American Model Trains
Pop quiz: which three American model train makers are the most famous? Even if you don't immediately remember them I bet there is a part of your mind that will yell out, "Oh yeah" when I tell you the answer. The answer is: "Lionel, American Flyer and Bachmann Trains". Bachmann's American too. And American Flyer was a maker not just a line of trains. Here's a few extra tidbits about these American model train makers that you might find intriguing:
Lionel Trains:
Lionel was perhaps the the top dog of model train makers back in the day. Thanks to great marketing Lionel outwitted its enemies. It was Lionel's marketing campaign that placed model train tracks around Christmas trees. Their O scale trains which were one 48th the size of actual trains ruled the roast up until the 1950's when HO scale trains started to take over the market. Lionel began to have problems in the 1960's and went through several rebirths before coming back in it current incarnation. Lionel O gauge is back and as hot as ever. Their great trains are well loved by all.
American Flyer:
We mostly recognize American Flyer trains as a line of trains now, but they were their own manufacturer until 1966 when they were bought out by Lionel. American Flyer originated in Chicago around 1900. They were bought out by A C Gilbert who also popularized the famous "erector sets" of the early 20thcentury. American Flyer is partly still so popular as a collectible today because it offered such a strong alternative to Lionel's O gauge trains. Like Lionel these trains were produced largely in O scale until after World War II when they attempted to establish an S gauge train line that ultimately failed but that has remained American Flyer's most popular trains. Lionel kept and maintained American Flyer's model manufacturing equipment when they took them over in 1966. Lionel's newly produced American Flyer trains are a great success since the turn of the millennium.
Bachmann Industries:
This is actually the oldest of the three companies, created way back in the 1830s but was the last of the three to enter the toy train business. Descendants of the original founders of the company, the Carlisle's and the Bachmann's, are still on the company board, though the company is now based in China, not in Philadelphia. Bachmann really began to catch fire just after World War II when it began catering starter kits for middle class hobbyists. Their success continues to this day and they are still one the leading HO producers in the world.
We now have more choices than ever before when it comes to the model train hobby. The World Wide Web has created whole new choices for model train enthusiasts. The internet makes it so you can now locate any scale from almost any era of time. The three American classics I have been discussing are really American treasures.
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