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nhguy
Fireman
USA
3664 Posts |
 Posted - 02/18/2012 : 02:37:05 AM
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| Just a word about the hot wire cutter. The WS hot wire cutter I have is used with WS foam products. I have tried it with the BLUE foam and it does work but it's much slower and the fumes are stronger. Have a fan going. While burning, this type of foam can give off a cyanide gas as well as some other toxic gasses. A hot wire 'melts' the foam but I am not sure if it reaches the point of actually turning into the cyanide gas. Avoid directly breathing it. If you can do this outside it's better but the fan will dissipate it. The use of a serrated bread knife goes much faster. |
Bill Shanaman
Superintendent, New Haven RR in the 1948 to 1952 era
PMRA President 2013-14, OpSIG Member
NCE User Since 1999
Sugar City, Colorado |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1101 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 09:00:42 AM
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Adding to Joe's "meat package" suggestion, awhile back I was wandering through a local hobby/craft store and came across this:
Having removed the packaging, I now can't recall (go figure) the name of the manufacturer or product, but it's a sheet of the exact same "meat package" material in a 12" x 45" x 1/8" sheet for people who build their own gliders and perfect for modeling concrete or roadways. I used this material on a retaining wall behind Lucknow Feed and Seed but wasn't entirely satisfied with my attempt to recreate the ubiquitous PRR granite blocks:
Being 1/8th thick, it's also ideal for building up streets and grade crossings, although a little too thick to use between the rails.
Yet another good reason to nose around craft stores...I'll check the next time there to see if I can snag the manufacturer and product name. |
Edited by - Harsco on 02/18/2012 09:03:16 AM |
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Dutchman
Administrator
USA
23228 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 09:30:58 AM
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| Rick, what tool did you use to etch the mortar lines in the foam board? |
Bruce
Modeling the railroads of the Jersey Highlands in HO and the logging railroads of Pennsylvania in HOn3 |
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George D
Moderator
USA
9900 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 1:29:23 PM
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I like the concrete color on your bridge pier. That foam is a good find. Was it in the RC airplane section of the shop?
George |
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nhguy
Fireman
USA
3664 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 2:43:12 PM
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| Now that's the kind of material I'm looking for for my roads. Looks promising. |
Bill Shanaman
Superintendent, New Haven RR in the 1948 to 1952 era
PMRA President 2013-14, OpSIG Member
NCE User Since 1999
Sugar City, Colorado |
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MarkF
Engineer
USA
9270 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 3:53:42 PM
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Wow, that reminds me of the walls I used to do! Remember collecting those foam meat trays when the wife went to the supermarket?
Bruce, when I did it, I would use either a dull pencil or something similar that leaves a reasonable width. You aren't cutting the foam, but rather leaving a deep impression. You can do all kinds of tricks once you learn the technique. Military modelers use this stuff a lot, which is where I picked the trick up from. |
Mark
See my homepage at http://home.comcast.net/~prrndiv/
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1101 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 4:03:55 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Dutchman
Rick, what tool did you use to etch the mortar lines in the foam board?
Bruce,I used a regular #11 Xacto knife to first lightly score the lines, followed by a dull awl. Using the knife first seems to minimize tearing the material and gives you more control. The "indentations" (if that's what you want to call them) were my misguided attempt to give the flat surface some texture....I used the end of a paint brush to "massage" the soft foam material.
Mark: this stuff is VERY close to the meat package material we used to gather up years ago. |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1101 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 4:05:38 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by George D
I like the concrete color on your bridge pier. That foam is a good find. Was it in the RC airplane section of the shop?
George
George, it was in the scratchbuilding supplies area of the store, which indeed does cater to R/C enthusiasts as well as airplane modelers; as I recall it wasn't specifically identified as being for either one. |
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RSCo
Section Hand
USA
76 Posts |
Posted - 02/18/2012 : 10:59:28 PM
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| Rick, there is a material called balsa foam that will make your life a whole lot easier. It's available at good art supply stores or online. About $5 for two 6x9 sheets in 1/2" thickness but it carves like a dream, is very stable, and takes paint and other finishes well. It comes in 2 densities and you probably would want to try both to see what you are comfortable with. The lower density might be almost too sensitive to handling. Basically this stuff was designed and engineered for exactly what we all are doing with foam that wasn't designed for carving. Unless you need hundreds of feet of retaining walls it's probably worth the cost. You can also use it to make masters. |
Jim Musser
Hainesport, NJ
blog - http://mussersteelmill.blogspot.com |
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Tim Kerkhoff
Fireman
USA
5869 Posts |
Posted - 02/20/2012 : 8:09:40 PM
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| Haven't stop by for awhile. You are making great progress, plus some great ideas as well.[:-thumbu] |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1101 Posts |
Posted - 02/21/2012 : 10:01:28 PM
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Thanks, Tim... the only advantage to winter is that it makes for more basement time...
Decided to "borrow" some ideas from some of you posters as well as magazine articles and fill a hole in the backdrop that's been lingering for awhile now...the are behind the bridge approach to Commonwealth. Due to poor planning and even lousier execution, I ended up with a "black spot" and narrow hole in the scenery between the Commonwealth branch track and the wall.
Starting with a piece of black Foamcore, I fashioned up a profile board to wedge into the background; istead of gluing foliage clusters directly onto the surface, I decided to futz with another method to see how it would come out. After smearing on some glue, I then put some very teased and stretched WS poly-fiber material on the surface, making sure to pull it out over the exposed edges in an effort to hide them:
Next, I spritzed on some hairspray and sprinkled an assortment of ground foam, both fine and coarse, followed by additional spritzes:
This wasn't bad; a bit wispy with a few gaps that were then filled with splotches of autumn colored foliage to match the backdrop:
The bottom half wasn't covered, since it will disappear behind the track...here's a shot of the finished hillside with some additional "3D" trees strategically placed to cover up the aforementioned narrow hole:
Overall I'm fairly satisfied with the results, although Mark's observation that the colors don't really match the background gives me pause; changing/adding extra gold, orange, red, and brown foliage should be fairly easy to do.
Next up is the part I despise...ballasting!
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Edited by - Harsco on 02/21/2012 10:03:48 PM |
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MarkF
Engineer
USA
9270 Posts |
Posted - 02/21/2012 : 11:37:40 PM
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| The area is coming together nicely Rick! And I do like that idea of a '3D backdrop'. You have a tough job ahead of you as blending those fall colors is going to be tricky. The color on that tree to the right of the profile board looks perfect! That color blends in real nice, at least in the picture. Perhaps a sprinkling of that color in a finer texture over the green to help blend it in? |
Mark
See my homepage at http://home.comcast.net/~prrndiv/
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dlwrailfan1
Crew Chief
USA
574 Posts |
Posted - 02/21/2012 : 11:48:34 PM
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More great futzing! The use of black foam board makes Diamond Bill smile. [:-glasses]
The digital camera adjusts colors for the picture we see here. The end result is the one that pleases you when seen in person. Mark raises a good point and I would further suggest looking at some photos of close and distant ridge lines. How do the colors look?
The haze in the air and distance makes the same color look different on the far ridge line compared to the trees near by. How does the color shift and how is the intensity effected?
Thanks for another great update. |
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nhguy
Fireman
USA
3664 Posts |
Posted - 02/22/2012 : 01:01:22 AM
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That fills in a 'black hole' and makes it a green oasis now. If you add in some brown, red, yellow and orange you will have what looks like that large leafed ivy that grows next to the tracks and grows over everything. From what I remember it turns those colors the same time as the trees but retains the green stems for a while then turns brown during the late fall-early winter. I can't remember the name of the plant. Using the fall colors won't make it stand out so much. It is a good solution to the problem you had in the earlier photos like you said you had. More good 'futzing'
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Bill Shanaman
Superintendent, New Haven RR in the 1948 to 1952 era
PMRA President 2013-14, OpSIG Member
NCE User Since 1999
Sugar City, Colorado |
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LVRALPH
Fireman
5429 Posts |
Posted - 02/22/2012 : 05:42:22 AM
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| OUTSTANDING! |
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Harrisburg Terminal Railroad (HTRR)
