69 Collectable Model Trains: Track Laying: I'd like some basic scenery. What can I do?
Description
This article is from the Model Trains FAQ, by Christopher D Coleman with numerous contributions by others.
69 Collectable Model Trains: Track Laying: I'd like some basic scenery. What can I do?
There are two basic methods for scenery support and two for the
scenery itself. Support is itself usually supported by 2X2"s or 1X2"s.
The support is a gridwork that will support the scenery while it dries
and also after it is dried. The first method is to cut scrap cardboard
into long strips and glue or staple them into a gridwork over the
support supports. The second is to use chicken wire or window screen
stapled to the support supports. I use screen because I was able to
secure a large amount from a hardware store that does screen repair,
because it is easier to shape than cardboard, does not allow the
scenery to sag between grid segments and it is non-flammable. When
you're shaping your support keep some nature photos handy to help you
choose prototypical contours.
On the support you need to add an actual surface. Be sure to wear work
clothes, for this is always a messy job. You will need material and a
bonder to do this. I use newspaper as a material, but paper towels are
also commonly used. There are many choices for bonders. The most
common is plaster, which is quite strong and easily contoured with
dental type tools when dry, but it is also heavy and brittle. I use
cheap wallpaper paste. When dry it is stiff, but not as strong as
plaster, though it is easily cut with scissors or a razor blade for
changes, and will be more forgiving to your trains should they crash
into it. There are also a number of commercial bonders on the market
which combine the strength of plaster with the lightness of paste. You
may wish to experiment with a number of combinations before you begin
on your layout.
Once you have your supplies, mix a modest amount of bonder in a tray
wide enough to drag the entire width of your material through it. A
consistency halfway between water and pudding is good. Choose the
width of your material by what is most convenient for you. The rougher
the terrain, the more difficult it will be to get large pieces to
conform to it. Drag the material through the bonder so to cover the
entire side, then run your hand down it, removing the excess. If you
wish a rough terrain you may gently crumple then uncrumple the
material, but this will make seams much more difficult to hide. Lay
the material over the support. It is best to work toward the viewers
point so to make seams less apparent, but it is usually necessary to
work from top to bottom of any significant slopes, to keep your work
from sliding down the sides. As you proceed, get some bonder on your
fingers and rub it over the seams so they will be de-emphasized when
dry. I recommend covering everything with at least one layer,
including plywood, to give a uniform surface over the layout. Once the
first layer is dry, apply at least one more on the supported areas.
You can add additional layers, depending on the strength you desire.
When your last layer is dry, seal everything with a base layer of
paint, usually a brown or grey whichever will comprise most of your
layouts surface. From here many steps become optional depending on the
level of realism you desire. You will next want to paint level areas
with a soil brown (or slopes with a stone grey, depending on your base
coat). Where brown meets grey, wet your brush then remove most of it
using the paint can lip. Now gently dab (or drybrush) around that
border giving a smooth transition between the two. Furthermore you may
wish to drybrush some varying shades of brown and grey to give the
effect of striations and erosion. If you don't want to mess with
artificial grass you can also drybrush on green instead. Water is
easily simulated with a coat of deep blue covered with a coat of satin
polyurathane.
This is the point where you will want to lay track. Next you will need
to gather supplies for the detailing, and what follows are only
suggestions. For rock, crushed driveway stone for boulders, crushed
clay kitty litter for rocks, sifted (through window screen) kitty
litter for ballast and white sand for crushed stone. Ballast, coal,
grass (ground foam) and a variety of other detailing materials are
available from commercial sources. Lichen is a type of moss which
looks remarkably like miniature bushes. Commercially prepared lichen
is available, or you can prepare your own using the following steps:
1. Gather large amounts of lichen and pick out all sticks, rocks,
grass, rabbit pellets and etc.
2. You need to do the work outside, you will need a camp stove and a
five gallon pot.
3. The basic preserving solution is 3 gallons of water and 1 gallon
of commercial grade glycerin (check yellow pages for the cheapest
you can find).
4. Buy several packets of rit dye to match different shades of
foliage.
5. Dissolve 1 1/2 packets in the solution and heat to just below
boiling.
6. Stuff as much lichen in the solution as possible and when
solution begins to simmer let simmer for an additional 5 min.
7. When cool enough use rubber gloves to reach in and pull the
lichen out. Squeeze the solution out back in the pot.
8. Let the lichen cool then repeat for a fresh batch.
Trees are also commercially available from many sources. You can also
make your own by cutting bottle brushes to a conical shape, unraveling
one end of twisted wire and inserting lichen, or by drying and
painting weeds that have a good "tree" shape. You will need to drill
holes in plywood sections to install trees. A tiny dab of white glue
is sufficient to keep it in place. Commercial trees with bases are
best attached using rubber cement, so they can be moved later without
destroying the landscape underneath. In areas without plywood
underneath, I usually punch a small hole in the surface, hold a block
of styrafoam (cut from a piece of packing material) behind it and
pressing the tree trunk into the foam. It might be necessary to put a
bit of white glue on the foam to hold it in position.
Other landscape material, like ground foam or sand, is best secured by
spraying the area with 'wet water' (water with a dab of detergent)
from a spray bottle. Apply the material then spray it with a roughly
4:1 mix of water/white glue to fix it in place. All this sort of
material should be secured to prevent it getting into train moving
parts.
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