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N scale (or N gauge) is a popular model railway standard, allowing hobbyists to build layouts that take up less space than HO scale, or pack longer runs containing more detail into a similar amount of space. The name is an abbreviation for Nine millimetres. It is also sometimes called "2 mm to the foot," in reference to its scale.
N scale uses 9 mm gauge track, and a scale of 1:160 worldwide, except for the United Kingdom where a scale of is 1:148 is used because of the problems early on in fitting mechanisms into smaller British trains. In Japan 1:150 is used for most trains and trams, to proportion the trains correctly for Japan's 3'6" track gauge, while 1:160 is used for standard gauge Shinkansen models.
Although trains and accessories of similar gauge and/or scale existed as early as 1927, modern N scale appeared in 1962. Unlike other scales and gauges, which were de facto standards at best, within two years N scale defined the gauge, voltage, and polarity of track, as well as the height and type of couplers.
N scale is second only to HO scale in popularity as a modelling scale worldwide.
2 mm scale
A fair number of modellers in the United Kingdom use 2 mm scale, an older standard than N scale. 2 mm scale, as the name implies, is scaled at 2 mm to the foot (1.152) with a 9.42 mm track gauge. Exact scale track and wheels are used rather than the somewhat coarser N gauge standards.
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