Great looking water effects everyone! I chose a method I saw on YouTube here
It’s based on using angel hair fiberglass, casting resin, and aquarium filter wool (I used pillow stuffing). He has lots of videos explaining the process but this is the crux of the installation.
I agree with Lee that big wide straight waterfalls don’t look as nice/real as a series of cascades (even though I made a couple because I wanted to go for a big dramatic effect).
Here is the first stage. Fiber coated with resin. Still needs the pillow foam/stuffing at the base.
A different cascade
This is one of my two giant waterfalls. This one has the pillow stuffing at the base to look like spray/rough water. I now know you don’t need that much foam and I’m working to remove some and/or add more water to make it look better, but you get the idea. Still needs some white paint for effect, and foam/bubbles at the base that continue downstream. I also sprinkle some glitter on the falls while the resin is sticky. It’s not as dramatic as the led effect but it gives a little glint as you walk by it which is a nice touch.
Great looking waterfalls guy’s! Yours put mine to shame so it was gone before lunch today. I’m starting over with the tips from this topic.
Thanks for the YouTube post Carnegie Falls, the Angles hair looks pretty good to me. I put some on my wife’s shopping list. I’ve had very good luck using Park’s Super Glaze for water, works as good as Magic Water at a much lower cost. It’s available from most Big Box stores for $25 per quart.
I redid my swimming pool several times until I went with Magic Water and Super Glaze also works great.
Mel
Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951
I’m definitely out of the house more than I’m in. So if I haven’t acknowledged complimented or thanked anyone personally don’t take offense to it as I have a read and looked over every post, It’s all valuable information to me and I really liked everyone’s individual water effects.
Carnegie Falls Really great stuff, no pun intended. Who’d ever even think about using pillow stuffing to make white water at the bottom of waterfalls. That’s pretty creative, looks real too. Tell me did you take a pinch out of your wife’s pillow or a little out of your own, ha ha.
Mike. Your water effects images look as good as the last time I seen them. On top of the big compliment I gave you a week ago when we were talking fishing in that other thread. I just wanted to let you know when I looked at the images of your waterfalls on your website that’s where I got the inspiration to model waterfalls. Thanks
God Bless our Veterans and great appreciation for your service!
Thanks Tom & Track Fiddler. Fun thread, lots to see and learn!
Bicycling thru neighboring marshlands helped inspire and reference my canal scene. Oh yeah Track Fiddler, lowtide rides near the peatland can be quite odoriferous, hah!
If you have access to the all time archives, or just a bunch of back issues…
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The December, 2000 Model Railroader has a great article on modeling waterfalls. I must have liked the article, because it is the technique I used, but I do not remember reading it! I guess I am getting old.
Dave Frary put out a number of scenery how-to videos and I think many if not all are now available free on YouTube. I followed his method for making water falls and got very good results. He starts with a clear plastic bag like the kind bread comes in. Find one with a large enough clear section for what you want. I’ve also used a piece of a translucent drop cloth which worked well. Cut the piece to shape and spread Mod Podge or similar material across the top and then use a comb to work it down the falls. This creates individual streams. It dries clear so if you want to add some whitewater to it you can do that with a little gloss acyrllic white paint.
Peter. That word sure was a new one for me. I had to look up the definition and it sure does fit.
I like riding my bike only on the flats. This old steamer doesn’t like grades anymore. I have to be careful not to over strain my surgical knee or I’ll really pay for it later.
Kevin. As luck may have it I found 2000 December issue of Model Railroader. Back a couple years or so I got a whole box of old issues from the Twin Cities Model Railroad Museum. They were preparing to move their huge O gauge Model Railroad to a different location so they were trying to lighten their load. I dug through the box and there it was almost like a little Christmas present. It has a Wabasha railroad F7 on the front cover and modeling waterfalls page 74 by Jeoff Nott. Sweet.
Well we’re off to Taylor Falls today to take a Paddle Wheel river boat ride on the st. Croix. My wife said if we’re not going out of town this year we’re going to find things to do.
Given the rocky nature of the ledge, the foamup is accurate if the cliffside water finds a place to hit the stone about half-way down. Looks good to me.
Sometimes the height of a waterfall is a matter of following a prototype (Yosemite Falls wouldn’t look very real as a 1200-foot series of cascades) and sometimes it’s a matter of scenic necessity (50mm to drop 400mm from above a triple-track hidden main to the water level under a high bridge at the same track level.) The challenge is still having it look real - and it WILL come under close scrutiny.
Chuck (Modeling wet, mountainous Central Japan in September, 1964)
