Atlas Trains

By: James Sibling Click author's name for more of his/her articles

Much like other companies in the hobby train industry the story of Atlas model trains is a story of vision, entrepreneurship, and tough work, combined with a passion for a hobby that resulted in a company that grew bigger than what anyone would have imagined at the beginning.

The origin of Atlas Model Trains goes back to the first decades of the 20th century, when Stephan Schaffan Sr. founded what would become Atlas Trains. Back then, it was a tool company not a model train company and Stephan Schaffan Sr. was so understaffed that he had his son Stephan Schaffan Jr. come and help him with the business.

Stephan Schaffan Jr. wasn't pleased with the money that he earned at his dad's enterprise (if he earned anything at all). He was a young and inventive man who liked machinery. He would go after work and built replica airplanes at his house. There was a local airplane model shop where he lived, and he would visit it frequently. He used to pester the owner by asking for a side job that he could do to earn some extra money, to which the owner would always refuse.

However, one day, the owner of the store grew so tired of Stephan Jr.'s requests that he gave him some old railroads and model trains that he didn't want to use anymore, in the hopes that Stephan would go away and leave him alone.

Little did he know that these old railroad tracks and models that he discarded so easily would ultimately become what today is known as Atlas Trains.

Stephan Jr. went back home and worked on those trains. Being an inventive and intelligent young man, he designed a switch set, which would become the staple of Atlas Trains, and that permitted the user to start and stop the trains by controlling the voltage on the tracks.

Later on, Stephan Jr. invented more products which made the business grow even more, while his father's business started to appear small in comparison. Somewhere along the line, the original name was dropped and the company took the name of Atlas Model Railroad, although most people know it by the name Atlas Model Trains.

Now with Atlas Model Trains officially existing, Stephan invented quite a few devices that saved work for the folks who enjoyed the model train pastime. For instance, he invented pre-assembles tracks, that saved his clients the problem of assembling it themselves. In general his inventions made track assembling much easier.

Today, Atlas Model Trains is one of the biggest names in the industry. Although Stephen Jr. is no longer alive, Atlas Model Trains and his inheritance made model trains a much more accessible hobby for train lovers.

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About The Author: James Sibling is a hobby trains expert. For more great tips on Atlas Trains and other model trains visit hobbymodeltrainsnews.com.