It’s been said that super-detailing is a kind of slight-of-hand. The fine details shown at the front of the layout draw the eye, and distract the viewer from the (likely) fact that the modeling in more distant parts of the layout is not finished to the same level of accuracy. Many fine modelers, including John Allen, and Malcom Furlow, knew that if a building wasn’t visible from the rear, that it was a waste of time to detail or even paint the back side.

I internalized this idea one evening when I found myself installing sixty tiny nut-and-washer castings on the bottom of a turntable bridge, which was about to be installed in a pit, where the underside would never be seen again.

Unfortunately I have chosen to build a layout on which none of the scenery ends up more than 8” from the viewers eye. A few nice details suggest more just past the edge of the layout.

I like to think that my best modeling is just beyond what can be seen.

Kevin Hunter