Maker record
Heinzl
Heinzl was a German small-series maker of H0 model railway trains. Its range included steam locomotives and railcars, including the Württemberg steam railcar and the Wismar railbus. The company also produced rack railway models, with a rack-and-pinion system and locomotives representing Swiss mountain railway prototypes. Heinzl models were among the early German H0 small-series offerings, and some designs or tooling later continued under other makers.
- Founded
- 1950
- Countries
- Austria
- Locations
- Vienna, Austria
- Founders
- Hans Heinzl
The story of Heinzl
Heinzl was an early German maker of small-series H0 model railway products. Its range included steam locomotives and railcars, among them the Württemberg steam railcar, for which the specialist model reference identifies Heinzl as the first maker. The product index for Hans Heinzl KG of Reutlingen documents a broad catalogue of numbered models, including rack railway locomotives and railcars representing the Brünigbahn, Zugspitzbahn and Rochers-de-Naye railway. The rack railway line included a dedicated system for H0 models.
The firm’s products did not all disappear with Heinzl. The model railway reference records that Heinzl models were continued for a time by Günter, a former employee. The Württemberg steam railcar was later produced in simplified form by Merker und Fischer and subsequently appeared as a further simplified kit from Rai-Mo. The index also records later transfers of certain Heinzl tools to other makers. These continuations indicate that individual models and tooling passed on, but do not by themselves establish the company’s exact founding or final production year.
