Maker record
Erno (Feinmechanische Werkstätte Ernst Notter)
Erno was a Swiss maker of 0-gauge tinplate toy trains, produced in Unterägeri by Ernst Notter’s precision workshop. Its range included clockwork and electric locomotives, goods and passenger wagons, and track. Early locomotives and freight wagons appeared in 1945; passenger and baggage cars followed in 1946. The trains combined Märklin-inspired designs with simpler construction, and some components used aluminium during postwar material shortages. Erno’s short production run ended in 1949 after Märklin resumed exports to Switzerland.
- Founded
- 1944
- Final year
- 1949
- Countries
- Switzerland
- Locations
- Unterägeri, Switzerland · 1944
- Founders
- Ernst Notter
The story of Erno (Feinmechanische Werkstätte Ernst Notter)
Ernst Notter, whose earlier business in Zürich repaired harmonicas, moved to Unterägeri in 1944 and established a precision workshop. With toy imports scarce, he developed a 0-gauge railway. The first Erno products reached shops in 1945: a clockwork locomotive and goods wagons. Passenger coaches initially came from Zürich maker Max Kraft rather than from Erno. In 1946, Notter added his own passenger and baggage cars.
Erno also offered an electric locomotive. Its first version used a drive designed by Notter, which proved unsuccessful; later versions used a Resal motor. The trains followed Märklin designs in simplified form. Shortages of materials during and after the war meant some components were made from aluminium instead of steel sheet. Erno also supplied Resal with sheet-metal parts, including axle holders and parts for a coal wagon.
When Märklin resumed exports to Switzerland in 1947, Erno’s sales fell sharply. Notter’s financial difficulties led to the workshop’s closure in 1949. Resal acquired some tools and unfinished parts, including the body for Erno’s crane wagon.