Arnold

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Arnold Co. history

Arnold Co. Nuremberg, Germany.
Stationary steam accessories and nautical toys. Introduced "Rapido" gauge "N" model railroads in the 1960s.

Model ships

Founded in 1906 by Karl Arnold in Nürnberg, K. Arnold & Co. began its life producing tin toys and related items. They produced an extensive line of model ships, doll house items and other toys. In 1935, K. Arnold & Co. hired Max Ernst as their managing director. Ernst, not to be confused with the German realist artist of the same name, was a significant factor in the future of Arnold.
Postwar production

Nürnberg was number one on the hit parade for allied bombers during World War II, and, at the end of the war, all of the Arnold facilities were in ruins. Postwar production continued at a facility in Upper Pfalz, with the company beginning its slow recovery with the manufacture of window hardware. The postwar operation of the company was under the direction of Ernst Arnold, son of Karl, and Max Ernst. The factory buildings in Nürnberg were rebuilt and the Arnold Company continued to grow.

In the postwar period, smaller model train sizes became the order of the day. In earlier times, model trains had been largely the plaything of the well to do who had enough money to live in houses large enough to support the display of the larger scales of model trains. The growth toward smaller scales had begun in the early 1900s, with O scale being the first 'small' scale. In the 1930s, HO / OO scale became the 'small' scale. In the late 1940s and 1950s, TT scale was the 'small' scale, allowing for realistic model railroad displays being situated in relatively small areas. Three companies led the TT revolution, H.P. Products of Indiana, USA, Triang of Great Britain and Rokal of West Germany.

But TT-Scale was not to be the smallest scale in model railroading. Led initially by Lone Star Toys of Great Britain and Trix of Nürnberg, there was a movement toward an even smaller scale. Both companies experimented earlier with  floor toys, unpowered model trains designed to be moved about by child power. Lone Star dropped by the wayside after a period of time, but Trix continued experimentation and development of what would be their electric powered Minitrix product line. Arnold was to come up with a workable solution, also. The introduction of Arnold rapido was from scratch because nothing like this had been done before. Arnold was literally establishing what would become N scale. This is not to say that it was the sole developer of N, but Arnold Rapido was there first.