Brass HO Trains on the Marklin Model Train Company: Originally a toy company that specialized in doll house accessories, Marklin found its name and fame spreading with the branching and developing the model railways. The first ones were the wind-up trains with cars that ran on tracks. These tracks could be expanded and extended. Marklin realized that the initial purchase of the model trains would keep the consumer coming back for the accessories and also more train sets. Marklin is also known to have developed model railroad gauges or scales other than N scale and Wide gauge. The range of scales available are Gauge 1, HO scale and Z scale. Trix, acquired by Marklin, provides Holdings of N-scale and DC operated HO scale.

Marklin’s range of HO train sets came out in 1935 and have been liked by children, teenagers and adults. The HO locomotives have diecast metal frames and metal wheels, while most of the locomotives and passenger cars have the bodies made of metal, too. The use of metal wheels in the freight and passenger cars prevent derailments. The HO starter sets come with a locomotive railcars, oval of track and transformer. The C track extension sets are available to expand the track layout of a starter set, to attach the passing sidings, switching tracks and storage sidings. Simplicity of the complex layout schemes and the challenging switching operations is the specialty feature of the Marklin train sets. Further, the Marklin HO train sets have known to grow in value as time passes and is still growing.

The special feature of the Marklin’s is the concept of third-rail track system eliminated the polarity problems in wiring and gained popularity because it was trouble-free. The third rail is concealed in the roadbed with only small studs protruding through the track’s ties, and the outer two rails are connected electrically.

Marklin also brought about the first digital rail control system. Marklin K83 and k84 are the Digital systems with the address of each module set by a DIP switch in the case. Right from its start in 1986, the multi-train control products has found its way to the top markets and eventually houses. The  current digital system allows simultaneous operation of up to 80 locomotives and 256 solenoid accessories all on the same layout. The DELTA multi-train control system is the entry level for digital scale and is expandable to the more complex digital versions.

With the extensive range of products, all care is also taken to give a great packaging and also a print run number that indicates the printer, month and year of printing.

Brass HO Trains

The collectors of brass HO trains are always on the look out for the trains and where to buy them. The companies that involve themselves in supplying these collectibles can be classified as manufacturers, importers and distributors.

Most of the companies that manufacture HO model trains sell them online or in their own retail showrooms. Some of them import from China and Korea and sell them directly or are the distributors of the HO brass model trains. Many companies not only sell the trains, but also tracks, bridges, HO scale passenger equipment kits and locomotive HO. They also have model trains of other scales like O, HOn3, On3, G, N, etc.

Some of the manufacturers have come out with fine detail models in white metal and etched brass. Handcrafted brass model HO trains, Brass O scale steam locomotives, freight cars and girder bridges, etc are manufactured by some companies. Some manufacturers cater to the British railway modelers in 4mm or 7 mm gauges which have prototypes of early 19th century carriages. Manufacturing is also done in some European countries like France, Germany and United Kingdom. Some manufacturers attend to the special needs of the collectors and create custom-made versions of trains exclusively for them.

2-rail and 3-rail models are the models that are the classification system used according to the tracks and most of them are 2-rail models. The prototypes that can be found in the market are Sweden, Italian locomotives, North American or European railways. HO scale passenger equipments available in the market are made of brass, wood, plastic or nickel silver.

Importers take pains to find the right kind of manufacturing companies overseas and get them make available in their own countries. Most of them also import accessories like detail parts, scratchbuilding supplies, rolling stock, scenery flats, buildings, etc in the various scales apart from the model trains. These would be suitable for both collectors or operators.

The distribution system is usually a network across several states and countries, bringing up several kinds of model trains. The retailers obtain all kinds of models from these distributors and are the mediators to get them to the collector. The Lionel HO trains, Bachmann HO trains, Atheran HO trains, Marklin HO trains, etc are all well-known versions of the various model HO trains.

Online suppliers add up their stock with newer versions of trains and also new models of steam, passenger and freight trains. Most of them also buy the model trains if the collector or others wish to trade or dispose them for some reason. Internet is an ocean of information for the collectors for the latest items and display methods and models. Various kinds of electrical, electronic and digital layout planning and equipments are available for displaying running models of the precious Brass HO trains.

Brass HO Trains

Where can I sell my HO Train set?
This is a question that pops up quite a bit at Brass HO Trains.  As you move onto new eras or give want money for new locomotives.  In this post we look at some of the options for selling model trains.  And not just HO Model trains but also other scales (i.e. N Scale, O Scale etc.)

Here’s our list in order of what we think is easiest to the hardest:

1) Sell your model trains to a Local Hobby Shop

A local hobby shop is probably your easiest option. This way you are able to show the physical items to the buyer and discuss their values etc. HO electric trains, HO brass model trains and more can be traded in a local shop.

Pros:

• It’s close.
• You get the cash immediately.
• You could do a trade in.
• Your buyer can see and feel what you’re selling.

Cons:

• None that I can see.

2) Put a posting up on a Train Forum and ask for buyers for your Model Trains

This is easier however the issue you might have here is that the buyers are not near you. So you’ll run into issues about the buyers want to see the quality of the trains etc. However alot of forums allow posting of images straight into the forum so you can put pictures up that will answer alot of questions.

You will have to register but it’s free to do so.

Here are some forums.

• http://www.modeltrainforum.com
• http://www.trains.com (look for forum)
• http://groups.google.com (search for model trains)
• http://groups.yahoo.com (search for model trains)

Pros:

• Wider audience.

Cons:

• It might be tricky to find someone in your area.
• You might have to ship it.

3) Sell your Model Train on eBay

You could sell your mama on eBay!

eBay is huge has lots of traffic and is well trusted.  You can’t go wrong here and at Brass HO Trains this is the route we’d go. Why it’s good for an online option is that people have a history of their sales and buys so you can see if someone is dodgy before you make the sale.  And it’s a tried and trusted system.  However it is still an online option and you are also faced with creating an account and putting pictures up.  Have a look you can get Athearn HO Trains, Bachman HO Trains, Brass O Scale Trains, Marklin HO Trains and many more.

Pros:

• Huge audience.
• Tried and trusted system.

Cons:

• Have to ship it.
• Have to register and put a post up.

4) Find a Local Model Railroad Association

Another option we suggest at Brass HO Trains is to find a local model railroad association (i.e. a club) in your area and contact them. This might involve a bit of legwork as you’ll need to call them then go to one of their meetings and see if someone is interested. Or, depending on the association’s website,  you could post something on their site.  The National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) has a list of associations broken down into areas that can be found here:

• http://www.nmra.com/regions/

Pros:

• You can meet the buyers face to face.
• No shipping issues.

Cons:

• You have to track down a buyer.  There might not be buyers looking for stuff.

5) Put a posting on the NMRA’s Website

The NMRA are a big hub in the Modle Trains world. They band associations together and put out publications.  So there’s a strong community here.  Putting something on of their classifieds will get you noticed. Both members an non-members are allowed to post however non-members have to pay.  Members can post free adverts up to 50 words.  There’s more on it here: http://www.nmra.com/membership/publications/srclassified.html

Pros:

• Big audience.

Cons:

• It’s not as easy as creating an account online and doing it all yourself.
• It’s not free.

Hope this helps!

http://www.brasshotrains.com

Today at Brass HO Trains we’re talking about the most popular coupler for locomotives HO Scale Trains, namely the: Kadee #5 Couplers. They’re relatively easy to attach and are very realistic looking. Most brands make couplers (i.e. Bachmann HO Trains, Marklin HO Trains, Lionel HO Trains) but making couplers is what Kadee does so they’re the specialists. The Kadee #148 is also a popular brand.

I think Europe brands use a different type of couplers so if you’re in Europe I’m not 100% sure about this.

Sometimes a bit of handiwork is required to sand them down or cut them back a bit.  Unfortunately with the HO Train set scale’s size you will probably battle a little and it tends to be a bit fiddly but this is the nature of the beast   For all couplers,  regardless of brand,  you must make sure that the couplers don’t touch the actual body work of the models.  And try and avoid having metal touching metal as this can lead to short circuits.Visit http://www.brasshotrains.com/

Kadee #5 Coupler

Welcome to Brass HO Trains,

HO Scale is a type of model train.  It is a reference to the size of the model in comparison to the actual object that’s being modelled.  This ratio is 1:87.  So for any item found on the real train the model train’s item will be 87 times smaller. So if your train is 87 feet long then the model is 1 foot in length. The HO scale is the most popular and thus the easiest to find parts. As an example here’s a list of the more popular items and brands in this range: Athearn HO trains,  Bachmann HO trains,  Locomotives HO,  Broadway Limited HO trains, Marklin HO trains, Lionel HO trains and electric trains.

Join us on this site to explore all the toys in this space