Brief History of 0 Scale
The 0 scale was introduced around 1900 by toy maker Marklin it ran on a three-rail alternating current gauge. The 0 scale got it's name from being smaller then gauge 1 and it was believed that it would be impossible to make a toy train any smaller then the 0 scale.
Manufacturers such as American Flyer, Ives Manufacturing Company and Lionel were using 0 scale as their budget line of trains in the United States. When the Great Depression hit it completely crushed the market for the larger more expensive trains making the 0 scale the standard model railroad system.
Pre-World War II saw wild variations as train manufactures focused more on the fun whimsical aspects of the trains. Few trains followed any standards or were properly scaled. After World War II the manufacturers started paying attention to details and created more realistically scaled locomotives and rolling stock. Over the years the 0 scale trains have continued to become more realistic.
