|
The green, green grass
of home…..
Do you remember that song by Tom Jones,
native of the Welsh valleys? It brings to mind acres
(sounds better than hectares) of green sward and endless
vistas. Well, you can make your model railway as green
or as brown as you want to with the wide choice of
scenic surface layers available today.
 There
are two main methods to achieve a good scenic surface
finish. The first is with a fibrous mat of flexible
material which is glued to the rigid landscape structure
you have created. Various textures and colours are
available, in small squares (about 12 inches square)
or on rolls ranging in size from 33 / 50 inches or
50 /100 inches.
After cutting out the material to the
desired shape, it is glued to the base with PVA glue
which dries clear. It forms a sort of carpet layer
upon which you can then add undergrowth, hedges, and
trees etc. Colours available include Spring, Green,
Forest and Summer.
Railway modellers are resourceful characters,
and other materials can be used such as felt or thin
carpet, anything as long as it is sufficiently pliable
and is capable of being coloured to create the desired
effect. Colouring can be done with fabric dyes, (just
follow the instructions on the packet) or by painting
with poster colours. It is best to use various shades
of green or brown when painting to give a camouflage
effect rather than a uniform colour.
Probably more fun is using various coloured
scatters. This involves painting the rigid landscape
structure with a plain colour first e.g. an earthy
brown perhaps. A poster colour or other water based
paint will do. When it is dry, mix up some PVA glue
half water, half glue and brush over a small area
only. Don’t try to do the whole area at once. Any
joins are not going to matter. Whilst it is still
wet, sprinkle over the chosen scatter which should
be a fairly fine one. Then do the next area and so
on. If coverage is not complete and you wish to create
a denser effect, you can spray the area with a garden
spray filled with the 50/50 mix PVA glue and re apply
more scatter. Make sure you protect any surrounding
surfaces from overspray. To create a greater depth
of scatter, you can spray more PVA glue mix on but
this time use a 75/25 mix. Apply more coarse scatters
or foliage in random patches rather than uniformly
to create an effect of grass and weeds on your scenic
surface. Lighter colours can be mixed in to provide
variety and realism and allow to dry completely. Use
a mix of about 75 per cent of the main dark colour
and the rest of lighter or darker colours.
The following are a list of
the colours available in scatters:
- GM101 Light Green GM110 Earth Brown
- GM102 Mid Green GM116 Tarmac
- GM103 Dark Green GM108 Red/Brown
- GM105 Spring GM109 Black
For the base carpet layer, Woodland
Scenics or Javis make a variety of thicknesses and
sizes sold on rolls as follows:
33/50 inch
- RG5131 Spring Grass
- RG5132 Green Grass
- RG5133 Forest Green
- RG5134 Summer Green
50/100 inch
- RG5121 Spring Grass
- RG5122Green Grass
- RG5123 Forest Green
- RG5124 Summer Green
Thicker grass sheet can add depth quickly
to the scene by using Gaugemaster’s “rough grass”
available in GM190 Light Green/GM191 Dark Green/GM192
Beige. These can be glued on with undiluted PVA.
For this model railway scenic
surface job you will need the following:
- Chosen carpet layer
- coloured paints
- PVA glue
- Paint brush
- Small garden spray filled with PVA
mix/water
- Scissors
- Selection of scatters thin and coarse
THIS MONTH’S
MODEL RAILWAY SCENICS SPECIAL OFFERS
Spend over £10
on scenics e.g. scatters, grass mats etc and get 125
g PVA Glue FREE
Spend over £15
on scenics and get 250g PVA Glue
FREE
Spend over £20
on scenics and get a DL02 Super Phatic Glue
for £1.00 (normally £3.65)
Please note that
on web orders, the shopping cart will not show special
offers and the eventual price will be adjusted when
processed by us in store.
You will receive
two e mails, the first will be an acknowledgment of
your order, and the second, when your order has been
processed, will show the correct special offer prices.
Model Railway Scenic Surface Layers
available from Stockton Modeller, any queries or questions
relating to this ezine or any other matter please
email our model railway experts at email@stocktonmodeller.co.uk
or visit ask a question found at www.stocktonmodeller.co.uk/ask_a_question-5518.html
Cheers
Stockton Modeller Team
feedback@stocktonmodeller.co.uk
Other articles connected
to this series can be found at the following addresses.
Model Railway Figures /
Model Railway Scenery /
Model Railway Layout
or
visit model trains and resources
Stockists of Hornby, Bachmann and
Heljan Model Trains, Coaches and Wagons.
Also stock all accessories to compliment your set
with full kits available.
http://www.stocktonmodeller.co.uk
|
