Collectors’ Corner

A large photograph near the front of Lemaco’s 2000–2001 catalogue shows a steam locomotive in bare brass. Against the black background, its separate pipes, valve gear and tiny fittings are particularly easy to follow. The accompanying specification for the 0 gauge models goes beyond surface detail. It lists equipped cabs and smokeboxes, opening doors, hatches and covers, sprung buffers and brake rigging on both locomotive and tender. The driving axles…

Before wiring an entire layout, Busch offered a way to try the circuits on a board. Its 1986/87 catalogue presents the Modellbahn-Technik 2080 experiment set, with around 150 experiments and circuits for railway electronics. The photograph shows separate plug-in modules joined by coloured wires. Circuit symbols and component names are printed on the modules, so the diagram and the physical parts can be followed together. Busch says the components can…

Tenshodo was an established Ginza business long before it sold its own model trains. Founded in Tokyo in 1879 as a seal shop, it added watches and jewellery in the 1880s and began importing Swiss and American watches in 1889. Its company chronology dates the start of sales of its own railway models to 1949. Model railways became another branch of a business already associated with precision objects. The work…

Hornby-Dublo’s Travelling Post Office turned a passing train into a small mechanical performance. A mailbag waited on a trackside standard; another could be carried inside the Royal Mail van. The 1962 catalogue explains the sequence. As the van approached, the operator held down a push button. One sharp knock marked the bag being thrown into the lineside collecting box. A second marked the waiting bag being caught by the net…

At the bottom of page 21 of the 1975/76 Minitrix catalogue, the silver driving trailer has a detail that is easy to miss: its lights change with the direction of travel. No. 3040 is described as a BDnf coach with a driving cab and lighting. The small yellow lamp symbol beside it marks a working feature, rather than another printed detail on the body. The catalogue gives the model a…

In 1979, a Dutch department-store catalogue could offer a surprisingly complete start in model railways. HEMA’s train booklet shows a steam goods set on one page and an NS passenger-and-goods set opposite it. The steam set includes a locomotive with tender, a goods van, a tanker and a car transporter. The NS set combines four goods wagons with two passenger coaches. Both are described as 1:87 H0, with a transformer,…

Among the tracks and signals in Jouef’s 1973 international catalogue is a small container terminal. No. 9320 is a blue gantry crane, with its long frame spanning the space beneath it. A separate lifting attachment is shown beside the crane. The containers below carry different transport-company markings, including Danzas. Long rectangular loads could travel on a wagon, wait beside the line or sit under the crane; the accessories give a…

Albedo’s four-page 1987 catalogue gives a surprisingly large part of its range to the drinks trade. Holsten, Warsteiner, Jever and Martini liveries appear on small lorries and matching trailers. The combinations are worth comparing. Some carry white box bodies; others have a dark canvas-style cover. The green Holsten outfit has the brewery lettering across both the lorry and trailer, while the blue Martini combination uses the familiar striped logo. Even…

Märklin's H0/00 gauge trains became familiar to families around the world. At roughly 1:87 scale, a railway could fit into the home while still offering plenty to build and operate. Hans remembers the pleasure of making a layout with a parent's undivided attention. It involved much more than running a train: planning the scenery, wiring the track, organising traffic and making buildings all became part of the hobby. The locomotive…

This 0 gauge electric locomotive was made by Elektro Keiser of Zug, Switzerland. It carries the SBB CFF number 11404. The model was manufactured in very small quantities from 1959 onwards. This example sold for €1,800. Do you collect Swiss 0 gauge trains, or know more about Keiser's production? Share what you know below. Story and research by Hans van Dissel.