Bachmann Industries
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Bachmann Industries (originally Bachmann Bros.) is a company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania specializing in model railroading. Today it is the largest seller, in terms of volume, of model trains in the world. Bachmann primarily specializes in inexpensive entry-level train sets sold in the mass market.
It was founded in 1833 by Henry Carlisle and originally specialized in vanity products such as women's combs. In 1899 Carlisle's firm, now run by Henry E. Bachmann, merged with a competing firm being run by Henry E. Bachmann's father, Henry G. Bachmann, and the younger Bachmann's brother, Walter J. Bachmann.
Its experience in plastics led to a mass-market plastic fence released in 1947, which gave rise to the Plasticville line of buildings, which were popular accessories for Lionel and American Flyer trains. Bachmann introduced its own line of trains starting in 1952. Today Bachmann offers trains in HO scale, N scale, On30 scale, and G scale in addition to buildings and accessories.
Under the name Bachmann Branchline, they make British OO gauge models. The plant is in China. During the 1990s competition with Hornby Railways saw the quality of UK ready-to-run models increase. They also took over N gauge model maker Graham Farish after that went bust.
External link
- http://www.bachmanntrains.com
- British website (http://www.bachmann.co.uk/)