I building a HO layout set in a fictional town in western Maryland in the 1920’s and I would like to have stone retaining walls of verious sizes and shapes many that go around corners. Can anyone tell me the best ways of making them? This is my first layout but I’m up to any challenge and am not afraid to try advanced techniques. (this is starting to sound a little risque) I have read where some people make their own molds and cast them in place, but I’m not sure how to do this. Has anyone got any thoughts? Thanks for the help.
Why not use actual pebbles. It will be tedious work but I bet the results will be amazing.
Not sure what to use to glue the pebbles together, probably an epoxy of some sort.
Thanks for the idea though. I have a source for extremely small pebbles along the shoreline of Lake Huron.
Gordon
Tim,
Using the white styrofoam (also called bead foam) works very well.
Use a hot awl to engrave the stone work (heating the awl over a candle), coat with thinned drywall compound, let dry then colour with acrylic washes.
You can also draw the stone pattern on drywall gypsum board, carve in the motar lines and then pull off the paper facing to make a stone wall. I have made retaining walls, arch bridges, tunnel portals and bridge abutments that way. I like to paint the wall board with a base color of latex paint to "seal’ the drywall and them put washes of color over that to enhance the stones.
Dave H.
I just make a flat bit in the plaster scenery when putting the plaster on. When it is dry i go back with a spike or scribe (a kind of metal pencil for marking on metal) and cut in the mortar joints with that. It is easy and fairly quick and it is not too uniform.
ot can then be coloured with washes just like the rest of the scenery and rock castings so the result blends into the scene well.
just my thoughts.
neil
Dave Frary has a couple rubber molds for stone walls at his website at:
I see he now has a downloadable catalog for rock wall molds, etc.
As far as gluing up individual rocks to make your own rock walls. MR had the BN, N-scale project layout a few years back where they glued small rocks along a waterfront area by the power plant. IIRC, they just used white glue.
Chooch has some nice looking rock retaining walls. The Scenic Express catalog has pages and pages of rock wall castings and one brand comes fairly long and are made to inter lock with each other for added lengths. They have a site and (it used to be, but may not be anymore?) catalog available at:
Finally, you can go outside and root around for appropriate sized pebbles if you want, but if it were me I would just go to a pet store/department and check out plain, uncolored aquarium gravel.
Hope this is of help to you.
I found a guy on ebay selling stone wall in interlocking sections that I purchased. They suited my needs for retaining walls that had a Pennsy look to them. Cut stone that is. Not sure if it is permissable to list his add here though. Type in rock wall in the ebay search feature and see if it is what you are looking for.
A trick I used several years ago to construct a stone retaining wall approximately 8 feet long and ranging from zero up to 5 inches high, on a curve leading up to a bridge, was as follows:
Stir up a batch of 20-minute casting plaster with a small amount of grey latex paint mixed in. The latex paint tones down the color and makes the plaster set faster. Coat the entire retaining wall, or a section thereof, with plaster approximately 1/4" thick.
Hold a piece of masonite or thin plywood upright near the wall while the plaster is still soft, and pour a bucket full of pea gravel of mixed colors, mostly brown, between the wall and board.
Press the board against the wall to pu***he gravel into the plaster. Hold until the plaster sets enough to keep the rocks in place.
Remove the board, clean up the loose gravel, and let the plaster set for at least two days to thoroughly set and dry. If necessary, push more gravel into any blank spots before the plaster sets.
Spray the wall with clear gloss or dull acrylic, depending on the desired effect, to seal the rocks in place.
Are you looking for stone wall with uniform seams like brickwork or a stone wall with fieldstone look? I have had some success using styrofoam board, not the beaded stuff. Just cut it to size and mark the seams on with a burnishing tool or even a screwdriver. Cover it with a light mix of polyfil or sculptamold (tinted to your taste). I use whie glue and it works ok to hold. Real stones are a little heavy in any quantity.
Thankyou for all the suggestions, they all sound great. I’m going to try a few and see how they work. Thanks for the help.
I had a brainsrtorm the other day and I baught some modeling clay and sculpted my own modular stone wall system and from this I have made a latex mold and now I’ m casting the pieces that I need. this is my first experience at molding anything but so far it’s working pretty well.[:D]
I have used the Chooch products and think they are very good, but if you have to cut them to size they release a rather sharp odor. And the ends and top are not detailed alas
The old trick was use to balsa wood (yes, I said balso wood) and shape the stone using a wood burning tool which seals the grain. It takes some practice but balsa is cheap enough that you should learn pretty quickly. If you have no wood burning pen a small soldering iron might work as well but BE CAREFUL and have a damp rag handy just in case.
Dave Nelson
[quote]
Originally posted by CP5415
Why not use actual pebbles. It will be tedious work but I bet the results will be amazing.
Not sure what to use to glue the pebbles together, probably an epoxy of some sort.
Thanks for the idea though. I have a source for extremely small pebbles along the shoreline of Lake Huron.
Gordon
[/quote
use pva diulted works well ]
The other tedious, but very effective way to make a cut stone wall is to lay out balsa strips on wax paper as high as you want the stones (1/8 to 1/4 in) and as far apart as you want the stones to be wide. pour plaster between the balsa forms. When it hardens, use a razor saw to score the plaster strips every 3/8 to 1/2 inch or so on all four sides. Snap the plaster into individual “stones” and glue them together into a wall. Every stone will have a unique look to it. I believe Fine Scale Miniatures uses a technique similar to this to make masters for its stone walls.
Dave H.