Gauge size - 2" ??

V

vk3kpj

Hi all. My name is Phil. This looks like just the place to get my answer. I do have a German/Austria HO gauge layout I am buiding but I have just bought a toy for the grandkids. Its a plastic battery train that runs on a track with a smidgin over 51mm between the 'flats' of the wheels. I gather that as 2".

Q: What gauge is it (if any)?

Next step is to maybe upgrade with more rolling stock. The kids are only 2 - 3 so its tread softly for a while. No I have plenty of my own. This is not an excuse to get more for me.

Thanks all
 

Vic

Active Member
Hi Phil, Welcome Aboard!!! Actually guage has no relationship to scale. A locomotive for example could be HO scale but 3 ft guage and would be called HON3 but if it was "standard guage" it would simply be HO.

The inside distance between the rails is the guage of a train not the width of the wheel tread. Measure that and you will have the guage of the track. If the ride on train doesn't have track then measure the width of the wheelsets from inside edge to inside edge and that should give you pretty close to the gauge.

The scale of of a model train is the relationship of the size that its built in to the size of the prototype.

Example:
O Scale = 1/4 Inch per foot of the prototype.
HO Scale = 3.5 MM per foot of the prototype.

Its real easy to confuse guage and scale. I would suspect that the toy ride on that you got for the kids is really no particular scale in relationship to a prototype but may have been built to a particular scale for manufacturing puposes.

BTW...Are you an Amateur Radio Operator? (VK3KPJ) If so perhaps we could work our stations sometime. I'm K4VIC.
 

Attachments

  • distance.jpg
    distance.jpg
    14.5 KB · Views: 86
V

vk3kpj

Hi VIC

My current callsign is VK1DX (was also VK1PJ, VK1KPJ and VK3KPJ). Sorry not in my logs. When compuiters came along, every time I got on air I used to get inundated by computer type questions. That put me off amateur radio. I have been a programmer/tech elec since the late 70's. I wrote SmartLog in the early 80's and it still runs on ANY MSDOS based computer.

About the train:
It really does not matter what gauge or scale it is. I myself model Germany/Austria HO. The track in question is about 2" and we were hoping to get more. It may still be on eBAY.COM.AU. Look for item number 3173458361. Its just very colourful and big and noisy. Just the thing to get the grand kids interested.

Any idea if there are any "minimal cost" 2" frontier type rolling stock. I may have to make the track. The train is battery powered so I can make the track out of anything. It does not have to be conductive. Then again. Its almost big enough to put in the garden. I better leave that up to his dad.

Thats enough. Great to meet you. I have flagged your callsign in case we meet. My signal has been said to be the biggest out of the ACT. I was very well known in the contests. Took out World Wide 10M single op.

Cheers
 
Top