Thanks for the info guys - that's just what I was looking for.
Now I just need to locate some sources for some generic 'non-military' figures for dioramas. Ideally I would need them to be on the same scale as an average vehicle model (which seem to be mostly 1:24), which means I'll most likely be doing some scratchbuilding on a basic figure frame. I haven't seen a lot of choices out there for non-military figures, but I did see at least one place that had some 75mm mannequin models (which appears to be the correct comparable scale to the vehicle), though only in generic Male and Female (one look, not much variety). One diorama idea involves a family unit, which would require smaller figures to represent the kids. I suppose if I could find some at a smaller scale than 1:24, that might do the trick, though they would require some major adjustments.
Anyway - thanks for the replies. I look forward to the great ideas found in these forums (assuming I ever get anything off the ground...)