Which railroad scale to use for basing?

[BloodFather of Kharnath]

Want to order some Woodland Scenics scenery for a planned diorama. Can anyone with experience in model railroading tell me which scale converts for 28-32mm minis? I think I want the HO scale, which I believe is 1/77th or something. Every single model rail road business in my area closed in the last two years, and so I haven't been able to get "eyes on."

 

[BloodFather of Kharnath]

I sort of found the answer I need, though there is a lot of debate. Looks like S or O scale is the right answer. Sounds like it depends on whether it's a building or truck or what.

My my diorama will include Wyrd miniatures's gremlins-sort of like Goblins- surrounding one of the new Female ronin. I am either going with a turn of the 20th century style junkyard, or a general rural scene in the bayou. The goblins will be surrounding the Ronin, appearing to be preparing to give her the "what-for," as she casually leans on her sheathed samurai sword. I WAS going to go with this:

http://woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/show/Item/TS151/page/1

however, this is HO scale and would probably appear too small. Does anyone have any ideas? Thank you.

 

[Dragonsreach]

Nearest scale for 28mm works out at 1/56th which isn't catered for in railway models easily.
Plus as I've found out European scales for railway size S and USA size S are different, it's a PITA as railway gear In the right scale would be very helpful.

 

[BloodFather of Kharnath]

Indeed, and then you have "heroic scale" and "historical scale," to further confuse things. I'd be willing to settle for an approximation, but this is impossible when ordering off of the internet. That's why I am trying to find others that have maybe purchased from a major company, like Woodland Scenics, to see what worked for them. I think I can get the bits I need locally, like barrels and junk piles, etc, but I'd like some sort of fence and a trailer or shanty to tie it all in.

 

[Tercha]

Try these: http://www.sceneryunlimited.net/su-main.php

 

[Bloodhowl]

O gauge in the US is 1/48. S Gauge in the US is 1/64th. A human is approximately 1-1/16 inches tall (27 mm) in 1:64 scale. Opinion on the actual scale of 28mm range from 1:48 to 1:64. Just using my Mk1 calibrated Eyeball, on a GW SM and Ork, I would go for 1/48 or O gauge. YMMV.

Have a look through these:

http://www.micromark.com/o-scale-structure-kits-and-accessories.html

http://modeltechstudios.com/oscalestructurekits.aspx

http://www.modelrailscenes.com/kits-all.htm

http://www.hobbylinc.com/o_scale_model_railroad_building_accessories

 

[Wigdog]

One thing to consider - since your using goblins which are smaller in stature - you might consider using slightly larger plants buildings etc to show that they are smaller. Easy way to do this is to take a normal size character say a knight and make the scale work for him so that when you put the goblins in, the scale looks a little large for them. All a matter of perspective. If you want a smaller vignette, I would suggest some of the larger Wyrd or Secret Weapons type resin bases and then you could add some additional groundowork.

 

[BloodFather of Kharnath]

O gauge in the US is 1/48. S Gauge in the US is 1/64th. A human is approximately 1-1/16 inches tall (27 mm) in 1:64 scale. Opinion on the actual scale of 28mm range from 1:48 to 1:64. Just using my Mk1 calibrated Eyeball, on a GW SM and Ork, I would go for 1/48 or O gauge. YMMV.

Have a look through these:

http://www.micromark.com/o-scale-structure-kits-and-accessories.html

http://modeltechstudios.com/oscalestructurekits.aspx

http://www.modelrailscenes.com/kits-all.htm

http://www.hobbylinc.com/o_scale_model_railroad_building_accessories

Thank you, these are all good sites with a lot of options. One thing I've noticed about the railroad world is they have A TON of manufacturers. In regards to O scale, I think this may be a little too big. For instance, I was looking at a trailer and it was 11 inches long. This doesn't seem to scale. Keep in mind I am using Wyrd minis, and I believe the May be 25mm, or at least my paint brush thinks so. Tiny things, really. But thanks for the awesome references.

 

[BloodFather of Kharnath]

One thing to consider - since your using goblins which are smaller in stature - you might consider using slightly larger plants buildings etc to show that they are smaller. Easy way to do this is to take a normal size character say a knight and make the scale work for him so that when you put the goblins in, the scale looks a little large for them. All a matter of perspective. If you want a smaller vignette, I would suggest some of the larger Wyrd or Secret Weapons type resin bases and then you could add some additional groundowork.

Great point. I really need the scale to most closely match that of my female samurai. Any bits that appear oversized next to the goblins will have a good effect. I am starting to think S scale will satisfy this, though I'd really like to get my eyes on some first. And like DR says, depends on which side of the pond they are from. Also, it's important to me that whatever I use comes unpainted. A lot of RR stuff does not.

I have looked a lot at both Wyrd and secret weapons. Wyrd doesn't produce anything larger than 50mm that I saw. If I was willing to change my idea completely-which I have been known to do if the minis give me problems when painting-this may suffice. SW though make some good 120mm bases, and some either better scrap bits. They make tire stacks, junk piles, junk bases, barrels, etc. but that all just seems too costly in the end. What I REALLY need, is a kit like the one I provided a link to above, that comes unpainted and supplied with the entire scene. But alas, in a perfect world...