I’m James Walters. I trained as a building surveyor, but building things and making models have been with me all my life, especially engineering, product design and boat building. I’ve taught Design & Technology since 1996, and along the way I’ve taken up model engineering and steel fabrication too.
Railway engineering has always fascinated me, and I’ve been fortunate to drive steam locomotives on a heritage line in the past. I live near Bexhill West, which I consider one of the finest examples of railway architecture in the UK, so it was the obvious subject when I set out to build a model. The Bexhill West YouTube channel began during the Covid lockdown as a way to pass the time and learn a new skill, and it’s grown from there.
When viewers started taking an interest in my design work, Make It Miniature, my online store, followed as a side project. This site brings together the modelling tools I’ve built along the way.
I’m a member of the Scalefour Society, and my layout Navigation Sidings was Runner Up in the novice category of the Society’s Jubilee Layout Challenge 2026. I also volunteer as a Civilian Instructor with the Air Training Corps, where the Round the Pole Designer helps cadets learn about flight.
A little-known fact: I have a soft spot for industrial narrow gauge, and I find the cane trains of Queensland, Australia, especially fascinating.