What scale of vehicles would look decent next to Pola/Piko buildings, trains etc…
Depends on the building. I’ve got some Piko buildings that are downright diminutive. Architectural details put the building at around 1:24, but in terms of footprint, it’s little more than a garden shed at that scale. However, based on the details, a 1:24 car would look appropriate in front of it. Contrast that with the Pola “western” style stations, which scale nicely in 1:20.3, so the 1:24 cars will look comparatively tiny. Alas, 1:20 cars are pretty rare (even the Hubley kits are getting harder to find). Some folks have used 1:18 cars, but to my eyes, they’re just too big comparatively. Maybe they’d work next to standard gauge 1:20, but not the narrow gauge stuff.
Piko’s trains are nominally 1:26ish, being models of European standard gauge equipment “blown up” to be visually compatible with LGB’s 1:22ish trains. (To Piko’s credit, their “ish” factor is significantly less than LGB’s “ish” factor.) The 1:24 cars will probably look pretty good with them, especially since the alternative is usually 1:32 or 1:35–definitely too small.
Most folks in large scale looking for generic vehicles to fill a scene gravitate towards 1:24. If set in the background, or in an area where there’s not a whole lot right next to them to compare in terms of scale, the effect can be quite realistic. Like figures, much of their success in terms of setting a scene comes in how you place them. It’s similar to forced perspective.
Later,
K
I ran into a problem with these diecast toys a couple of years ago when I bought a few off eBay, and I really didn’t know what I was doing.
They are listed under G scale trains a lot, but they can be 1:32 or 1:24 scale. There are also 1:18 diecasts as well, but I haven’t seen them under G scale trains yet.
Anyway, I bought these things and some of them were 1:32. My trains are in the range of 1:22-1:24, and trust me, that 1:32 stuff looked TINY! I’m still unloading a few of them.
My best advice is to make sure you get 1:24 cars and trucks. Be careful - it’s very easy to get stuck with the smaller ones by mistake. As a rule, the small ones are about $15.00, the 1:24 are $24.00 and up.
Unless you know for sure you want something really quite small, that you won’t be able to stand your figures near, but you plan to keep it in the background as part of a forced perspective-type illusion.
By the way, you don’t need too many to create the illusion of traffic on your pike. It’s very easy to end up with over-crowded streets!
I’ll probably stay with the 1:24 stuff. I only have a few out at the moment. At one time I was buying a lot of them right now they’re in a box in the attic.
Here’s a recent scene on the indoor pike…(http://lsc.cvsry.com/Post3/CVSRy5-13.JPG)
The Corvette and the Cobra are 1:24. The old truck is 1:32. Dave’s Big Indian was built in 1:24 (I think) by Rooster and the other two are Pola buildings. The Gazebo is a birdhouse with no scale. In the Corvette is one of Bachmann’s over-size engineers and the people on the platform are probably 1:32 at best. The CFL bulb and eye glasses are 1:1 and the Shay motor and trucks in the foreground are 1:20.3.
As you can see, I really don’t mind mixing scales :]
EDIT: Fix contraction for Fred.
Thanks everyone for the input, it helps alot!
Something to think about also.
The smaller scale vehicles can be placed on your layout in the distance to force perspective. I do it all the time on my HO indoor layout to create the allusion of distance.