Brief History of 2mm Scale

You may be surprised to learn that 2mm scale model railways were first experimented with as far back as the early 1920s by the late H B Whall who was to become the 2mm Scale Association’s first President. Subsequently in 1927 a 2mm scale locomotive built by A R Walkley ran successfully at the Wimbledon Model Railway Club exhibition.

At the Model Engineer Exhibition the following year, J J Langridge won a silver medal for his 2mm scale LSWR 0-4-0 tank and 0-6-0 goods locomotives. Of course everything had to be built from scratch including the motor and wheels.

Apart from a few articles in the modelling press not a lot of progress was made until the early 1950s when Mr Wall introduced a range of components and finished models that he manufactured himself. Interest in 2mm scale continued to grow, culminating in April 1960 with the formation of The 2mm Scale Association.

The early 1960s saw the construction by H H Groves and his son Bert (now the Association President) of their “Rydes Vale” layout, which was instrumental in bringing 2mm scale modelling to the attention of a wider audience. This gave a faultless performance at The Model Railway Club’s Exhibitions held in 1961-62 and 1965 thanks to the sound engineering principles that had been followed.

The 2mm Scale Association is now an established member of the finescale modelling fraternity. The range of components available to members has expanded greatly since the much-appreciated beginnings of Mr Whall, and today the Association can offer its members all the basic components 2mm Scale Association Products and more that are essential for 2mm finescale modelling, as well as a bi-monthly magazine, practical handbooks, annual Expo and a whole range of other services.

So why model in 2mm scale? 2mm finescale modelling offers modellers superior appearance and smoother running over commercial products. To place things in perspective, 2mm scale is modelled to a scale of 1:152 on track set to a gauge of 9.42mm. By comparison British N gauge is slightly larger at 1:148 (2 ¹/16 mm/1ft) on 9mm gauge track. In Europe and America N gauge is smaller at 1:160 scale, again on 9mm gauge track.

Check out the links at the top right of this blog to see what can be achieved in 2mm scale.

Peter

(The source for this information is the 2mm Scale Association Yearbook)