Watch Episodes of The Hills Line with James McNab
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“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” -Buckminster Fuller- Every so often a technique comes along that so fundamentally changes my processes to such a degree that I end up exclaiming... Where was that all my life?!? I'm not the … Continue reading Evolving
There seems to be three schools of thought of how to handle buildings that extend beyond the benchwork: Compress them to fit Eliminate them all together Cut them off at the world's edge Option #1 is never a good idea. In practice it often crosses the line from selective compression towards cartoonish replication... a practice … Continue reading Fascia Extensions
Out of the 19 planned structures on The Hills Line, a grand total of two are served by the railroad. That ratio is all together appropriate for the modern era, but means a majority of the industries on the layout are pure filler. The goal then becomes how to replicate these offline buildings so that … Continue reading Iowa Business Supply
The Hills Line, both prototype and model, is primarily a daylight affair. While I have no doubt that there were times that crews either started their day at the crack of dawn or ended it just as the last rays were dipping below the horizon, as far as I'm concerned it's always sunny and warm … Continue reading A Light Approach
The Hills Line 