Is Hornby Dublo the same as OO gauge?

Introduction

“Introduced in 1938 in both Clockwork and Electric as the 'perfect tabletop railway', Hornby Dublo quickly gained a reputation for quality and durability.  After World War II Clockwork was dropped and Electric locos were relaunched with updated couplings in GWR, LMS, LNER and Southern liveries....”   Hornby Railway Collectors Association

But is yesteryear's Hornby Dublo track anything like today's modern, plastic-based, flexible code 75?

Table of Contents

• Why OO gauge
• Hornby Dublo Origins & demise
• Is Hornby Dublo the same as OO gauge?
• Is Hornby Dublo still made?
• Can Hornby Dublo track be used with modern plastic sleeper track?

Why OO gauge?

Hornby Dublo stems from a standard created in Germany, in the early 1920s. Previously, Märklin had formalised several standards for track gauges, one of which was O. At that time, Bing was the biggest toy manufacturer in the world. Bing adopted the Märklin tracks gauges, and under the guise of Bassett-Lowke introduced half O, called Double-O, with a track width of 0.623 inches. This was adopted by the British toy train market and has remained the most widely used gauge in the UK ever since.  

Hornby Dublo origins and demise

Although originally started in 1938, using Clockwork mechanisms, the electric-powered toy trains only became available after 1947. Production had ceased due to the unavailability of materials during World War 2, and the factory was requisitioned by H.M. Government for the design and manufacture of war-related components. In the post-war recovery, the manufacture of other Meccano products took precedence, as some re-design work took place on Hornby Dublo. 

Following the restart of production, some customers had to wait up to a year to actually receive their model trains, due to a shortage in metals.  Meanwhile, Rovex Plastics had started to produce their own lines of model trains but fell into financial difficulties and were taken over by Lines Brothers. The range was re-launched as Tri-ang.  

Hornby Dublo were slow to use plastics, and by the time they had switched production techniques, Tri-ang were market leaders in the sector and seen as good value for money. In 1964 Lines Brothers acquired Hornby Dublo, along with Dinky Toys and Meccano.

Eventually, the remaining stocks of Hornby Dublo were marketed by G & R Wrenn Ltd., another firm Lines Brothers had a controlling interest.       

It is interesting to note, that despite all the changes of ownership, even to this day all products are prefixed with ‘R’, as a nod to the heritage of Rovex.

Is Hornby Dublo the same as OO gauge?

Essentially Yes, although it can be likened to comparing a Model T Ford with a Mondeo.  The original, electric, Hornby Dublo was three rail (the outer two rails were electrically connected with a third, centre rail providing the alternative polarity). The track was supplied in Set Track format (see ‘Is all OO track Compatible?’ for further explanation)  and came complete with lots of tin-plate accessories, such as station buildings and trees.

Today's OO gauge, whilst using the same track width of 16.5mm, has long since done away with the central rail for power and now uses 12vdc or 16v DCC (ac) to provide power to the locomotives and accessories.

Is Hornby Dublo still made?

No, not any more.  The introduction of plastic bodies for the locos, and the whole change to plastic for the wagons and coaches, plus the accessories such as station and tunnels, eventually overtook the use of metal favoured by the original Hornby Dublo models.

Can Hornby Dublo track be used with modern plastic track?

Again, No.  The original tin-plate track was termed ‘3-rail’, where the outer two rails were the same polarity, and the central rail provided the other polarity.  Even the 2-rail version of Hornby Dublo track has a different rail profile and is not easy to match to the more modern nickel-silver track.

Keep on shuntin'