Yesterday I began building a large hill in one corner of my layout. I decided to use several techniques I had not tried before, mainly using red resin paper and white glue to construct the shell of the hill as described in January RMC. Part of the process was constructing a frame for the hill from cardboard strips using hot glue to secure the strips. This type of construction has been around for quite a while but I had never used cardboard strips or hot glue so it was new to me. I was presently surprised at how easily it went together and how well the hot glue held once it cooled which doesn’t take that long, less than 30 seconds so no clamps are needed. It was fairly easy to achieve the contours I wanted. The next step was to glue resin paper strips to the shell starting at the bottom of the hill and working upward, overlapping them like roof shingles. This too went fairly well. Since the resin paper comes in a roll, it naturally is curled but you can use that to your advantage by turning the curl up or down or even sideways depending on the contour of the hill. The paper is a little stiff so in some places, I need to snip it with a scissors to get it to lie flat but this was not problem. When I finished this step I stepped back and was very pleased with what I saw.
Now for what didn’t work. The next step was to coat the resin paper with white glue which when hardens is supposed to leave a hard shell. I have to confess I lost the issue of RMC in which this process was described so I may have well done something wrong here. When the glue dried, the shell did not have the desired stiffness and to make it worse, in some places the edges of the paper curled up and separated at the seams. I’m guessing that I may have needed to put a heavier layer of glue on but in any case, I did not have a shell on which to continue on the the painting and ground cover stage. What I have done is brushed on a skim coat of plaster of paris to give it the desired stiffness and when this sets up I will put ano
I, for one, appreciate the honest report. That has always been my criticism of MR and RMC articles. You never know what went wrong before the author stumbled onto a technique that worked. And because you don’t know what went wrong, you aren’t clued into the subtle but critical work-arounds that the author mentions in passing.
I have been intrigued by the red resin paper scenery shell method, too. I am in the planning stages of my layout construction, but I do try to ensure that my benchwork, scenery, and track construction methods will all work well together. I wanted to get away from the weight of plaster and the requirement to drill to plant trees, but the hollow shell is almost a mandatory requirement for me. Because I like my access from underneath so much, stacked foam becomes almost a non-starter. Especially when I realized most people end up covering the foam with plaster to get the scenic effects they want, which negates most of the weight savings.
Fred, I wouldn’t give up on the red resin shell method. I wish I still had that issue because I hate trying a new technique from memory. Everything was fine until the stage when I applied the white glue. If I made a mistake, I’m sure this is where it happened. To the best of my recollection, the white glue was brushed on and if that is the case, I may not have put a thick enough layer on. The entire surface was covered with glue although some of the red showed through. When it dried, in most places, the paper wasn’t much stiffer than before the glue was applied and as I said, in some places was curled badly and had to be glued back down. I poured about 12 oz. of white glue for an area about 3 sq feet which isn’t that big compared to what I intend to do later. If I need more glue than that for 3 sq feet, I’ll be going through a lot of white glue which isn’t tremendously expensive when you buy
JE, Where do you live? If you are near Maryand, please contact me and drop in. I wrote the article to introduce the technique. It is simple, but it does take some practice. I’d be most happy to share my Piermont Division layout with you. I’m in the process of redoing a huge section…about 680 sq ft using this technique. It works quite well.
How are you attaching the red rosn paper to the cardboard frame work, and do you have enough strips for suffiecient strength in the framing? The paper should be attached with hot glue catching as much as the cardboard as you can. You are correct…work from the bottom up, like a roof.
The white glue is applied full strength. It forms a fairly good shell, but not totally rigid as in plaster or Hydrocal. I have found this to be an advantage. If you add rock castings the strength becomes considerably greater. Also when you appy texture to the surface, this is usually done over another coat of white glue…further adding to the rigidity. Plaster is not needed except for rock castings.
If you have RMC Oct '06, there are more photos of the finished layout in addition to Jan. '07.In In Allen Keller’s volume 44, I do a short clinic on this technique. I have found this system revolutionary…at least for me. Every modeler/craftsman has their won tehniques and media they prefer. Sometimes it is difficult to switch.
Again, please call and stop in anytime. I work at home and am retired.
Howard, thanks for the reply. I did use hot glue to construct both the cardboard strip web as well as attaching the resin paper. That part of the process worked extremely well. The part that didn’t work well was the application of the white glue. It just didn’t seem to create much of a shell and actually resulted in the resin paper curling up in spots. I’m thinking it could be due to two reasons. Either I didn’t apply it thick enough or the brand of white glue might be more dilluted than what you have used. I used Titebond which I got at either Home Depot of Lowe’s. In the past I have used Elmer’s but this brand was the only one they had available in gallon jugs. I used approximately 12 oz to cover an area that was 3 to 4 square feet. I spread the glue with a wide foam brush. I wasn’t expecting a shell as hard as plaster products I have used in the past but what I got wasn’t much stiffer than the untreated paper. It seemed to me that the glue had either settled in low areas or soaked throught the paper because there just didn’t seem to be much dried glue on the surface of the paper.
I would love to stop in and see your layout, however I live in central Ohio which I am guessing is about a 7 hour drive. Thanks for the invite and I might take a rain check on it if I am in the area some other time.
I have only used Elmers white glue. I have no experience with Titebond, but I have used Franklin yellow glue and found it to be excellent for wood applications. Do not use yellow glue on the rosin paper as the key is the glue becoming glue-like again when it is attacked by a wet or damp surface such as a rock casting. If you are not using plaster/Hydrocal castings, then yellow glue could be ued. I have not tried this yet.
