"What model train scales correspond to what figure scales" Topic

I think this is a useful question. I understand that 25mm and S scale correspond roughly (S is bigger) while 15mm and O also roughly correspond.

Personally, if I had to choose between scales that didn't quite match, I'd want the military figs to be bigger, first off because it emphasizes the wargame, and second so that a 7'6" tall five year old girl is not being defended by a 6' soldier. That'd just look weird.

HO is slightly bigger than 15mm, but the buildings look pretty believable with figs & tanks in that scale. Worst no-no is to combine HO with true 15mm buildings.

Z scale is 1:220, which could pass for micro armor railroad track in a pinch.

N scale is between 10mm and 12mm.

I think 1/72 to 1/76 scale is considered 20mm, with 1/48 being 25/28mm.

Bigger than HO scale I'm sure others know more than I.

I think in the U.K. that 00 scale is the same as 1/76th.

Bachman has On30 trains that run on HO track and work pretty well with 40mm ACW, the figures are on the large size. I have 2 engines in On30. One I converted to 28mm/ S scale (I think S is 1/64 and 28mm is 1/60 - close enough as far as I'm concerned) and the other a 2-6-0 I'm using with some Foundry 40mm ACW. I've also combined 15mm and HO and so the layout I'm building will accomodate 3 scales.

A reader posted this to us a few years ago. It is very helpful:
link

There's some info here ( one of the "really old" TMP pages ) :

TMP link

Check out thortrains.net/scale1.htm for a complete overview. Remember thatodel railway buildings tend to be a bity smaller than the trains they're supposed to be with – an hO train is 1:87, buildings often are closer to 1:100.

UK scales - IIRC from 25 years ago

O = 7mm to the foot
OO = 4mm to the foot (or 1/76th)
TT = 3mm to the foot (or 1/100)
N = 2 mm to the foot (OK, actually 2 and 1/16th) (or 1/144th) [N=OOO]

S is hardly known in the UK. Cannot remember the scale o

Or just deal with ratios:

O scale = 1/48
S scale = 1/64
OO scale = 1/76
HO scale = 1/87
TT scale = 1/120
N scale = 1/160
Z scale = 1/220

15mm figure = .6" = 1/120 pretty much dead on TT scale
20mm figure = .78" = 1/90 scale, close enough to HO
25mm figure = 1" = 1/72
54mm figure = 2.125" = 1/34

O guage is 1/48 in the US and 1/43 in the UK .Hence the rather odd scale used by model car manufacturers.

Gronan of Simmerya, as Velbor says, you miss the fact that the scales differ between the UK and the US. As a further example, UK N-guage is not the same as US. I know as I used to model in UK N-Guage.

I disagree that 25mm = 1/72nd. If we take say an average male height of 5'6" (over 2000 years that may be too tall) and agree that the measurement of figures is to eye level of an average male standing upright then 25mm = approx 5'3" (1600mm) and the scale is about 1/64th. Bang on S-scale.

And I should have added that 20mm would equal 1/80th, which is pretty close to OO, being 1/76th.

HO scale works in the 1/76-1/87 scale end.{20-24mm}{1/72 does work well},note in the US OO scale is not used in rail models.

HOn2 is the TT scale found outside the US.It is a small
HO scale that runs on N scale track.{ best size for 15MM}.

HO3 is the considered narrow-guage scale in HO, the track is just a bit wider than N scale.{20-25mm}.

N scale works with 10mm,bit large for 6mm.{can use N scale flat cars with a little added floor area as HOn2}

S and O scale have always been a little large so I've never used any, other than the train set for X-Mas when I was a kid.{but than with 25mm growing in size,who knows what the future holds}.

Hi

re:25mm....the scale changed. Early scruby figs WERE 25mm tall, dressed....with helmet! Some riverscos still ARE. But it seems that evertime someone joins the party, they do an even bigger fig. Even now, some fantasy 25s are 40mm tall. Silly

Rocky

"If we take say an average male height of 5'6" (over 2000 years that may be too tall) and agree that the measurement of figures is to eye level of an average male "

I thought the measurement was to the top of the bare head? Where did eye level come in?

Okay, then, let's measure to the knee, the nipple, or the nadgers!

Well there seems always to have been some difference as to whether to use top of head or eyelevel. The advantage of the latter is of course that most hats still allow the eyes to be seen. However, if were to assume to top of head then we'd say 5'6" rather than 5'3". This adds 75mm to the height, to come to 1675. This rather easily calculates out to 1/67th, which is still closer to S-gauge than OO-gauge.

And then we add some for his boots , and the plinth he's standing on, and maybe measure across his shoulders to see if he'll fit in a 1/64 scale car....Boy! This is fun :0)

Isn't the average Western modern male 1776mm tall in his bare feet ? I don't remember seeing any Hoplites on the train recently.

Miniature "scales" are nothing of the sort. They used to be a measure of the size of the figure. Today they are just marketing gimmicks.

Of course other than teh actual trains model railroad scales are also largely fantasy. Buildings, trees etc are all selectively compressed.

Some O scale (1:48) will work well with 28mm.

If it looks right use it, if it doesn't discard it. TMP gives a lot of great sources for the never ending search for proper scale miniatures.

N is not properly a scale at all but a gauge. It is Nine millimeters between the rails. 9mm is equivalent to 4 feet 8 1/2 inches.

US HO is 1/87, US O is 1/48. So even the railroad scales are not the same scale on oposite sides of the pond. Airfix etc are not US HO scale, even though it says "HO scale" on the box. Put them next to a US HO scale figure and they look like giants.

Roughly, Z-gauge=6mm, 8 or10mm=N-gauge, 20mm= HO-gauge. That has always been the rule of thumb I have gone by. The popularity of 20mm for WW II has much to do with the avalibility of plastic models you can use with it.

Totally failed on a train scale to military miniature order. Got N scale cattle but they are not even halfway up to a 15mm figure.

Dave Crowell th N gauge thing does not explain why the US Ngauage is either 1/156 or 1/160. Brits Ngauge has some logic. 1/72 is 1 i" to 1' which would be valis before about 1965 when metric really started to take off. 1/144 is logical 1/2" to the fut. Great when as a Kid we had rullets with 1/24 of an inch.

Reason nevere applied to figures if it did we could use scale but figures are NEVER scale even if manufacturing limitations allowed. N gauge seem to be the most consistent, railway track figures are close to real scale but are a bit fragile for play.

Note many 10mm figures were, most were mpore like more like 12mm and a 5'8" man quite typical today, would be almost 12mm,(11.99444).