Painting dow blue foam base


BIG DOG

Member
or not,....
But when you lay down a blue dow foam as a base or make mountains out of it what do you get rid of the blue with? (ie: paint, lots of grass, a grass mat, etc) also if any one has a pic or 2 they would like o share that would be awesome as well

THANKS!!!!
 
I paint it almost immediately with the cheapest el cheapo left-over remnant brown paint from the paint store. Don't like pink or blue on the layout, no-siree-bob.
 
We used a flat tan color for our base coat....like Bob said above,"Make sure you use water based paint" Its easy clean up of brushes, spills, fast drying, and won't make others in the house mad of the smell.
 
Ok this shows my ignorance but what do you do to sculpt the rock looking texture and rock wall faces that I see some people use on their mountains and valleys?
 
Ok this shows my ignorance but what do you do to sculpt the rock looking texture and rock wall faces that I see some people use on their mountains and valleys?

There are many different techniques, but some of the most common are using plaster/hydrocal castings, carving plaster/hydrocal, shaping and painting the foam, or buying pre-made flexible foam rock faces. There are pros and cons to each, and most modelers end up using a combination of several methods to achieve a realistic mix or model different types of rocks for different areas on the layout.
 
There are many different techniques, but some of the most common are using plaster/hydrocal castings, carving plaster/hydrocal, shaping and painting the foam, or buying pre-made flexible foam rock faces. There are pros and cons to each, and most modelers end up using a combination of several methods to achieve a realistic mix or model different types of rocks for different areas on the layout.

One con he is speaking of with molds are repetitivness...if you use the same one, people will see a repeat over and over....you have to have several and arrange them apart turning some upside down and such to make them look different.(then fill around them with foliage)..Large walls need to be made free handed....carved, or covered with wrinkled paper for texture, there are many ways it can be done...even using real rocks like thin slate that resemble the shape you want...just remember no 2 rocks are the same so don't be frustrated if they don't look like your favorite picture. Add the stain and watch the magic happen when you add the watered down black to bring out the accents.
Another easy way for beginners is to try ceiling tile...cut into like 4-6 inch wide strips and break in half, this gives you a flat backside to cement to a wall or such (liquid nails works great for this) Stack with broken sides out and cement together...They can be stacked on an angle for great realistic appearance...Then mix water and alcohol or drops of soap and spray, this helps the stain soak in...then stain and accent with color if you want, add some foliage..Some tiles have holes (acoustic tile) and when you break them they resemble drilling and blasting holes..here is a shot of our Horseshoe curve where I used tile on left side and rock forms and foliage to fill in around on right.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
and another one..

NickB
Aother very easy way to model rocks is to use tin foil: First crease it, some parts allot some parts less...Than "pull" it carefuly till you've got a shape that can be used for the place on your layout. Make a mould of it before you add the plaster, so it can't flew away...In this way you can make 1000's of moulds on wich none is the same but the texture is...
You can "Glue them with plaster too.
For vaste/big/high rocks you have to make several moulds and add them together like a puzlle( jig-saw?), fill the holes also with plaster and put/push carefuly as fast as you can some creased tinfoil on it after 1/2 hour you can remove the foil and voila: a big rock in one piece...
This is half the work: the coloring is the second half. That makes the rocks "come to life"" make them look real .
As you can see: "many roads goes to Rome" ;)
good luck

Jos
 
Another great way that a guy on here posted sometime ago was to use like foiled wrapping paper/foil/freezer paper (crumpled up and unfolded) (freezer paper ,use smooth side)and attaching to the layout by tape, staples, weights, ect. Then injecting the can of "low expanding" insulation foam. Let it set up and harden. Then remove and paint/stain. This is light weight and a really good idea!...Can't remember who posted it in the past but he deserves the credit for this idea!
 
that's another one too

That's a good and easy one too Bob!:)

Jos

BTW hope we don't make it too difficult for Nick..He has to choose wich one...:p
 
Well this is sounding fun, I'm sure it will take me a while to do all this stuff. But can't wait to learn to do it :)
 
Well this is sounding fun, I'm sure it will take me a while to do all this stuff. But can't wait to learn to do it :)

Try a small sample project with each method the guys described above, then you'll know which one works best for you...

Enjoy!
 
Try a small sample project with each method the guys described above, then you'll know which one works best for you...

Enjoy!

Yep, that's an excellent suggestion... Build a small section, say a couple feet long, and play around with it. The fact it's not part of the layout will allow you to not worry about messing up. Try some different techniques, see what works for you.
 



Back
Top