Model Railway Gauge and Scale Associations
Listed below are some of the model railway groups that take the form of a Gauge or Scale Society or Association.
1. The 009 Society
2. The 2mm Scale Association
3. The 3mm Society
4. The 7mm Narrow Gauge Association
5. The 7mm Scale Society
6. The Association of 16mm Narrow Gauge Modellers
7. The British 1:87 Scale Society
8. Diesel and Electric Modellers United (DEMU)
9. Double O Gauge Association (DOGA)
10. The EM Gauge Society
11. G Scale Society
12. Gauge One Model Railway Association (G1 MRA)
13. Gauge 3 Society
14. Gauge O Guild
15. Model Electronic Railway Group (MERG)
16. N Gauge Society
17. Narrow Gauge Railway Modelling Online
18. S Scale Model Railway Society
19. ScaleSeven Group
20. Scalefour Society
1. The 009 Society
Scale: Varies, mostly 1:76 and 1:87
Gauge: 9mm
Nature: Caters for narrow-gauge railway modelling on larger scale than ‘N’ gauge
Area Groups: Informal area groups, currently about 30
Magazine: ‘009 News’, issued monthly
Annual fee: From £23 (Concession £20)
Exhibition: Often an exhibition is held in conjunction with Society AGM (May)
Email: Go to ‘Contact Us’ on website and choose intended recipient
Website: www.009society.com
2. The 2mm Scale Association
Scale: 2mm to 1 foot (1:152) (‘2FS’)
Gauge: 9.42mm
Nature: Variation of small-scale modelling (more accurate modelling in 2mm than ‘N’ gauge provides)
Area Groups: 10 (Basingstoke/ Essex/ Forth Clyde/ Kent and Essex/ London Area Group/ North East/ Oxford/ Pennine/ Wealden/ Virtual)
Magazine: ‘The 2mm Magazine’, issued 6 times per year
Annual fee: From £20 (Concession £16)
Exhibition: An exhibition is sometimes held in conjunction with Society AGM (Autumn)
Email: info-2@2mm.org.uk
Website: www.2mm.org.uk
3. The 3mm Society
Scale: 3mm to 1 foot (1:100) ('TT')
Gauge: Varies, including 12mm, 13.5mm and 14.2 mm
Nature: Between ‘N’ gauge and ‘OO’ gauge
Area Groups: 30 plus area groups
Magazine: Quarterly Magazine
Annual fee: From £20. £12 for student & juniors (under 21yrs)
Email: 3mmweb@gmail.com
Website: www.sites.google.com/site/3mmpublic
4. The 7mm Narrow Gauge Association
Scale: 7mm: 1 foot (1:43)
Gauge: Typically 16.5mm (but there are variations)
Nature: Modelling the narrow gauge in a larger scale
Area Groups: 10 (Exeter/ Lancs/ Lincolnshire/ Manchester/ Ox & Bucks/ South Downs/ Surrey/ Trent Valley/ West Midlands/ Yorkshire)
Magazine: ‘Narrow Lines’, 6 times per year
Annual fee: From £25
Email: members@7mmnga.org.uk
Website: www.7mmnga.org.uk
5. The 7mm Scale Society
Scale: 7mm: 1 foot (1:43 for UK / 1:48 Continental)
Gauge: Varies
Nature: Finescale modelling in all 7mm scale gauges, modelling narrow, standard & broad gauge railways
Area Groups: -
Magazine: Has online forum
Annual fee: £5
Email: 7mmscalesociety@btinternet.com
Website: www.7mmscalesociety.org
6. The Association of 16mm Narrow Gauge Modellers
Scale: 14mm to 16mm, to 1 foot
Gauge: Varies, typically 32mm or 45mm
Nature: Narrow gauge railway modelling usually in garden railway environment
Area Groups: 50 in the UK, mix of formal and informal
Magazine: ‘16mm Today’, issued quarterly
Annual fee: From £20, plus £3 one-time subscription fee
Exhibition: National Garden Railway Show (April)
Email: any.questions@16mm.org.uk
Website: www.16mm.org.uk
7. The British 1:87 Scale Society
Scale: British 1:87 Scale (HO): 3.5 mm to 1 foot
Gauge: If modelling UK standard gauge, 16.5mm
Nature: Historically popular scale worldwide for modelling railways
Area Groups: -
Magazine: ‘Satellite 1:87’, issued quarterly
Annual fee: Free
Email: Use contact box on website
Website: www.british-ho.com
8. Diesel and Electric Modellers United (DEMU)
Scale/Gauge: Any
Nature: Models UK railways in the Diesel and Electric era regardless of scale or gauge
Area Groups: 10 (Scotland/ London/ Anglia/ East Midlands/ West Midlands/ Three Counties/ North East/ South West/ White Rose)
Magazine: ‘Update’, issued quarterly
Annual fee: £22 (Concession £19)
Exhibition: Annual Showcase (June)
Email: Use contact box on website
Website: www.demu.org.uk
9. Double O Gauge Association (DOGA)
Scale: 4mm: 1 foot (1:76)
Gauge: 16.5mm
Nature: Most common scale for modelling UK railways
Area Groups: -
Magazine: ‘The Journal’, issued quarterly
Annual fee: £16 (Concession £14)
Email: askus@doubleogauge.com
Website: www.doubleogauge.com
10. The EM Gauge Society
Scale: 4mm to 1 foot
Gauge: 18.2mm (also 18.83mm gauge supported to P4 standards)
Nature: More accurate modelling in 4mm to 1 foot scale than ‘OO’ provides
Area Groups: 24
Magazine: Newsletter, issued quarterly
Annual fee: From £25
Exhibition: expo EM Spring (May)/ expo EM Summer (August)
Email: info@emgs.org
Website: www.emgs.org
11. G Scale Society
Scale: Varies, typically 1:22.5
Gauge: 45mm
Nature: Large scale trains, typically for garden use. Often used to model European trains on metre gauge track.
Area Groups: 22 informal area groups
Magazine: ‘G Scale Journal’, issued quarterly
Annual fee: £26. Junior £13
Email: Use contact box on website
Website: www.gscalesociety.com
12. Gauge One Model Railway Association (G1 MRA)
Scale: 3/8 inch (about 10mm) to 1 foot (1:32 scale)
Gauge: 45mm gauge
Nature: With live steam locomotion common, its often regarded as a combination of railway modelling and model engineering
Area Groups: Approx. 25
Magazine: Newsletter and Journal, issued quarterly
Annual fee: £30
Email: webmastr@G1MRA.com
Website: www.g1mra.com
13. Gauge 3 Society
Scale: 13.5mm to 1 foot (1:22.6)
Gauge: 2½ inch (63.5mm)
Nature: Large scale modelling, often for garden lines, often with live steam locomotives, built for scenic running, not passengers
Area Groups: -
Magazine: Newsletter, issued quarterly
Annual fee: £22
Exhibition: Annual Show and AGM (May)
Email: Use contact box on website
Website: www.gauge3.org.uk
14. Gauge O Guild
Scale: 7mm to 1 foot (1:43.5)
Gauge: Varies (most common is 1 ¼ inch or 32mm)
Nature: Historically a very common scale, producing larger models than ‘OO’ scale
Area Groups: 13 UK representatives
Magazine: ‘Gazette’, issued quarterly (also ‘Guild News’ issued quarterly)
Annual fee: £28
Exhibitions: Spring Show (March), Southern Show (May), Summer Show (June)/ Guildex (Sept)
Email: enquiries@gaugeoguild.com)
Website: www.gaugeoguild.com
15. Model Electronic Railway Group (MERG)
Scale/Gauge: None stipulated
Nature: A group interested in the application of electronics and computing to railway modelling
Area Groups: 22 in UK
Magazine: -
Annual fee: £16 plus £5 joining fee
Email: Use contact box on website
Website: www.merg.org.uk
16. N Gauge Society
Scale: Varies: For UK: 1:148 (for Continental and American railways, 1:160)
Gauge: 9mm
Nature: For all N gauge modellers, UK and internationally. Similar to 2FS
Area Groups: Approx. 38
Magazine: ‘N Gauge Journal’ and ‘Newsletter’ issued six times a year
Annual fee: £18 plus £6 joining fee
Exhibition: For 2023, N Gauge Society York (May). Repetition uncertain
Email: info@ngaugesociety.com
Website: www.ngaugesociety.org
17. Narrow Gauge Railway Modelling Online
Scale/Gauge: Modellers of narrow gauge railway prototypes in any scale
Nature: Free online resource for narrow gauge modellers
Area Groups: None. Has multiple on-line forums
Magazine: -
Annual fee: Free
Email: Register online, then use contact facilities
Website: www.ngrm-online.com
18. S Scale Model Railway Society
Scale/Gauge: 3/16 inch to 1 foot (1:64 scale)
Gauge: 0.884 inch (22.42mm)
Nature: Larger than ’00’ but smaller than ‘0’, so easier than ‘00’ to incorporate detail, but largely a scratch builders scale in the UK.
Area Groups: -
Magazine: ‘Gazette’, issued six times a year
Annual fee: £25
Email: secretary@s-scale.org.uk
Website: www.s-scale.org.uk
19. ScaleSeven Group
Scale: 7mm to 1 foot (1:43.5)
Gauge: 33mm
Nature: More accurate modelling in 7mm to 1 foot scale than ‘O’ provides
Area Groups: 11 (East Anglia, Netherlands, North East, Scale7 Somerset, Severnside, South East, South Hams, South West Scotland, Warley MRC, West Country, West Sussex)
Magazine: Newsletter issued quarterly
Annual fee: £25
Exhibitions: -
Email: info@scaleseven.org.uk
Website: www.scaleseven.org.uk
20. Scalefour Society
Scale/Gauge: 4mm: 1 foot (1:76.2)
Gauge: 18.83mm
Nature: Modelling to P4 standards to produce more accurate modelling in 4mm to 1 foot scale than ‘OO’ provides
Area Groups: Approx 40 mix of formal and informal groups
Magazine: ‘Scalefour News’, issued five times a year
Annual fee: £24
Exhibition: Scalefour Crewe (June), Scalefour Southwest ‘Railwells’ (Aug), Scaleforum (Sept)
Email: enquiries@scalefour.org
Website: www.scalefour.org