Octoberon

The Wikipedia "Gauge 2" page says, rightly or wrongly, "standardised in 1909 at 2 in (50.8 mm), a 20% reduction and a change in definition: from mm to inch. It has since fallen into disuse. The gauge was introduced by Märklin at the Leipzig toy fair in 1891. Gauge 2 was equivalent to a 1:22.5 scale." The "Wide Gauge" page says "Called Standard Gauge by Lionel, who trademarked the name. Other manufacturers used the same gauge and called it Wide Gauge. Not widely produced after 1940. Gauge No. 2 using track of gauge 2" (50.8 mm) was one of the standard model gauges in 1909." It refers to a scale of "1:26.59 or 1:28.25". So, still no reference to a 1:22.5 scale on the "Wide Gauge" page, but at least they both mention 50.8 mm gauge. As I've said above, I must measure carefully yet again. Regards, Geoff

No, that comes from the Wikipedia page I saw earlier: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2_gauge Regards, Geoff

I'm going to have to measure my connecting rods again and try to be as accurate as possible. In the meantime, please take a look here (https://dccwiki.com/Railroad_modelling_scales) and note the entry for "Wide gauge". Regards, Geoff

I've taken a good look at your e-book, but I remain confused. I got my initial information from a brief Wikipedia page (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2_gauge). I also did some research into the locomotive via the LNWR Society. The tender wheels that I have - which are properly fitted on to their axles - demonstrate that the track gauge is wider than the 45 mm standard (I have a little gauge 1 track and those tender wheels don't fit) and information about the prototype tells me that the distance between the centres of the holes in the connecting rods should be 10 feet, which, by my calculation, takes me to 1:22.5 scale.

Thanks. I'll take a look shortly. I could well be very wrong. I did some sort of calculation earlier today (I think trying to convert 7/16-in. scale), got a value somewhere near 1:28 and was puzzled.

That's a fascinating advert, but the boiler that I have really is just a simple tube, without any closed ends or fitted components, and I think I'm right in saying that the scale is 1:22.5. I'm struggling to convert to an "xx-in." scale, but I don't think it's 7/16.

The boiler is just a simple tube. At present, there are no holes for handrail knobs or washout plugs. The firebox, complete with the firebox door hinge, is attached at the front. An open-topped tin was included with the parts (thinking maybe an intended spirit burner) but it's rather too large to fit anywhere. On the other hand, I do seem to have some parts to make up the inside motion - although I can't fully understand how they'd fit together.

Assuming that "7mm+" can encompass anything 7mm and larger, here are a few photos of some gauge 2 parts that I've recently acquired, roughly lined up to show what I have of an LNWR Whale Precursor 4-4-0 in the long-forgotten gauge 2 (50.8 mm track gauge, scale 1:22.5). Sadly, I have no frames. Was it meant to be a live steam model? If not, how was it to be powered? I have many more questions than answers. The last photo focuses on the tender wheels, which are just about all I have of the tender. Feel free to comment.