O scales
Pat:
If you got different replies, there are different O gauges out there.
O gauge is 1.25". If we use 1/4" to 1' scale, that's a 5 foot gauge, fine for the US South up to the civil war.
The reaction to this was (1) ignore it (2) narrow the gauge to 1 3/16" (4'9" prototype) (3) build to a larger scale (17/64"=1') (about 1:45.176....)
Option (2) meant building all your track and trying to squeeze your drivers in by 1/16". This was called Q gauge.
Option (3) meant you could buy commercial track and wheels but had to build everything else.
(1) has had the majority opinion for years; there are some fine scale people that I think are trying to revive (2).
It is sometimes said that O-27 trains are built to 3/16"=1' (1:64 or S scale). I think this is leftover from pre war American Flyer, because they used it and then after the war switched to S gauge.
The British use 7mm=1' and call it 1:43 or 1:43.5. Track gauge is 32 mm, but someone wants to use 31mm.
Can anyone tell me if the metric countries use 1:50 scale?
Go with Catt! 1:48, 1/4"=1", 1 1/4" gauge.
