As mentioned before by others, I believe it originated because the British O Gauge is 1:43.5. Still doesn't explain the precise 1:87.1 that HO is, but the 0.1 is always rounded down to 0 to be 1:87, or that the British HO is 1:76. But then, to use another example, N Scale in the US is 1:160; 1:150 in Japan, and 1:148 in the UK. The wonderful world of model railroading!!!
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