Blast from the past 1968-69

Here's a couple pages from America's Hobby Center Catalog from 1968.



Curtis

 

I remember my first n gauge engine, about that era, 1971 I think. A Botchman 0-4-0 tank, B&O, with the new gray plastic full valve gear.
Those were the days....and they can keep them!
Dave

 

I was in HO then, stuck in a damp and dark basement on a 4x8 table, as a kid. I remember the "Enfield & Ohio" series by Gordon Odegard that introduced the masses to N. I wasn't impressed. Then our local hobby shop put a few pieces of N in a display case. I distinctly remember admiring the Trix autorack and the big Atlas auto parts boxcars. An 85' car was simply undoable on a 4x8 18" HO layout without looking absurd. Everything looked amazing to me. I was an HO guy, but I had to admit I was getting jealous of what was coming out in N. It sure looked pretty good compared to the Tyco HO stuff I had. And even the Rapido coupler looked like it worked better than horn-hooks. That Rivarossi stuff made a lot of converts, at least to purchasing it. You found out later that in an all-out engineering contest between Germany and Italy, the Germans would win hands-down!

Good ol' AHC. They did kind of play fast and loose on N vs. HO 'illustrations', and a general lack of clarity. I remember being bitterly dissapointed when I got my HO Tyco 2-6-2 and it looked absolutely nothing like the picture in the ad.

 

I got an Arnold Rapido set in and built a little layout for a friend's kid, halfway to commemorate my railroad-exploring trip to Colorado that year. The diesel was painted for NYC, not very Colorado-specific, but it was heavy for its size. A little brute.

Later I got myself an Arnold Rapido 4-6-2 Pacific painted Santa Fe. It wasn't really Santa Fe but boy could it pull and run dependably and fairly slow.

 

Holy cats, $100 for that Con-Cor catalog?! Seems a bit excessive.

-Mark ;-)

 

WOW !!! I remember those old AHC adds !!! They covered three or four pages !!! I used to fill out the order blanks and put them on Mom's "bill stack", explaining how I HAD to have an E unit !!! I was in HO then, with a Tyco C-430 that came with the piggyback set AND the log dump set !!! And I had an OVAL of track, where all my friends had a mere circle with either a Tyco switcher or F9. then I started shoveling snow and trimming yards (wasn't big enough for the mower yet !!!). Bought a turnout, some extra straight track, and a LIGHTED bumper !!! Hill, Vanderbilt, and those guys had NOTHIN' on me !!! Ha,ha,ha !!! I remember AHC advertising Tyco N scale. Was there any truth to that ??? BTW, never got that E unit, but,DAMN, I tried !!!

 

The problem is, that's an 'n' scale dot...very hard to see.
Dave

 

I remember what REALLY sold me on N scale were the MRC passenger cars. I recall they came in clear boxes with the cars sitting on a piece of plastic track. The cars were gorgeous in their C&O blue and silver.

 

My first N scale was a Rapido set with C&NW S2, a UP boxcar, SOU gon, and C&NW caboose. Six pcs. of track: four curves, two straights. A bright yellow power pack (Minitrix ???). The rails were taller than my HO track !!! Also got a Styrofoam tunnel to cover one straight track. Mom got all that for me at a Hobby Show for less than $20 !!! I soon bought a foundry where I could run the tracks through it, and that took up the other straight track. My first "extra" car was a red Atlas Norfolk and Southern (NOT NS !!!) gon. Put a lot of miles on this stuff !!! Still have everything except the power pack (burned it up !!!) and the S2. DAMN, I wish I had that engine !!!

 

It's $1.00. The dot is there, but a bit obscured. That's about $6.50 today.

 

That Atlas C Liner was worth about 10 cents, then and now.

 

Yep, still have my well worn '73 ConCor and Minitrix catalog along with the Atlas plan book packed away in my stuff. Here's a question for the old-timers. When did the mfg's. make the change from calling it N gauge to N scale?

Bob

 

They still do.*S*

 

I still have a lot of my old stuff from the 70's when I got serious,still have my first set of TRIX f's I got in '67..Man,what junk most of that stuff was,but it was cheap,and fun.It was all so bad,you just accepted it as what it was.I still have fond memories of jumping into a car with a few friends,and running out to Hobbies For Men.My buddy Joe had a brand new '75 Trans Am,we took his because we couldn't fit four guys in my Porsche,LOL!! We'd each have 100 bucks or so,come back with a TRUNKLOAD,30-40 boxcars,maybe 20 locomotives..

 

Here's some of the track we had on hand .



Curtis