Model Train Locomotive – ca. 1950

Who remembers spending hours playing with model trains like this one? This sleek steam locomotive was made by Lionel Manufacturing Company in 1950 and features the 4-4-2-wheel configuration. This means it has four wheels in the front, four in the middle, and two in the back. Many of you model train enthusiasts will know that the wheel configuration identifies the size of the locomotive.

This Lionel steam locomotive is a size O gauge model with a scale of 1:48. Model trains come in many different sizes called scale, which is its relative size in proportion to the real thing. This means you would need 48 of this model steam engine to equal the length of the real one. Gauge refers to the distance between the rails, inside to inside. Standard gauge for real trains is four feet, eight and a half inches. Scaled down to 1:48, O gauge model trains run on tracks that are one and a quarter inch wide.

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