Watch Episodes of The Hills Line with James McNab
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I've been fortunate over the life of The Hills Line to have shared the railroad in a variety of ways. Besides this website, there are Instagram, Flickr, and YouTube sites dedicated to the layout. And, of course, I've been privileged to serve as a Contributing Editor for Firecrown's Trains.com, producing and hosting The Hills Line … Continue reading Media Management
One of my aesthetic goals for The Hills Line was to create a seamless fascia. While that serves absolutely no purpose towards the design or operational intent of the layout, it does help create a more pleasing appearance to others, regardless of their familiarity with the prototype. I originally used joint compound to fill the … Continue reading Bondo
In the back of my mind, I knew that when I offered a set of car-loading displays to my friend and fellow Iowa Interstate modeler Joe Atkinson for use on his 4th Sub layout, I was opening a can of worms. True to form, Joe (and I) have been besieged with "where did you get … Continue reading Car Loading Circuit
I've probably built more power poles for The Hills Line than all of my other past layouts combined. It makes sense for a few reasons. The prototype works in a lot more industrial area than previous ones. Plus due to its history as an electric interurban it would make sense that electrical lines would follow … Continue reading High Voltage
The Hills Line 