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Märklin H0 (HO in English speaking countries) model railways, which had been called 00 at its introduction, resumed production post war and the range quickly expanded. H0 is the most popular model railway scale in the world and Märklin is the largest manufacturer.

History

Märklin first showed what was then called 00 at the Leipzig fair in 1935. Production resumed after the war as H0 and the range expanded rapidly, until 1969 H0 was Märklin's only model railway scale in production and is still the main product line. Such was the importance of the market that Christmas sales of model railways were a key economic measure in Germany.

Märklin resolutely retained their 3-rail system long after most other manufacturers had switched to 2-rail. This meant that an increasingly important market was largely unavailable to them, even though some models were offered in 2-rail versions. After years of collaboration, in 1997 Märklin took over their rival Trix which opened up not only 2-rail H0, but also N gauge markets to them.

The 1984 introduction of Märklin Digital transformed the operation of models and accessories, in recent years all model locomotives have been fitted with a digital decoder.

Track

From the outset, Märklin offered a comprehensive system with sectional track and accessories.

M Track

At its introduction the system used solid centre conductor 3-rail track made of steel plate (Hornby Railways licenced the same track for their 3-rail system). In 1953 the solid centre conductor was replaced by studs, which greatly improved track appearance. As a result, Locomotives had to be fitted with a longer "ski" sliding contact. This track type was called "M track" (M = Metall, German for metal) and had shaped trackbed with painted ballast and sleepers.

K Track

In 1969 the new "K track" system was introduced (K = Kunstoff, German for plastic). This track has more realistic appearance having moulded plastic sleepers without track bed, and was primarily intended for use on permanent layouts. Initially having exactly the same geometry as M track, the system was expanded with, in particular, larger radius curves and turnouts, and also flexible track. Both M and K track systems remained available for many years.

C Track

Finally in 1996 "C track" was introduced, soon replacing M track as the main system. C ("click") track was designed to be particularly robust and easy to assemble, removing one of the main frustrations of model railways. While curve radii remained the same, track lengths were different and more numerous than the earlier track types, allowing much greater flexibility in configuring layouts. C track has a moulded plastic trackbed including ballast, and electrical connections are made internally rather than by fishplates, providing much more reliable connections that are less prone to damage.

Construction

Originally entirely steel plate ("tinplate") for track and carriages, with cast metal for the locomotives. Post war more and more components were moulded plastic, especially for freight cars, however steel plate construction of passenger cars continued for many years. Some locomotives were moulded plastic as well as many locomotive components, including tenders. However, from around 2000 there was a reversion to cast metal bodies for locomotives and tenders, in contrast with most other manufacturers. Wagons and carriages, with very few exceptions, were by then all plastic.

HAMO

HAMO was a small manufacturer taken over in the 1960s and subsequently Märklin used the name for a range of models offered for 2-rail DC operation. With the 1997 takeover of Trix the HAMO name was dropped and from then all 2-rail models were marketed by Trix.

Primex

A lower cost and limited line of models sold by retailers not wishing to stock the full range. Primex was replaced by the "Hobby" line.

Hobby

The "Hobby" range replaced Primex as a lower cost entry level range to satisfy the market for more basic models. The brand is no longer used.

Couplers

In 1939 Märklin introduced a hook and loop coupler that became the international standard NEM 360, familiar on many continental models. This coupler was further developed in 1956 as the "RELEX" coupler which allowed automatic pre-uncoupling by a ramp mounted between the rails. These two couplers are compatible (pre-uncoupling means that a locomotive may reverse over the uncoupler with its train and continue some distance further, before changing direction and leaving the train detached).

In 1985 a newly developed close coupler allowed much closer coupling between carriages, especially in conjunction with so-called sliding pockets. Still a hook and loop design, but compatibility with the earlier couplers is limited.