Ok, I have my base layout done (since I live in an apartment, It is a VERY small layout). I have the wood/base part done, and I also went out and purchased some of that pink foam stuff (from Dow and Corney or whatever lol). With this small layout,im going to make some hills, etc. My quesiton is, what exactally do you use to connect the pink foam to the top of my table? What brand/specific type of glue do I use? Also, is it ok if I glue two foam pieces on top of each other? And finally, I noticed there was a small, thing layer of coating (like a plastic) on top of the foam, should this be removed? And should I paint the top of this before I even start with the rest of the layout, grass, etc? What type of paint? Thanks!
Definitely remove the plastic film. I use latex based caulk, the cheapo 1.99 tubes for caulk-guns from wal-mart to do all my gluing. Foam to wood, foam to foam, foam to cork… so far its been working great.
First, to second guess you for a bit, is it really necessary to glue it to the table? Any reason you can’t just let it sit there? You’ll not likely tilt it on its side to carry it someplace?
Anyway, go to your hardware store and ask your clerk for a tube of his cheapest acrylic latex caulk, the colour doesn’t matter (okay, not any pinks, chartreuse, and other colours best seen on a bird). Us a caulking gun to squeeze a thin bead of the stuff along the top of the surfaces to which you intend to bond the foam sheeting, and then spread the compound thin using a spatula or a putty knife. Thin, as in like a first layer of primer paint. Lay your foam atop it all, and place stacks of magazines or something atop the places where the foam is supported by the caulked surface(s). Wait about 12 hours, more if your surroundings exceed an ambient humidity reading of 66%.
to paint it, use acyrlic paint, since it’s water based. DON’T, repeat DON’T use solvent based paint, like Floquil, as it will eat through the foam.
I paint the layout wood and when dry, I then use white glue to attach the foam to the layout top.
But I use just latex paint to glue any additional foam to foam pieces together.
I figure that I have to paint the foam anyway why not just use the latex paint as a glue.
I know that the latex paint will NEVER attack the foam.
Then when I get into carving the foam I use a hot wire cutter and it just cuts through the paint and foam easily.
Now being in a living area the hot wire foam cutter will give off fumes and this may be a bad thing as the smell will linger. Use old kitchen knives and sureform files to landscape the foam.
BOB H – Clarion, PA
A hacksaw blade makes a good flexible tool for cutting the foam with a relatively low amount of foam mess. My drywall saw hacks through it nearly instantly, making a big mess. The hacksaw blade goes slower but cleaner, and allows some pretty good flex for curves in about any dimension as well.
I can’t lay claim to this one myself as I saw it some time ago on the Forum. A grapefruit knife makes a good tool for carving foam. I carved out a river bed with one and it worked well. If you’re not familiar with a grapefruit knife, it has a curved blade with teeth on both sides. I got mine at a dollar store. I also use a hacksaw blade for cutting foam. Just make sure you wrap some heavy tape around the top third of it! Another tool for carving foam that I saw recommended on the Forum is a zester. It’s used to scrape off the rind of lemons and oranges to use as flavouring in cooking and baking. I got that at the dollar store too.