An accidental addition to the O-Gauge Zen Garden

This jeep is three inches long. Does that make it closer to
O-scale, or HO-scale? I found out after I received it.

There's a problem with purchasing vintage items through eBay rather than antique shows or flea markets. You can't thoroughly examine the item. And while detailed photos and accurate dimensions in the listings help, surprises can still happen.

Recently I purchased a Japanese tinplate friction toy Jeep for my Straco Express display layout. The length was listed as 3 inches, which is the average length of the vehicles on the layout. The Japanese toy cars from the 1950's and 1960's with that length are approximately HO-scale, which fits with the HO-gauge track on the display.

I had forgotten about proportion, though. Even in real life, Jeeps have much shorter wheel bases than sedans, and the same is true in the toy world. This vehicle was way to large for my HO-scale Straco layout.

But it just happened to be about the right size for my O-gauge layout. And so there it went. The brush fire Jeep is parked beside the Plasticville factory, ready to respond to an industrial fire at a moment's notice.

No, it's not a realistic vehicle, but I think the jeep has a certain toy-like appeal.

And, as it turns out, this is a toy with a secret, which I'll reveal in a future post.