Under-represented 1950s Car and Truck makers in O Gauge

Yeah, you hit it exactly.  If I were younger and had any contacts in the industry, I'd like to manufacture such vehicles myself.

There are a lot of 1950's cars. The issue is that they are mostly convertibles or two door sport type cars. I needore 4 door cars as well as 1950's tractor trailer's

prrhorseshoecurve posted:

There are a lot of 1950's cars. The issue is that they are mostly convertibles or two door sport type cars. I needore 4 door cars as well as 1950's tractor trailer's

DITTO ! 

I would like to see more 1970's and 1980's cars. The 1950's is well covered even in obscurity. Try to find nearly any non sports cars from those years if you want obscurity. 

I would love to see some Autocar trucks in O gauge!  My dad has some of those beasts.  This one's an '84

The big problem is that there are a lot of the more ordinary cars out there, but they are expensive. Brooklin, USA Models, etc. make things like a 1954 Chevy 4-door sedan, but they cost $100-200 or more MSRP. The cheap Chinese cars that you can afford to put a bunch of them on your layout are all convertibles, sports cars, luxury cars, etc. This is because they are aimed at young teenagers who are in love with cool cars, not adults who need a few sedans to park behind the train station. I finally gave up and spent ridiculous money to get some higher-end steam era die-cast cars for the layout. It's the reverse of the real world. You can get a Ferrari for cheap, but a clunker of a Plymouth sedan costs a fortune. 

I'd like to see some more cars of the 1930's. There's not much outside of Brooklin and some other hard to find brands. 

Here are a few of the more ordinary cars I've acquired for the layout. Some of them, like the 1950 Chevys, are inexpensive models from Solido, etc.  I got most of the more expensive ones at half MSRP or less, but it was still way too much money for something that's essentially part of the background.

As a former auto model builder, I would like to see O scale kits, that we could paint as we wish. AMT used to make O scale models kits, I have a '68 Chevelle on our club layout painted like one I used to own. Also, I remember a company named Ulrich used to make HO semi trucks and trailers, a couple different O scale models would be nice. 

On the truck side it seems that most trucks in O gauge are festooned with too much chrome. Before the  "10-4 Good Buddy" explosion of independent truckers, most (not all) truckers cared very little about all that gingerbread.  Good, simple,  hard working trucks were the norm in the 50s and early 60s.  As a kid, hand painting the wheels , maybe with a contrasting lock ring was one of my tasks and was about as flashy as it got.         

My favorites here in the east were Diamond T, International, and Brockway (love those Cortland Kenworths).

On the car side, yes we could use a few more four door sedans.

Earl  

There are a lot of 1950's cars. The issue is that they are mostly convertibles or two door sport type cars. I need more 4 door cars as well as 1950's tractor trailer's I could also use some 1950's and 1960's PRR work trucks OTHER than Pick ups!

Love to see some these....

I wish someone would produce an affordable 40's or 50's dump truck so I could deliver some coal for home furnaces. I remember the local fuel company had them when I was a kid. 

I think one of the biggest holes in the ogauge market is city buses. There is no shortage of intercity buses and coaches with various RR names, but I would love to see some 50s and 60s GM Fishbowls, etc. For a hobby that seems centered on postwar America it has always amazed me that city buses are so rare.

Matchbox Collectibles had some direct mail offerings in the 90s, including two sets of "Oldies But Goodies" that were mostly cars of the 50s. Most were two doors, but they did have a Desoto and a Tucker, and both were very nicely done. There was also a set of early 4x4s, and a couple of sets of 50s style pickups. Most of these can be found for less than $20.00, and all have excellent detailing.

Alentown posted:

I think one of the biggest holes in the ogauge market is city buses. There is no shortage of intercity buses and coaches with various RR names, but I would love to see some 50s and 60s GM Fishbowls, etc. For a hobby that seems centered on postwar America it has always amazed me that city buses are so rare.

Chuck,

You are absolutely correct!  I thought about including that in this topic.  City buses are scarce.  I'd like to see them come with replaceable signs so you could put your own banners in them.  I think kits would sell well also - paint them in your own city's scheme.

George

Scrambler81 posted:

Matchbox Collectibles had some direct mail offerings in the 90s, including two sets of "Oldies But Goodies" that were mostly cars of the 50s. Most were two doors, but they did have a Desoto and a Tucker, and both were very nicely done. There was also a set of early 4x4s, and a couple of sets of 50s style pickups. Most of these can be found for less than $20.00, and all have excellent detailing.

One of the things I find amusing is the popularity of the Tucker Torpedo (I like them).  Only 51 were made, but many layouts have them.  It's kind of like the PRR S-2 turbine.  Only 1 produced, but everybody has one.

I would really love to see some plain vanilla 4-door sedans - Fords, Plymouths, Chevys, etc.  Not everyone was Elvis (or impersonating him! ).

George

I would love to find a scale copy of our 40 Mercury two door that's in the garage.  I can find the two door coupe, but not the turtle backs. 

Good job on beating a cutomizer or rodder to that '40 Merc.  As common as '40 Fords are, those Mercurys are not often seen.  I hope that has brought home some trophies.  That does present an example of all the "coaches", plain-jane two door sedans favored by young families and once everywhere. from the late 1920's until the hardtop era of the early 1950's.  No Tuckers, or Duesenbergs on my layout.  Did Duesenberg make more cars than Tucker...maybe ...including the earlier Model A (Duesenberg)? My short line's president has a Marmon 16, and, more likely, for his era and place would have had a late'30's (Brooklin) Buick or (Rextoy) 1940 Packard 120.  All of these subjects have been argued over before. including by me.  Floyd Clymer's "Catalog of 1929 Cars", lists 40 makes of cars (including two electrics, actually there were at least 3 electics, for Detroit Electric, not listed,  built cars into the 1930's; my great aunt drove one.    Also omitted were the Doble steam car, and Duesenberg) , 2 taxicabs, 3 bus mfrs., and 31 different makes of trucks  (I caught a truck omission, FWD, and some other specialty truck manufacturers are probably omitted).  A few of those cars but a lot of those trucks made it to 1940.  Modeling 1940, I could have a tremendous variety of different makes of model vehicles parked at my stations, if they existed, for many of those cars had been nursed past the breadlines in the 1930's.  But there is even a lousy selection of Chevrolets for that era.

A vintage car magazine did an article on this model of Mercury several years ago.  At that time,  it could only identify 7 of the two doors still in existence. But  they didn't know about this barn find,  so I'm sure there are more around.  She still has the original paint and upholstery,  but the front seat could use a redo. 

Also have a 29 Ford roadster. They're easier to find in scale,  but most are the delux version with the fender spare. A little harder to find the standard version with the trunk spare, and much harder to find it in the matching colors.

All of my layouts are small and up-close, so .... I'm willing to pay for details.

I would like nicely-detailed heavy equipment from the 1950's

Ertl has a few vehicles from the 40s and 50s. These are all 1:43 scale.

Solido has a few 1:43 scale vehicles.

Yatming has a number of inexpensive vehicles.

Road Chanps also has 1:43 scale vehicles

G3750 posted:

It seems to me (might be my own ignorance) that the variety of cars and trucks available for O gauge use at a reasonable price (< $50) is a bit limited.  In particular, I'd like to see more vehicle types from the 1950s.

I'd like to see more automotive models from the Thirties through the prewar Forties.  Most of the affordable Forties models currently available seem to be from the 1946-1949 period.

Ertl 1930s models:

Tins Toys (These are 1:36 scale)

These are just a few of the Matchbox Collectibles in my collection. The McDonalds Mack is 1/50 scale, the rest are 1/43.

RailKing/Corgi Greyhound bus from the 40s and 50s.

One COE with shortened wheel base

Various highway vehicles on our layout.  Wood cargo compartments on COE tractors.  Last is a tow truck with the towing apparatus removed.

John

For you guys that say you can't find 1:43 have you seen enough in the posted pictures? There are even more that are not shown. If you want to see more search ebay for 1:43 vehicles to see what's out there.

And then there is the OGR Buy/Sell forum that has trains & vehicles F/S.

I have a listing with a 1954 Pontiac and other cars listed. You have to go to my profile to see it.

Bob

7 

How about these.

Bb

rickoshay posted:

I wish someone would produce an affordable 40's or 50's dump truck so I could deliver some coal for home furnaces. I remember the local fuel company had them when I was a kid. 

I was a little boy when coal trucks were disappearing but I do remember some very old trucks still being used in Brooklyn that used solid rubber tires and a chain drive differential. You could hear the distinct sound of the chain drive as the truck came down the street.

Some Matchbox models in 1:43 scale.

My layout is stuck in 1949.  So, for me, I want models of cars made before 1950. I find these hard to find, especially common cars.

What the heck is a 1954 Chevrolet "Chieftain"?  I learned to drive in a 1954 Chevrolet Two-Ten four-door, and they had the "150" and the "Bel-Air" models..  Is that a Canadian model?  Whoa...I just looked at it again and it has the 1954 Pontiac rear fender kickup, and GM did funny stuff between Chevy and Pontiac in Canada.   World War II seemed to take, wear out, many of the pre-war models, so that I never saw any Mack AC (Bulldogs) on the road in the '40's and '50's.  I model pre-war, so I have them.

Aren't Matchbox and Ertl, and several others out of this market, which is why pickin's is slim.

CAPPilot posted:

My layout is stuck in 1949.  So, for me, I want models of cars made before 1950. I find these hard to find, especially common cars.

Yeah, that is a tough time-frame.  World War II is over, some new car production is taking place, but there isn't a lot of variety.  Most of the vehicles are pre-war at that point in time.

George

colorado hirailer posted:

What the heck is a 1954 Chevrolet "Chieftain"?  I learned to drive in a 1954 Chevrolet Two-Ten four-door, and they had the "150" and the "Bel-Air" models..  Is that a Canadian model?  Whoa...I just looked at it again and it has the 1954 Pontiac rear fender kickup, and GM did funny stuff between Chevy and Pontiac in Canada.   World War II seemed to take, wear out, many of the pre-war models, so that I never saw any Mack AC (Bulldogs) on the road in the '40's and '50's.  I model pre-war, so I have them.

Aren't Matchbox and Ertl, and several others out of this market, which is why pickin's is slim.

 

 

I'm not sure what a Chevrolet Chieftain is, but I mentioned a Pontiac Chieftain.  I got some of these models from an internet search.

I'm not sure who is left in this market, but $125 a car is way out of my range.

George

Good topic, I would like to see reasonably priced 1950's medium duty trucks(dump bed, stake bed, canvas top,etc), delivery vans, semi-tractors and tractor trailer combinations of US period manufacturers either in 1/43.1/48 0r 1/50 scale.  

Cars??  1950's era 4 door base model orphan cars. (orphan car is a make no longer made....Nash, Hudson etc)