H0 Models from Germany

Germany is not only Europe's largest railway nation but also the homeland of H0 model railroading. Märklin defined the 1:87 scale as "00" (later H0) in 1935, and ever since, Germany has been both the largest collector community and the densest manufacturer landscape in the world. From the Reichsbahn legacy of the 1920s to Vectron, Frankfurt-Cologne high-speed and private freight operators — the spectrum is vast.

German railway operators

• DR – Deutsche Reichsbahn — Reichsbahn era from 1920, continued in the GDR until 1993; classic steam and diesel locomotives.
• DB – Deutsche Bundesbahn — the Federal Railway of West Germany 1949–1993; Era III to IV with ocean-blue/ivory and "latz" liveries.
• DB AG — Deutsche Bahn AG since 1994; traffic-red livery, ICE, regional rail.
• DB Cargo — DB's freight subsidiary, active across Europe.
• Captrain — private freight operator with Vectron and Traxx fleet.
• Flixtrain — private long-distance operator, green livery, Class 193 and coaches.
• MRCE — Mitsui Rail Capital Europe, locomotive lessor with characteristic silver liveries.
• Railpool — another major lessor of electric locomotives.

Regional transit operators

• BVG – Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe — Berlin tram and metro in H0.
• S-Bahn Berlin — the red-and-yellow Berlin commuter trains.
• Hamburger Hochbahn — Hamburg metro and bus.

German model manufacturers

• Märklin — Göppingen, founded 1859; inventor of H0 and AC market leader.
• Trix — Märklin sister brand, specialist for DC H0.
• Brawa — Remshalden, highly detailed coaches and locomotives.
• Piko — Sonneberg, originally a GDR manufacturer, today full-range producer.
• Fleischmann — traditional brand for DC H0, now part of the Modelleisenbahn group.
• ESU — Ulm, market leader for sound decoders and LokSound models.
• Faller — Gütenbach, building kits and the Car System.
• Kibri — building and industrial kits.
• Vollmer — building kits, especially residential and commercial architecture.
• Auhagen — Marienberg, Saxon tradition for kits.
• Preiser — Rothenburg, the standard manufacturer for H0 figures.
• NOCH — layout building, landscaping and grass-mat systems.
• Viessmann — Hatzfeld, specialist for working models (lighting, motion, signals).

Classic German locomotive classes

• Steam: Class 01, Class 03, Class 41, Class 44, Class 50, Class 52 — express and freight steam of the Reichsbahn and Bundesbahn era.
• Diesel: Class 216, Class 218 — the Bundesbahn V 160 family; Class 232 "Ludmilla" — the former DR Soviet-built diesel.
• Electric: Class 103 — the TEE express electric; Class 110, Class 111, Class 140, Class 141, Class 151, Class 152 — universal and freight electrics; Class 185, Class 189, Class 193 Vectron — the modern family.

High-speed & multiple units

• ICE — Inter City Express; ICE 1, ICE 2, ICE 3 (Class 403/406), ICE T (Class 411/415).
• FLIRT — Stadler EMU for regional and commuter service.
• Talent — Bombardier EMU, often used in regional traffic.
• Desiro — Siemens EMU for local routes.
• Rheingold — the legendary TEE train of the Bundesbahn era.

Eras

German H0 models cover all Eras I to VI — from Länderbahn locomotives of Era I through the golden DR/DB period of Eras III and IV to modern DB AG and private operator models of Era VI.