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Model Train Gauge vs Scale Explained: What Every Hobbyist Needs to Know

Posted by Tony Marchetti on 31st Dec 2025

Model Train Gauge vs Scale Explained: What Every Hobbyist Needs to Know
My dad ran Lionel trains around our Christmas tree in Cicero, Illinois, back when I was knee-high to a boxcar. I never once heard him use the word "scale." It was always "O gauge this" and "O gauge that." Took me years to figure out he was technically wrong. And here's the thing: he wasn't alone. Mo …

The Complete HOn3 Narrow Gauge Modeling Guide for Serious Builders

Posted by Harold Lindgren on 31st Dec 2025

The Complete HOn3 Narrow Gauge Modeling Guide for Serious Builders
I spent four decades building houses in the St. Croix Valley, and if there's one thing that career taught me, it's this: measure twice, cut once, and never skip the foundation work. When I started my first HOn3 layout three years ago, I brought that same philosophy to the workbench. Good thing, too. …

OO Gauge vs HO Gauge Differences: What Every 4mm Modeler Needs to Know

Posted by Patricia Nakamura on 31st Dec 2025

OO Gauge vs HO Gauge Differences: What Every 4mm Modeler Needs to Know
When I first started helping out at my local model railroad club, someone asked me whether my dad's old British locomotives would run on their HO layout. "Same track gauge," they said with a shrug. "Should work fine." It took me about thirty seconds of watching a Hornby Dublo steam engine waddle do …

Choosing the Right Model Train Scale: What Actually Matters in 2025

Posted by Tamara Brooks on 31st Dec 2025

Choosing the Right Model Train Scale: What Actually Matters in 2025
Look, I spent six months agonizing over whether to build in N scale or HO before I finally committed to my Detroit intermodal layout. I measured my basement seventeen times. I read every forum thread. I made spreadsheets. And you know what? Most of that hand-wringing was unnecessary because I was as …

TT Scale Trains European Models: A Practical Guide to the 1:120 Renaissance

Posted by Gerald Hoffmann on 31st Dec 2025

TT Scale Trains European Models: A Practical Guide to the 1:120 Renaissance
I've spent three decades modeling Great Northern and Northern Pacific in HO scale, so when my buddy Hans from the Lake Superior Railroad Museum started raving about TT scale trains, I figured he'd lost his marbles. Why would anyone abandon the massive selection of HO for some oddball scale I barely …