I have just tacked down chicken wire and fashioned it in the shape of rolling hills and I’m at that stage where I will be soaking paper towels in plaster and covering the chicken wire. Should I cover the chicken wire with a plastic sheet before laying the plaster soaked paper towels on the chicken wire? My concern is, if I lay the plaster soaked paper towels directly on the chicken wire I am going to get an outline of the chicken wire itself in the plaster when it dries. So, what’s your advice on this? Should I lay a plastic sheet over the chicken wire first, or just go ahead and lay out the plaster soaked towels and smooth out any imperfections?
You will probabaly only see the wire mesh outline after the first layer of towels…additional layers can have a little thicker plaster on the towels.Then a final coat of plaster only, does the trick. The plastic sheeting, [ actually grocery store bags are as good as anything ] aren’t a bad idea over the wire mesh first, mainly to prevent the watery plaster from running down into your benchwork. …regards and good luck / Mike
I’m afraid plastic sheeting would prevent the plaster-soaked towels from getting a grip on the wire…you might put some plastic "UNDER the layout to prevent plaster dripping on the floor.
There’s a product called Sculptamold that I like for smoothing over the top of hardshell scenery. You can find it in most hobby stores, & I believe it’s available through Walthers. (www.walthers.com)
Sculptamold is a more flexible, lighter weight material than plaster… It also has a much slower working time, unlike most plaster.
I still prefer plaster for rock castings, but I really like Sculptamold for a ground cover base, & it works fine in conjunction with the plaster.
Go ahead & lay your plaster-soaked towels on the wire mesh…maybe a couple of layers. But try the Sculptamold…you can use it to do any patching, or smoothing out any irregularities you find in your hardshell base.
Good Luck!