Couple of ideas: You can add acrylic paint to the water before you mix the PoP (sculptamold, whatever) and avoid the "surgical white". The color will lighten as soon as you mix it to the medium, so don't be afraid to make the water really dark, and the mix will lighten even more as it dries. To protect the seams, try putting wax paper between the two pieces before adding the PoP, hold the paper out as you work the PoP into both sides.
i really like the idea of the wax paper. I was going to use it against my backdrop when that time comes, but never considered for the mountain. Great suggestion!
Another method is to seal the plaster on the removeable seam with ModPodge. Since all my layouts are modules that get transported around, I have started to use a paper mache method with tissue paper and ModPodge to keep the weight down. For rock faces, I use Epoxie Sculpt clay. In all cases, I add dye to the mix upfront to avoid chips or cracks that are stark white. @@nscaler454
I just found your channel and I'm glad I did. I'm starting my own small N scale layout, with CN locos, a few mountains, western Canada vibe, and I'm designing it with AnyRail. Hell, I even have the same weights and eat the same margarine as you. I'm looking forward to perusing your channel and saving myself a lot of trial and error time with your great content. So far, so good. You have a new subscriber.
Like 👍 your vid on how you built this mountain and access panel. Maybe a tip for a next project; before you start your plaster cover, ceram wrap the edges of the access part and the parts they sit in. That will create a smooth and invisible edge, which allows for the hatch to be easily taken out. Also, it will provide transitions that will look very natural and unlike the straight edges we come up with, while creating such a hatch. In addition, the rock face you produced in the pink foam, before you started the plaster, also looked very good. When creating such a hatch, that foam carving may be the way to go, for ease of access. Still, the end result looks great. Definitely will consider such a method on my own layout. Which will consist of a lot of access hatches. In the past I made hills with a combination of scraps of styrofoam, xps, or what you call the pink foam and spray foam to either glue the pieces, or to fill cavities. This while using the ceram wrap method. It produces easy shapes, perfect fit and lightweight scenic parts. Must add there that a mud layer, especially over the styrofoam scraps, increases both the texture and the level of realism in the produced rock. In the xps, or pink foam, the amount of realism which can be achieved, may very well be even beyond that of the plaster. Although there too, the smoothing and filling of too regular gaps and crevasses with plaster, or an artificial smoothing compound very well adds to the realism of the end result. Thanks 🙏 for sharing!
All of my scenery will be movable because I know I'll be moving in about 2 years. I use bamboo skewers to hold it all in place and then white glue. You can get them in most grocery stores. They range from about 6" to 18"s. The thicker / longer ones may require a tack hammer to push through. For Foam shaping I mostly use long bladed box cutters and a small rasp. The crumbles I have tried to use as piles of boulders and loads. For painting I suggest doing up a test piece of foarm, add a layer of plaster and then practice getting the colors you want. Hope this helps. Steve
I don't know how to hide the seam properly, so instead, I use it! I'd make the area rough with other crevices and "cracks" near, that way the seem is part of the scenery Great video btw!
Just discovered your channel through the N-Scale Forum. Thanks for the great videos. I'm at this phase with my layout, and I enjoyed seeing someone else go first! This is when the layout really begins to take shape and yours looks great. I'll be using Sculptamold (which I found pretty hard to find in Canada) along with plaster rocks cast in similar Woodland Scenic moulds.
I’m doing something similar in several tunnel areas on my layout. I’m not worrying too much about hiding the seam at that stage of design. I will use bushes, static grass and such to overlay my seems to hide the removable sections. Just feels like a waste of time and effort to do it at the plastering step. Just my thoughts. Good luck! Oh and sculptamould is far easier to work with! 👍
Use the strips along both sides of your seam, shouldn't chip, and should also give you the fine line you were looking for. You could build up the plaster from the edge of the strips to hide the seam.
Couple of ideas:
You can add acrylic paint to the water before you mix the PoP (sculptamold, whatever) and avoid the "surgical white". The color will lighten as soon as you mix it to the medium, so don't be afraid to make the water really dark, and the mix will lighten even more as it dries.
To protect the seams, try putting wax paper between the two pieces before adding the PoP, hold the paper out as you work the PoP into both sides.
i really like the idea of the wax paper. I was going to use it against my backdrop when that time comes, but never considered for the mountain. Great suggestion!
Another method is to seal the plaster on the removeable seam with ModPodge. Since all my layouts are modules that get transported around, I have started to use a paper mache method with tissue paper and ModPodge to keep the weight down. For rock faces, I use Epoxie Sculpt clay. In all cases, I add dye to the mix upfront to avoid chips or cracks that are stark white. @@nscaler454
Great video, gave me some suggestions for mine!
Good video man glad to see you back Hope all is well
Thanks!
I just found your channel and I'm glad I did. I'm starting my own small N scale layout, with CN locos, a few mountains, western Canada vibe, and I'm designing it with AnyRail. Hell, I even have the same weights and eat the same margarine as you. I'm looking forward to perusing your channel and saving myself a lot of trial and error time with your great content. So far, so good. You have a new subscriber.
Looks great. I know how tricky this can be. Nice work 😊
Thank you! 😊
Like 👍 your vid on how you built this mountain and access panel.
Maybe a tip for a next project; before you start your plaster cover, ceram wrap the edges of the access part and the parts they sit in. That will create a smooth and invisible edge, which allows for the hatch to be easily taken out. Also, it will provide transitions that will look very natural and unlike the straight edges we come up with, while creating such a hatch.
In addition, the rock face you produced in the pink foam, before you started the plaster, also looked very good. When creating such a hatch, that foam carving may be the way to go, for ease of access.
Still, the end result looks great. Definitely will consider such a method on my own layout. Which will consist of a lot of access hatches. In the past I made hills with a combination of scraps of styrofoam, xps, or what you call the pink foam and spray foam to either glue the pieces, or to fill cavities. This while using the ceram wrap method. It produces easy shapes, perfect fit and lightweight scenic parts. Must add there that a mud layer, especially over the styrofoam scraps, increases both the texture and the level of realism in the produced rock. In the xps, or pink foam, the amount of realism which can be achieved, may very well be even beyond that of the plaster. Although there too, the smoothing and filling of too regular gaps and crevasses with plaster, or an artificial smoothing compound very well adds to the realism of the end result.
Thanks 🙏 for sharing!
All of my scenery will be movable because I know I'll be moving in about 2 years.
I use bamboo skewers to hold it all in place and then white glue. You can get them in most grocery stores. They range from about 6" to 18"s. The thicker / longer ones may require a tack hammer to push through.
For Foam shaping I mostly use long bladed box cutters and a small rasp.
The crumbles I have tried to use as piles of boulders and loads.
For painting I suggest doing up a test piece of foarm, add a layer of plaster and then practice getting the colors you want.
Hope this helps.
Steve
Very nice. I plan on having two mountain tunnels on my HO scale layout, and was wondering how to make them removable, so this helps a great deal.
Very nicely done.
I don't know how to hide the seam properly, so instead, I use it! I'd make the area rough with other crevices and "cracks" near, that way the seem is part of the scenery
Great video btw!
I will consider that, thank you!
Just discovered your channel through the N-Scale Forum. Thanks for the great videos. I'm at this phase with my layout, and I enjoyed seeing someone else go first! This is when the layout really begins to take shape and yours looks great. I'll be using Sculptamold (which I found pretty hard to find in Canada) along with plaster rocks cast in similar Woodland Scenic moulds.
Sounds awesome! I haven't found any sculptamold either.
I’m doing something similar in several tunnel areas on my layout. I’m not worrying too much about hiding the seam at that stage of design. I will use bushes, static grass and such to overlay my seems to hide the removable sections. Just feels like a waste of time and effort to do it at the plastering step. Just my thoughts. Good luck! Oh and sculptamould is far easier to work with! 👍
I like the suggestion to use wax paper between the seems. I would give that a try. Otherwise, I agree, I think you could hide them with scenic cover.
Use the strips along both sides of your seam, shouldn't chip, and should also give you the fine line you were looking for. You could build up the plaster from the edge of the strips to hide the seam.
Hi just a question. Have you ever used sculptamold instead of plaster of Paris.
I have not. What is your take on it?
Sculptamold will go on thicker (deeper) than PoP without cracking. Avoid celluclay as it takes forever to dry (it's still soft even 2 days later).
You call that a mountain ... ?