucks are quite close to scale. Atlas trailers are scale width, height and length. K-Mart trailers were scale width and height but a tad short. If you need a specific Athearn vehicle, let me know as we have several duplicates. John in Lansing, ILL
Two Road Champs with a Tootsie tractor
Morning congestion with everyone trying to be there first.
Various makes and models at our REA Transfer Building, 1:43 through 1:50 against the same dock.
Offered by Starbucks Coffee several years ago. Close to 1:48
Road Champs DIVCO fits in.
Tim's Toys with towing apparatus removed is now a heavy duty city delivery truck.
K-Mart trailer atop a K-Line flat car.
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DaveP posted:I've found that Corgi vehicles seem to work the best, followed by Road Champs, Athearn and Greenlight. Corgi, Athearn and Road Champs are getting harder to find since they are now long out of production. Vehicles by IXO and NEO are nice, resin-based, but more 1/43 and are quite large. These are also on the expensive side. Matchbox Collectibles also produces some nice vehicles, but scales seemed to be all over the place, and more towards 1/43. I've used these specific manufactures for specific purposes on my layout -
Corgi - Fire trucks, busses and transport
Ertl - 50's & 60's cars
Greenlight - 60's cars and 'entertainment' vehicles
First Gear - Construction equipment
Matchbox Collectibles - 50's & 60's vehicles
Road Champs - 50's & 60's vehicles
Minichamps - 50's & 60's vehicles
Corgi trucks & buses are 1:50. Ertl, Road Champs, Matchbox, Minichamps and Greenlight are all the same 1:43 size. Greenlight comes from the same factory as IXO as does one you may not know called Whitebox. Athearn did 1:50 and looked to small and were poor sellers.
There is so much out there and you have to do your homework.
Bob
Menards has released quite a few 1:48 vehicles, mostly commercial in nature. Here’s a representative list:
https://www.menards.com/main/h...92956650&ipos=25
https://www.menards.com/main/h...92956650&ipos=34
https://www.menards.com/main/h...92956650&ipos=35
https://www.menards.com/main/h...2311372&ipos=138
https://www.menards.com/main/h...2311372&ipos=142
https://www.menards.com/main/h...7428617&ipos=165
https://www.menards.com/main/h...7428617&ipos=177
https://www.menards.com/main/h...9376006&ipos=181
https://www.menards.com/main/h...9376006&ipos=194
https://www.menards.com/main/h...9376006&ipos=205
https://www.menards.com/main/h...2666781&ipos=333
https://www.menards.com/main/h...2666781&ipos=338
https://www.menards.com/main/h...3784378&ipos=382
https://www.menards.com/main/h...3784378&ipos=383
https://www.menards.com/main/h...3784378&ipos=385
Jim R. posted:Menards has released quite a few 1:48 vehicles, mostly commercial in nature. Here’s a representative list:
Jim,
Of the vehicles you listed, are you taking the advertiser's word they are 1:48 or have you measured the width and wheel base and compared it to the prototype dimensions?
Respectfully, John
I ordered Menards 1/48 Half track and it is bigger than 1/43,I ordered them because the Solido 1/50 cost much more so I wont order any more Menards vehicles.
Mikey
When I bought my Royale Hotel from Menards they threw in a 1:48 Jeep to sweeten the deal. Seems mighty small to me. I know the Willy's were tiny but I have no way to authenticate the scale.
"Of course, in the Lionel so-called "Traditional" category of O, you're on your own.''
Funny thing is, for the overwhelming history of Lionel, the phrase "traditional" wasn't needed. Lionel trains meant not to scale. They were toy trains. Same goes for proportions of Plasticville, which I'm sure were quite intentionally designed to straddle the scales between Lionel and American Flyer. If this bothered someone, then they went to HO.
It was only with the advent of TMCC and more importantly, with the move of manufacturing to China (especially since K-Line and MTH were ALREADY there), where Lionel could invest in new tooling for scale products. Even with all the variety now available, given the very small production run numbers I've been privy to, I'm sure the so-called traditional market is still the largest - though certainly not the most vocal - of the 0 gauge world.
As DKDKRD also said, the die-cast vehicle industry is a hobby unto itself - and also very well established. If the profits were truly there, I'm sure some company would have invested in tooling for 1:48 exact scale vehicles. And that's the key: I don't think the profit motivation is there.
There was a guy here a couple years ago who posted about starting up a company to manufacture 1:48 scale vehicles. After he got a long laundry list of what everyone wanted made, he made a post about needing financial investors for his idea. There within is the key, and no more was heard.
So whether you are a scale guy or just a Lionel guy, it has always been necessary to use your own personal discretion as to what vehicles do or don't look "right" on your own layout. Being an 027 guy, I don't worry about scale percentages as much as I go for the feel of what looks right.
But even if you are a 1:48 scale train operator, since the majority of the die-cast vehicles are 1:43, with a lesser amount at 1:50 and very difficult to find at 1:48, I'd say the same rule of using your own eye as to what looks right is going to apply.
I have dozens of diecast vehicles. The only one I tried to see if it was accurately scaled was a Mustang II model, and finding prototype information for length and width was quite a challenge.
Honestly, how many people do that?
So if a manufacturer lists a vehicle as 1:48 and also sells 1:43 vehicles, I would hope they are being fairly honest.
I too looked for 1:48 cars when I started my layout seven years ago, but soon realized that they were not to be had. As everyone else, I just bought 1:43 and 1:50 vehicles, with the latter being my favorites, but are also scarce other than for construction equipment.
Now, after hundreds of guests have looked at my layout, many of whom have looked closely at the cars trying to identify their model and year, which they obviously enjoy doing, NOT A SINGLE ONE has ever commented on their relative size. Therefore, I have come to the conclusion that this really is not an issue; i.e., unless I make it so.
Just my 2¢.
Alex
I agree with Alex. I just make sure to keep all vehicles of the same relative scales together and no one seem to notice.
Over the years many have made 1/48 vehicles in kit form. Revell, Tamiya, Hesagaw, Berkshire Valley, and now Wiseman. For a few years there was someone in eastern europe (country??) that was making them and selling them on eBay. You can still see a few on that auction site.
Pete
Norton posted:Over the years many have made 1/48 vehicles in kit form. Revell, Tamiya, Hesagaw, Berkshire Valley, and now Wiseman. For a few years there was someone in eastern europe (country??) that was making them and selling them on eBay. You can still see a few on that auction site.
Pete
Yes, exactly. Here are few available now:
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I model a period, 1940, so much is useless to me..except for NEO (a few, but good) and Brooklin models...both expensive but the last is not too uncommon used and discounted. I have Corgi firetrucks, too, for many fit my period. I model, so l don't want generic dime store toys, but have to pay for that privilege, AND they are over sized. You'd think this country could support 1/48, but 1/24-1/25 AMT kits boomed and busted.
Michael Hokkanen posted:When I bought my Royale Hotel from Menards they threw in a 1:48 Jeep to sweeten the deal. Seems mighty small to me. I know the Willy's were tiny but I have no way to authenticate the scale.
Hi Guys,
Just to clarify - our 1:48 scale World War II jeep is from a brand new mold and we took great pains to insure it was exactly 1:48 scale. We need to remember that the original WWII jeeps were not very large machines.
Thank you,
Mark the Menards Train Guy
Michael Hokkanen posted:When I bought my Royale Hotel from Menards they threw in a 1:48 Jeep to sweeten the deal. Seems mighty small to me. I know the Willy's were tiny but I have no way to authenticate the scale.
Michael, Find the width and wheel base (or length overall) of any vehicle, convert those dimensions to inches and divide by 48. A scale model will have those dimensions. John
Menards posted:Michael Hokkanen posted:When I bought my Royale Hotel from Menards they threw in a 1:48 Jeep to sweeten the deal. Seems mighty small to me. I know the Willy's were tiny but I have no way to authenticate the scale.
Hi Guys,
Just to clarify - our 1:48 scale World War II jeep is from a brand new mold and we took great pains to insure it was exactly 1:48 scale. We need to remember that the original WWII jeeps were not very large machines.
Thank you,
Mark the Menards Train Guy
What scale are your Half Traks which said 1/48 on the box,I bought three and they are probably 1/43,they are huge next to a Solido 1/50 halftrak.
Mikey
A mix, 1/48, 1/43, and 1/50. ??? Which is which ???
I once bought a box full of very nice 1/43 vehicles from the 1960's era. Then I discovered they did not fit in my Quality Craft open autoracks. *ugh*
Actually, this isn't a major issue, because our O gauge manufacturers won't produce an authentic open autorack. *bigger ugh*
NICE! This is something"new" to me at least! Who made this?
This is a good looking 1980's-1990's "straight job"!
mikey posted:What scale are your Half Traks which said 1/48 on the box,I bought three and they are probably 1/43,they are huge next to a Solido 1/50 halftrak.
Mikey
Mikey,
According to a few sources on the internet, a half track is about 256" long. Our half track is about 252" long (in 1:48 scale), so I'd say we are pretty close!
We expect to sell out of these, so if you want to pick some up, here's a link!
Thank you,
Mark the Menards Train Guy
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Moonson posted:Can anybody discern by looking if these are correctly to-scale? Do they look right?
I'm including actual real-life photos of such machines at-work, as a reference point.
FrankM
Spectacular as usual, Frank.
Frank, your logging scenes would look great with a long unit train of Lionel postwar operating log dump cars. I have 3 of those cars and will be on the hunt for 6 or 7 more.
Arnold
With the exception of Athearn O, everyone skipped the most important era in O scale modeling history, the 60's and 70's.
Looks like Athearn has covered those well needed items in H.O but not in choo choo toy O gauge.
Moonson posted:Can we discern which scale (1/43; 1/48; 1/50 ) these vehicles are, not from personal knowledge or having seen their packaging, but from how the vehicles relate to their surroundings? Does any of this "feel" wrong?
Or right?
Jus' askin' .
FrankM
They all look close to scale to me
A friend and I are in the initial process of building a layout with a mid 1990's to mid 2000's. We have a variety of scaled vehicles, mostly from 1/48th - 1/53rd. Since we both worked for Consolidated Freightways we are building a CF terminal and are using quite a few 1/53rd Tonkin models along with Conrad, Corgi and Athearn. A few photos below of some of the trucks/trailers we have so far.
I have contacted Athearn to see if they have any plans for releasing additional models in their 1/50th line as these were well detailed and reasonably priced. The C series Ford trucks which they produced from 2004 to 2007 were built from 1957 to 1990 with many carriers using this truck. I have suggested a few different years, makes and models to them (additional cabs, trailers, etc) and their response: "I think after such a long absence from the market it would be best to determine the desirability for existing product in the market before considering additional investment."
I am looking for feedback to relay to Athearn, feel free to provide info as to types of vehicles, years, etc.
Rich H.
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When the new O Scale auto racks on flat cars came out, the catalog suggested that there would be a line of O scale or 1/48th scale automobiles to put in them. There must have been too many changes at LIONEL headquarters to make that possible anytime soon.
Andrew
Toy Trucker posted:A friend and I are in the initial process of building a layout with a mid 1990's to mid 2000's. We have a variety of scaled vehicles, mostly from 1/48th - 1/53rd. Since we both worked for Consolidated Freightways we are building a CF terminal and are using quite a few 1/53rd Tonkin models along with Conrad, Corgi and Athearn. A few photos below of some of the trucks/trailers we have so far.
I have contacted Athearn to see if they have any plans for releasing additional models in their 1/50th line as these were well detailed and reasonably priced. The C series Ford trucks which they produced from 2004 to 2007 were built from 1957 to 1990 with many carriers using this truck. I have suggested a few different years, makes and models to them (additional cabs, trailers, etc) and their response: "I think after such a long absence from the market it would be best to determine the desirability for existing product in the market before considering additional investment."
I am looking for feedback to relay to Athearn, feel free to provide info as to types of vehicles, years, etc.
Rich H.
Um, they are politely telling you that unless you can prove hobbyists are buying 1:50 vehicles, including those previously made by Athearn, already in existence, the company isn’t going to make any new tooling. Basically, Athearn is telling you the company wasn’t happy with its past sales and isn’t likely to proceed based on its view of the market. Athearn isn’t looking for suggestions on what to produce.
Athearn Ford 'C' series vehicles were pretty much perfectly sized. It was the F series pick ups and panel vans that were a little undersized. They started producing the F600 in 1/50 as fire trucks. They never got beyond that. I had hoped for a stake body, a fuel/oil delivery truck or possibly a wrecker on that chassis.
I think the problem now to get anything done is licensing - from the 1:1 vehicle manufacturer, to the brand or insignia on the vehicle if any. For instance, I know the FDNY commands a premium on anything with their logo on it now. Years ago, car/truck makers were happy to get their vehicles produced in miniature, as it enhanced the brand and led to sales.
Greenlight has been releasing some vehicles that are 60's/70's related in 1:43. The vehicles relate to ones used in TV and movies, but work well just the same.
In response to Toy Trucker's post , I submit the following : 1962-77 International Loadstar, 1960-1974 Dodge C series, the 1953-68 International R Series, the 1970-86 Ford L series, 1950-68 White 3000, 1960-80 GMC Steel Tilt, and the 1973-89 Chevrolet medium duty conventional. All of these trucks had long production runs and had changed little over the years.
True 1/48 are out there. Revell plastic models did a series of 1/48 kits that are great. Tamiya and others are doing more 1/48 kits....most are military but some Jeeps and coupes.
Another source is the 1/43 die cast offered by many drug stores. I look at what's offered, find the real car track and wheelbase and check against the die cast. I find the bigger the real car the closer the die cast is to 1/48. If the die cast is within the 1/50 to 1/46 I'll buy them for the layout. A little work but for the money ($3 or so) worth it.
