Rusty Traque posted:If we really want to get down and dirty into the weeds, anything with deep flanges and third rail operation can't be considered as "scale."SIRT posted:MTH RailKing items are compressed.
Rusty
Amen.
Back in the early 80s when Williams was coming out with their line of brass locos most dealers referred to them as semi-scale. Basically anything of scale proportions modified to run on three rail and sporting lobster claw couplers. Then along comes Maury Klein calling O-27 size trains "semi-scale which in a purely legal sense may be correct but from then on you had to clearly define what you meant by semi-scale. Thus calling for a new term, "3Rail Scale". I like to refer to 0-27 trains as " Toy Scale". I would even be OK with calling them "O-27 Scale" Getting MTH and Lionel to go along is the key. I think if there is an organization who could pull this off it is the TCA. I would like to see them publish a glossary of terms that manufacturers and dealers selling at TCA meets had to subscribe to. MTH in at least some of their catalogs uses the term "Near Scale" I take this to mean 1/4" proportions but missing a little fine detail. Some of these Near Scale locos are very nice and I would not hesitate to mix them with Semi Scale/3Rail Scale. Would prefer the term Semi Scale restored to it's original 1980 meaning to 3Rail Scale as Semi Scale is easier to type. j