Large Scale

Real Ride-On Train Experience!

This experience is most accurately described as an attraction! Our large scale, fully functional outdoor train runs the entire length of the perimeter of the GADSDEN PACIFIC TOY TRAIN OPERATING MUSEUM. It’s a wonderful experience for people of every age.

The gauge (width between the rails) is 7-1/2″. The scale of the locomotives and cars pictured here is 1-1/2″ = 1′-0″ which is 1/8 scale.

This project is a labor of love, and we’re continually adding more features.  Over the years many of our volunteers have helped to build this railroad. If you’d like to pitch in, please let us know!

A Little History

Previously, the only way to enjoy this hobby of Large Scale Railroading in a public setting is to travel to Maricopa County or beyond. This is considerably more difficult and expensive than it may sound. Imagine trying to load these large trains into the trunk of your car to drive to Phoenix.

With actual railroads having 4′-8 1/2″ between the rails, if we were true to scale, the gauge of our layout should be 7-1/16″ instead of 7-1/2″. But years ago, someone on the West Coast decided to build a layout with 7-1/2″ between the rails. This happened while hobbyists on the East Coast were building layouts with 7-1/4″ gauge. Obviously both are wrong and they are not interchangeable. It’s way too late for the hobby to adjust as 100’s if not 1,000’s of miles of track has been laid and countless engines and cars have been manufactured to both gauges. At any rate, we are building 7-1/2″ gauge because that’s what all of the other tracks are this side of the Mississippi.