Amazing Tiny Figures for HO scale Train Scenes

They come in all types, everything you can possibly think of. Workers, people doing stuff, races, body types, and so on. You can create your own "Sims."

There is military, period clothed people, people with no clothes, sports, and regular people. There is people in canoes, kids playing, firemen, guys playing basket ball, people on the beach, and even people getting arested.

Some of the expensive ones come painted, but you can also get some unpainted to do yourself. I personally prefer Prieser for their great detail and choice. Woodland Scenics people come well painted.

The best thing to do if you want to see what is available, is get on Walthers mailing list. They will send you their sale booklets once a month or so. It will blow your mind to see what is made in miniature. Such a pumkins, mushrooms, people having a barbeque, graveyard, pallets of supplies and everything. Keep an eye out on eBay for one of their older, full catalogs, they don't change their inventory too much and you can catch up on new stuff through their site. Each of their big catalogs has a section of photos from real set ups, they are worth seeing.

One of my favorite models I have kept is this lady hanging up clothes. The clothes are plastic and they are slightly glued on to sewing thread. It looks real.

I've seen nearly every domestic animal I could think of plus some wildlife in HO. Just when I thought no one made Alpacas I found one right here in my ho animal drawer. I have not seen ostrich yet.

They even get down to breeds and you can tell too! Draft horses to ponies. Holsteins to Spanish bulls. Dobermans to corgis. Domestic shorthairs to Persians. Even chickens and pigeons. I have several types of goats and sheep.

Be sure to keep an eye at yard sales for lots of boxes of stuff. There is usually some animals and people in there. EBay is a great place to find older items not made anymore or figures at a cheaper price. Just always make sure the shipping is fair.

It always amazes me how detailed the HO scale makers get with the cars. Some even made of metal.
A regular HO car is around 1 ½" - 2" depending on the type. Smaller than your usual Hotwheels.

You can get cop cars with working lights and regular cars with working head lights.

There is cars from every era, from horseless carriages to a bran new Chrysler 300.

Again Walther's is the best source. Their monthly booklet has good deals on several cars. It's well worth getting a car that looks like your own or the one you want to get.

Be sure to check Walmart once in a while for 1:87 scale cars. They come in small square boxes in the Hotwheels area, usually on the shelf below. I just picked up a Ford Pinto for $2. Also a GTX1 for $2.49, plus they have tractors for $3.99. That's a super deal compared to the hobby shops, eBay or Walthers. They go thru quite a few and there is always new models so check often

Also the gum machines with the small boxes cars. Those cars are very close to HO and the trucks are close to N scale.

Matchbox trucks are usually very close or right at HO/1:87 scale.

Check out the photo below! They even got the heating wires in the back window. That's my HO Paris Hilton, she is 1" tall.

The trucks and tractors available are also quite nice. You can get just a worker truck or a fancy Kenworth with lots of chrome. There are farm tractors, cranes, buses, working forklifts and even the big D11R. In the pic of the Mack, you can see that the detail is so extreme that they made a tiny Mack dog hood ornament. Wow!

Buildings and houses are made for every need. You decide what you want. Some people will actually build a replica of their own town and match the train track curves exactly. Or you can build your own dream world.

Depending on your skill, you can go with real wood and paper buildings or plastic kits. Some plastic kits such as Fuller or Volmer have their plastics already molded in colors so you don't have to do any painting.

You can also get buildings in period themes such as the 70's or 40's. Also some in German, American or other cultures. The craziest is the trailer park set complete with cops and drunks.

Many of the big buildings you see will be for Railroad type businesses but there are others , such as theatres cafes, stores, really anything.

I'll show you weathering in another lens. Weathering is a way of aging the building to look more realistic.

Yard sales and EBay are great places to find buildings and houses already built. Usually they are sold in lots, or nice ones are sold one at a time.

It's amazing that someone makes all these tiny things.

Available for the tiny world is tools, such a shovels and brooms. Furniture, boxes and crates. Mail boxes, fire hydrants, trash cans, bicycles, wheel barrels, tents, boats, and park swings. Bottles, phone booths, fence ladders, carts and I could go on forever.

There again watch for lots.

Amazing! This is a kit tree of tables and chairs in the old lacy iron style. A chair woud be 1/2" tall.

You can find signs for everything from Cattle crossing to a stop sign.

Some companies make great rub-off decals of advertisement such a s Coke-Cola or hotel names. Movie posters and graffiti.

Railway signal lights and street light are also available in electric. Working stop lights that shift from red to yellow to green are possible and not to hard to set up.

Small lights are available for the inside of the buildings.
I really advise getting electric stuff bran new unless you know your wiring, incase old wire needs to be replaced.