Toy Trains and Accessories

Gauge I and larger early Toy Trains: From the first tinplate carpet toy trains dating from the 1850s through to the superb German gauge I and larger (gauge II, III and IV) trains manufactured until the First World War - this was a period known as the Golden age of trains, following the history and evolution of the train in miniature. The largest country producing toy trains for the world during this time was Germany; with such famous makers as Marklin, Bing, Carette and Schoenner to name but a few manufacturing superb trains that could be operated by live steam, clockwork mechanisms or were electric. These companies also produced a wide range of track accessories and buildings, all of which were made to the highest standard and continue to be very desirable in today’s market. English companies such as Steven’s Model Dockyard, produced brass live steam engines, and the famous Bassett-Lowke model company of Northampton, which manufactured model and toy trains to rival any coming out of Germany, are all very sought after by collectors today.

0 gauge, Hornby  and the Inter-War years: Frank Hornby, perhaps the most famous of all names associated with toy trains, produced his first 0 gauge train in 1920 and quickly became the most popular train manufacturer for children. Throughout the boom times of the 1920s and 30s, his trains could be found in all toy shops country-wide, offering famous locomotives such as the Flying Scotsman, Schools class Eton, Bramham Moor and culminating in the large 4-6-2 Princess Elizabeth locomotive introduced in 1937. As well as locomotives, Hornby produced a large selection of rolling stock and track side buildings and accessories. Other lesser known English manufactures include Exley, Bowman, Bonds and Leeds. As well as the German makers still exporting toy trains to England, Bassett-Lowke continued to successfully produce quality trains and American companies, such as Lionel, although very popular in America also had some success in England. During the late 1930s, as many households became smaller, smaller scale train sets were required and, in 1938, Hornby 'Dublo' was released to meet this demand.

Post-war years, HO/ OO gauge and smaller trains: Although Hornby and Bassett-Lowke continued to produce 0 gauge trains, the most popular was now 00 (Dublo) gauge trains; many of which were produced throughout the 1950s by Hornby, Trix and Trix Twin. Tri-ang (later Tri-ang Hornby) produced popular plastic bodied engine and rolling stock, and throughout the 1960s/70s and 80s, many companies entered the toy and model train market - these included Airfix, Bachmann, Lima, Mainline and Wrenn in England, and Marklin, Fleischmann, Jouef, Rivarossi in Europe to name but a few. During the 1970s N gauge was introduced and is today very popular with collectors.  In recent years there has been a resurgence for 0 gauge and, in 1995, ACE trains started to reproduce classic Hornby trains. 

If you've any Toy Trains you'd like to have valued or auctioned, our Toy Specialist Leigh would be pleased to appraise them for you. Get in touch today!