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SCALES AND SPECIAL INTERESTS Most modellers accept commercial products as the foundation for their modelling, and ignore the production compromises. The most notorious (but then necessary) compromise was the creation of the UK's OO hybrid: 4mm scale models running on 3.5mm scale track. Over time, modellers arrived who wanted something better. Elsewhere, the prototype gave its own problems such as narrow gauge and/or subjects that might never attract manufacturers at all. In both cases, the outcome was specialised societies to support those interests. If there is one good reason for the modeller to join them, it's that co-operation makes society-developed products viable at reasonable prices - and it also keeps all the nuts in one bag! Below are some of the specialised societies that might further your interests. Click one to jump straight to the section you want.
Historical Model Railway Society - the definitive source of information on Britain's railways for building historically accurate models. The HMRS holds a wide range of drawings and a huge number of photographs, publishes a high quality journal and occasional definitive books, while its Company Steward system provides a focus for queries on almost any British railway topic, ancient or modern. If you care about getting your models and operation right, you ought to be a member.
The National Model Railroad Association is the largest organization devoted to the development, promotion, and enjoyment of the hobby of model railroading. The organisation is central to railroad modelling in North America and has links across the world. It is also responsible for the NMRA Directory of World Wide Rail Sites
British Railway Modellers of North America (BRMNA) - an international organisation catering for railway modellers with an interest in modelling British railways - mainly those living in North America but welcoming others as well. If you don't have complete runs of 1970s > British magazines, I'd recommend a visit to their Drawings and useful articles page.
British Railway Modellers of Australia promotes the modelling of British railways in all scales and encourages contact between modellers with similar interests. It supports this with a quarterly journal, The Clearing House.
New Zealand Railways Model Railway Guild. The Guild's main function is the publication of the New Zealand Model Railway Journal. It is not a club but assists, publicises and links together club activities relating to N.Z. prototype modelling. Each area has a representative of the Guild who will co-ordinate these local activities.
SAR Modelling Forum. A small group as yet, dedicated to modelling South African Railways. A more active site can be found at South African Railways Modelling Home Page which has a private mailing list.
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In recent times the casual use of "G Gauge" for the above has caused confusion due to the fact that some modellers don't properly recognise the difference between "gauges" and "scales". The origin of the problem is that track was (and is) expensive in large gauges (which came long before table-top sizes), so the same track might be paid for and shared by a number of modellers with different interests. Their models could be of any scale, as long as they had the same track gauge. So early models were quite understandably referred to by their gauge.
After World War II most modellers used table-top sizes which became more consistent, and from around the 1960s the hobby's finer-scale movement has tried to persuade modellers to think "scale" rather than "gauge" as the true measure of their models. As part of this, some societies have changed their names from "Gauge" to "Scale" over the years (e.g. the S Scale Society in the UK). And definitions have emerged for models built to non-standard scale/gauge combinations. For example, "HOn3" means using HO scale (1:87) for a vehicle running on 3ft narrow gauge track (= 10.5mm in HO). Sites catering for large scales include: The Gauge 3 Society actively supports this scale with news, forums and other member services. #1 Scale (1:32, 45mm gauge) Model Railroading. A collection of bits, but with extended explanation of the different scales/gauges in this range to combat the recent blurring of what the scales are.
Gauge 1 Model Railway Association: Gauge 1 lies where the model railway hobby and model engineering meet and attracts devotees from both sides. The Society (apparently) has no web site but can be contacted through the Membership Secretary, M. Mumford, Sirocco, Dowthorpe End, Earls Barton, Northampton NN6 0NH32 England email: G1MRA@compuserve.com
Milwaukee School of Engineering's Society of Model Engineers - Basically a club site, but with links and contruction techniques that might be useful.
Large Scale Online - Scale isn't mentioned, but garden railways are, and seem to be a major interest. Part of the site is for members only. 9mm / ft - I don't know if there's a society devoted to this scale, but it's used in New Zealand where the prototype railway system uses 3ft 6in gauge. This results in modellers using 9mm scale, but also (much smaller) 9mm gauge, so get them the right way round. The New Zealand Railways Model Railway Guild (see above) might be the place to start.
Gauge O Guild - The umbrella group for British 7mm scale modellers, at 1:43 ratio.
Scale 7 Group - The 7mm modeller's equivalent of the Protofour approach, using accurate wheel/rail profiles and track gauge.
Society of Proto:48 Enthusiasts - promotes 1/4" Scale AAR prototype dimensions and gauge for model railroads, focusing primarily on accurately dimensioned wheel profiles and track gauge.
National Association of S Gaugers - The NASG is the umbrella organization representing the (US) S gauge community.
S Scale Model Railroading Homepage - Somewhat product oriented site but useful links. (US)
S Scale Model Railway Society - The new official site for the S Scale Society in the United Kingdom - railway modelling in 3/16"/ft, 1:64 ratio. Formed in 1946 as the "H1 Society" ("Half-One") but soon followed the American choice of S for the ratio. S Scale reflects the fact that many members use gauges other than standard gauge.
Scalefour Society - Exact scale modelling in 1:76.2 scale: supporting the original Protofour concept of 4mm/ft on 18.83mm gauge with highly accurate wheel and rail profiles, which sparked similar movements in other scales.
The EM Gauge Society The largest of the societies catering for modellers working to finer standards in 4mm/ft, supporting both its original 18mm gauge (EM stands for 'eighteen millimetres') and the more exact 18.83mm/ft.
Russ Elliott's Suppliers List I hadn't intended to include supplier directories, but this site focuses on UK traders supporting 4mm fine scale in particular (though some will support other scales as well).
British 1:87 Scale Society - what OO should have been if UK prototype bodies hadn't been too small to fit prewar motors. The Society promotes HO for British outline modelling, but welcomes members from
any part of the world.
Proto 87 - French site supporting exact wheel/rail profiles in HO. The site is mainly French language, but many of the suppliers will be familiar elsewhere.
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3mm Society Homepage - Originally the Table Top scale, hence TT. 3mm/ft scale, or 1:101. [Strictly speaking, this is TT3; elsewhere TT is 2.5mm/ft scale]
The Chosen Scale Cooperative - the home of NZ120. NZ120 is the New Zealand Model Railway Guild name for a scale more accurately referred to as TTn3.5, that is 1:120 scale (or 1/10" to the foot) modelling of a 3'6" prototype (the gauge of all of New Zealand's rail lines). NZ120 uses standard 9mm N scale track, wheelsets and locomotive mechanisms.
2mm Scale Society - Taking the Protofour approach to 2mm/ft scale (1:152) using 9.42mm gauge. Introduced long before commercial N Gauge, hence the scale difference.
N Gauge Society - Journal, kits, area groups. N Gauge is 1:148 for British and Japanese prototypes, 1:160 elsewhere, but all use the same track gauge.
N Scale in Australia. The website for all Australian N Scale modellers irrespective of their prototype or system across the world, but naturally with a bias towards Australian outline models and layouts.
NTRAK Modular Railroading. In 1973 a group of U.S. model railroaders looked for ways of promoting N gauge and the NTRAK modular project resulted. The idea spread throughout the hobby and modellers from all over the world can build modules, bring them to a show, connect with those brought by other modellers and so assemble a giant N scale layout ready for public display and operation.
Zmodeltrains. Z gauge support (mainly U.S)., has an email newsletter, the Zed-Head Newsletter covering products, clubs, meetings, shows, etc. (Z scale = 1:220)
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Broad Gauge Society - primarily supporting the 7ft 0 1/4in gauge that Brunel engineered on the Great Western Railway (UK).
Narrow Escape An Industrial and Light Railway Modelling Resource for 1:20.3 and 7/8" scales. 1:20.3 = 15mm/1ft, so 3 foot gauge track = 45mm or gauge 1 track.The NMRA has designated 1:20.3 as F scale, and 3 foot narrow gauge becomes Fn3. The scale also mixes well with 1/19 (16 mm) equipment, encouraging dual gauge operations on your railway.
Fine Scale 1/32 Narrow Gauge Railway Modellers Society, includes modellers working in the nearby ratios.
7mm Narrow Gauge Association. The scale is 7mm/ft, the gauge is whatever suits the prototype.
009 Society which claims to be the world's largest 009 narrow gauge modelling group.
Slim Gauge Guild Model Railroad Club - Sn3 and HOn3 layouts in Pasadena, CA. Links may be useful.
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The East Penn Traction Club of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania includes trolley modelling articles.
Traction SIG (NMRA) a Special Interest Group of modellers who exchange information about traction modelling (interpreted to include all electric rail transportation), which might be an adjunct to an existing layout, offer sophisticated operations in very limited space, or capture the grandeur of main line electrification.
Light Railway Transit Association Information and campaigning about better public transport through trams, tramways, streetcars and light rail transit systems. UK/International. Building up data pages.
The Tramway & Light Railway Society Caters for all aspects of Tramways, including the tramway modeller. Details of scales, gauges, systems... plus articles on model tram construction.
Trolley Cars Dot Com Dedicated to the hard work of individuals and museums committed to the preservation and restoration of trolleys and streetcars. Good links pages.
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Diesel and Electric Modellers United - for modellers of the British post-modernisation plan era.
Model Electronic Railway Group (MERG) - A UK based group promoting interest in the application of electronics (including computers) to all aspects of railway modelling Also, if you're interested in electronics, you might like to refer to Model Railroad and Misc. Electronics. This is actually framed within another site's page, but its proper address tends to give errors.
References to published photographs of the Railway Stations of Great Britain and Ireland. This site only has a temporary home in this section, but it's too valuable to leave unmentioned. You'll have to read the bit about codes, though; the references themselves can only be understood with them.
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