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This first group, with links to pages within this site, endeavours to list manufacturers, past and present, producing 0 gauge tinplate toy trains and accessories. Tinplate, in this context, refers to anything built to run on tinplate (tubular) track. However, some historical scale builders/importers are also included here, as are some producers of other scales and guages, including N Gauge, TT Gauge, H0 Gauge, 00 Gauge, S Gauge, Standard/Wide Gauge, Gauge 1 and above, together with modern makers of 'ready to run' 0 scale trains, and tinplate or toy train compatible buildings, accessories and construction systems.
A second group, for the 7mm finescale enthusiast, appears on page 2.
Recently added or updated pages (September 2025) :
Allmo, Andy Gard, Ankerbahn, Arnold, AS, Berliner TT Bahnen (BTTB), Bing, Brimtoy, Bristone Model Products, Bassett-Lowke Corgi, Bub/KBN, Buco, Carette, Francis Deshayes, Directory Series, Distler, Duncan Models, Erno, Faller, Graham Farish 00, Kraus Fandor, Fulgurex, HAG, Hailey Models, Haji, Hamleys, Hugar, Keiding, Kenard Models, KTM Katsumi, Lehnhardt, Lemez Toys, Lima 0, Lionheart, Ludlows of Bolton, Marklin 0, Meccano Dollie Dressmaker, Marx USA, Merkur, MTH, Mullet River, National Toy and Tinsel Manufacturing Co, Novo, Overland Models, Progress Products, Renaissance, Resal, Rocket Precision, Rokal, Sakai, Space Models, Tasker of Argoed, Taylor Wagons Lancing, Tillig, Tri-ang Big Big, Truescale, Vulcan Model Engineering, Walker Fenn, Winteringham, WJ Vintage,
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| Q Car Company Bangor PA USA | QSI QS Industries USA | Quality Craft USA | ||||||
| Quiralu France | ||||||||
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| X-Tech Construction China | XTrackCAD | |||||||
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| Yank Model Research Inc USA | Ye Olde Huff-N-Puff USA | Rich Yoder Models Wernersville PA USA | ||||||
| Yonezawa Japan | Thomas A Yorke USA | Yoshiya (KO, Kobe Yoko) Japan | ||||||
| Die Ypsilon-Bahn Germany | Yunost USSR | |||||||
Z
The Great Unknown
Scale and Gauge
Scale is the ratio of the model to the prototype, so a quoted scale of 1/43rd simply means that the model is 1/43rd the size of the prototype. Gauge is the distance between the running rails. Prototype (full sized railway) standard rail gauge in the UK and many other parts of the world is 4 ft 8 1/2 inches. This is not the place to discuss narrow and broad gauge - suffice to say narrow gauge rails are spaced less than 4' 8 1/2" and broad gauge rails are greater than 4' 8 1/2" apart.
Basic gauges and scales were established by model railway (or toy train) manufacturers in the early years of the 20th century, and have been more or less the same ever since, with smaller scale/gauge combinations added as technology allowed reductions in model size. Many scale/gauge combinations have adopted a curious combination of imperial and metric measurements, added to which precise scale depends on location (UK, Europe, USA etc.), and gauge on the exact point of measurement - from the centres of each rail or between the rails.
Examples of common scales and gauges :
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Scales and Gauges |
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| Name | Ratio | Scale/foot | Track Gauge |
| Gauge 3 | 1:22.5 | 17/32nds (13.5mm) to one foot | 2 1/2 inches (63.5mm) |
| Standard/Wide (USA only) | 1:28 (approx) | 7/16ths inch to one foot (approx) | 2 1/8th inches (53.975mm) |
| Gauge 2 (pre 1909) | 1:22.5 | 7/16ths inch to one foot (11.1125mm/ft) | 2 1/2 inches (63.5mm) |
| Gauge 2 (post 1909) | 1:29 | 7/16ths inch to one foot (11.1125mm/ft) | 2 inches (50.8mm) |
| Gauge 1 | 1:32 | 3/8th inch to one foot (9.525mm/ft) | 1 3/4 inches (45mm) |
| G Gauge (LGB) | 1:32 to 1:20 | Various | 1 3/4 inches (45mm) |
| 45mm Narrow Gauge | 1:32 to 1:20 | Various | 1 3/4 inches (45mm) |
| L Gauge (Lego) | 1:38 (approx) | 5/16ths inch to one foot (approx) | 37.5mm (1 1/2 inches, approx) |
| 16mm Narrow Gauge | 1:19 | 16mm to one foot | 1 1/4 inches (32mm) |
| Gauge 0 UK | 1:43 | 7mm to one foot | 1 1/4 inches (32mm) SM32 |
| Gauge 0 Europe | 1:45 | 6.8mm to one foot | 1 1/4 inches (32mm) |
| Gauge 0 USA | 1:48 | 1/4 inch to one foot | 1 1/4 inches (32mm) |
| S gauge | 1:64 | 3/16 inch to one foot | 7/8th inch (22mm) |
| 00 Gauge | 1:76 | 4mm to one foot | 16.5mm |
| H0 Gauge | 1:87 | 3.5mm to one foot | 16.5mm |
| TT Gauge (modern) | 1:100 | 3mm to one foot | 12mm |
| TT Gauge (traditional) | 1:120 | 3mm to one foot (approx) | 12mm |
| N Gauge | 1:148 | 2mm to one foot | 9mm |
Links to external Download sites
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External Links |
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| Link | Description |
| ATCA | Antique Toy Collectors of America, browse Toy Catalogs |
| Billboards | Lionel, Flyer, Marx, K-Line, Plasticville and similar billboards to download |
| Clint's Train Room | Online browsing of many toy train catalogs |
| Gilbert Catalog Archive | Eli Whitney Museum, A C Gilbert catalogs 1920-55 |
| Lima Catalogues | Lima Catalogues, some to download |
| Lionel Manuals | Lionel User Manuals, huge library |
| Model Railway Blog | Marklin Catalogs to download |
| Model Builder | Model Builder, Railmodel Journal, Model Railroader and other magazines |
| MTH Electric Trains | MTH Catalogs to download |
| Meccano Magazines (UK) | Meccano Magazine Online 1916-1981 |
| Meccano Magazines (France) | Meccano Magazine Online 1916-1962 (France) |
| Meccano Magazines (France) | Meccano Magazine Online 1916-1962 (France), Alternative |
| Meccano Manuals | Meccano Manuals 1908 - 1981 |
| Practical Mechanics | Practical Mechanics magazine downloads, 1933-1963 |
| HRCA Journal | Hornby Railway Collectors Association Journal(MEMBERS ONLY) |
| TCA TCQ | Train Collectors Association Train Collectors Quarterly Quarterly (MEMBERS ONLY) |
| TCS News | Train Collectors Society (MEMBERS ONLY) |
Links to toy reference sites
Toy Trains, Vehicles, Figures, Building Sets and more, in no particular order
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External Links |
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| Link | Description |
| Cornucopia of Toy Trains | Cornucopia of Toy Trains, mainly US, all gauges |
| Tandem Associates | Lionel Tender Guide, Postwar era, 1945-69 |
| Bing Museum | German, English and French text |
| Marklinstop | Marklin History and Guide, 1859-present |
| Tinplate Times | An online resource focusing on tinplate toy trains and the people who collect and operate them |
| My Flyer Trains | Chuck Harrington's online American Flyer catalogs, 1938-67 |
| Marx Tin | The place for Marx and Joy Line Toy Trains |
| Toys and Stuff | Ed Berg's Blog, Tinplate Toys and Trains. Indispensable. |
| Classic 0 Gauge | Tinplate Trains, Coarse Scale, 2 and 3 Rail, Worldwide |
| Classic Toy Trains | Classic Toy Trains magazine Online Forum |
| 0 Gauge Railroading | 0 Gauge Railroading magazine Online Forum |
| Robert's Trains | AMT, Kusan (KMT), Kris, Frank's Roundhouse, Williams, Lionel, Newbraugh Brothers |
| Live Steam loco ref | Some of the builders and their locomotives that were active in the 1980s and 1990s |
| Swiss reference | Comprehensive list of manufacturers in Switzerland |
| History Toy | Descriptions of toy manufacturers, including trains (English and German languages) |
| Tinplate FAQ | rec.models.railroad FAQ. First written 1994, and still relevant |
| TCA Western Division | Comprehensive descriptions of manufacturers from TCA Western Division |
| NMRA | Magazine Indexes, US, UK and more. Model and full sized Railways and Railroads |
| East German Toys | Toys and trains from the former DDR Deutch Democratic Republic (East Germany) |
| Trademarks and logos | Useful descriptions with images of worldwide trademarks and logos |
| Rodgers Antiques | Chatty blog by David Rodgers, discussing mainly British and Japanese toys |
| H0 Seeker | All you ever need to know about US H0, with relevance to 0 scale |
| American OO Today | The online magazine on the history and operation of vintage scale model trains in American 00 gauge |
| 0 Scale Directory | 0 scale directory of current manufacturers |
| Fab Tin Toys | On-line resource on vintage tin toys & dolls |
| Collecting Tin Toys | Kevin Dockerill's blog including countless Japanese and European trademarks |
| Uncle Dave | List of brass manufacturers |
| Rodney's Dimestore | Gallery of all types of model figures |
| Talk Model Toys | List of toy manufacturers and agents |
| 0 Scale News | List of suppliers |
| Train35 | Guide to French toy trains |
| Guillaume | Guide to French toy trains |
| Track Museum | Charles Cooper's Toy Train Track Museum (tinplate track identification) |
| The Train Tender | Jeff Kane; Lionel, Flyer and Marx parts (USA) |
| Henning's Trains | Lionel, Flyer, Ives and Marx parts (USA) |
| Travelling Art Gallery | Railway Carriage prints and frames |
| Taff Vale Models | Useful diagrams and specs for model motors, Mashima etc. |
| Historic Model Railways | Examples of tinplate tunnels (German language) |
| DG Collection | Notes on numerous tin toy car manufacturers |
| Marklin | Catalogues and Presentation Books |
| British Die Cast | Die Cast toys - Dinky, Corgi, Matchbox, Charbens, Benbros etc. |
| Dinky | Guide to Dinky Toys |
| Die Cast | British die cast Toy Guide |
| Dinky Atlas | Atlas reissues of French Dinky models |
| Lionel by Corgi | Corgi models licenced by Lionel |
| Architoys | Jackie's Architectural Construction Toys |
| Meccano (Timothy Edwards) | Meccano Magazines, Manuals, Brochures, Parts Lists, Advertisers and much more |
| Meccano (Timothy Edwards) | Index to Meccano Magazine advertisements |
| Mobaco (Casper Mol) | Mobaco |
| Playcraft Railways | Playcraft Railways (Dave Coxon) |
| Jouef Trains | Jouef Trains (Dave Coxon) |
| Tri-ang Railways | Tri-ang Railways (Dave Coxon), 00, TT, Big Big, Minic, Spot-On, Arkitex etc. |
| Trix Twin | Trix Twin Model Railways (Steve White) |
| Tri-ang Railways | Dave McCarthy's all embracing Tri-ang site |
| Airfix Railways | Airfix Kits and Railways, including Kitmaster and GMR (Dave McCarthy) |
| Wrenn Railways | Wrenn Railways (Dave McCarthy) |
| Vectis Auctions | Huge range of toys, trains, die cast for sale and sold |
Links to Personal Toy train sites
Links to friends' personal toy train sites
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External Links |
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| Link | Description |
| Jeffery Corrick | Clint's Train Room, Model/Toy Train Manufacturers 1969 or Earlier O-Gauge or Larger |
| Cornucopia of Toy Trains | Lionel pre and post war |
| Cornucopia of Toy Trains | AMT, KMT and Kusan, Colber, Marx, Minitoys, Sakai |
| Bill Porter | The Zilwaukee, Okeechobee and Tremungus Rail Road (the ZOT) , personal web site featuring 0 gauge and other trains |
| Lew Schneider | My World of Trains, personal web site featuring 0 gauge and other trains |
| Fred van der Lubbe | Many different model railways in all scales & gauges |
| John Warren | WarrenVille RailRoad, personal web site featuring 0 gauge and other trains |
| Robert's Trains | Robert's Lionel Trains, plus Kusan, Western Coil, K-Line, Williams and others |
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