Imho, definitely preiser. And lgb, for railroad workers.
Lgb figures are a bit toylike, but serviceable. Still Very affordable.
While like everything, theyve gotten pricey, imho, they are great in terms of detail and paint quality.
I rarely find ‘bargains’ new or used. (Fwiw, I believe the newest pola g figures are also preiser. I own several sets. They are top quality. The painting, while excellent, is not quite the same as the older, sometimes subtlety shaded preiser offerings.)
I used to try to save by buying unpainted ones. After the paint, brushes, and time, i feel that the’good ones’ are a bargain.
Otoh, i have bought a few of the cheap Chinese ones, strictly for coach population. They need to be painted, and the details are abysmal. Really. But, they are a viable option. Consider 6 preiser or pola passengers will be about $55, while the Chinese ones will be about $6. Imho, it really depends on your wherewithal and, how closely your interiors will be inspected. One plus of the Chinese versions is that they are a bit smaller than preiser, possibly 1/24. Thus, the can fit into those models with smaller seats.
Prehm too, although even more expensive.
I am absolutely smitten , however, with the old lubosch wimmer, lgb wimmer metal figues (zinnfiguren).
While the ‘new ones’ (NOS) are unpainted, and some older previously owned ones are often painted, i love the detailed molding, and the whimsical characatures. I wash, file, prime and paint these, when i can find them. They come with a metal rectangular base, to which they can be glued. As my layout is outdoors, i love the wind and critter resistance.
there are many others. Just buy what you fancy.
I have few woodland scenics (a bit too comic book), American diorama, muella (great but very difficult to find now), just plain folk (mediocre painting and detail), railroad avenue (good), even some wallace and grommit and tin-tin figures. They're all fun. The American diorama ones are superb quality and detail and paint, but sometime car specific quirky poses…some are great. Elastolin….perfectly serviceable, but, imho, toy like details.
I bought a couple of different 3d printed figures. The quality of detail, especially faces and hands, can vary greatly from that shown in the listing, in my experience.
Hope this helps.
