My layout’s basic scenery is styrofoam (the pink stuff). I’ve tried carving it to represent rocks and I’m relatively happy with the basic shapes but not at all happy with what would be the rocks.
So, I need to coat the styrofoam with something that will look more like rocks. The question is which is the better of the two to use? Sculptamod or Woodland Scenics light weight hydrocal?
Sculptamold goes on looking approximately like rough ground.
Plaster, unless it is in the form of cast rocks, looks like plaster.
I use Sculptamold as a base then add rocks cast from Ultracal.
Actually, a combination of the two works the best for me. I use WS (or a comparable brand) plaster cloth for the basic cover, then work the Sculptamold in as I need rougher ground or rocks. One good thing about Sculptamold is that it has a longer drying time, and you can spend your time shaping and carving. Though I’ve used Hydrocal quite a bit, it does have a faster drying time, and you have to work rather quickly.
However, if you’re using Hydrocal and have a large area to cover, I might suggest getting it through a yard supply or hardware store in bulk. It’s much cheaper than the WS brand.
Tom
Sculptimold. As mentioned it has a much longer working time. I do a base of plaster dipped paper towels and then add Sculptimold over that for texture.
I used Sculptamold directly over the styrafoam on my layout with good results.
I used a combination of Rit dye and diluted India ink, sprayed on the wet Sculptamold to add background color.
Then, again while still wet, I brush the surface with white glue and start applying the ground foam.
You could use rock molds to add more dramatic effect to your scenes too.
Here’s a picture of the results.
I prefer a plaster called Structolite which has small granules added to it. This tends to give surfaces (especially carved Styrofoam) some texture which enhances the effect. My Home Depot has it in 50 lb bags for about $10. It is also very slow setting (overnight) which gives you all the “working time” you would ever want. One more plus is that it dries to a medium gray color which makes coloring somewhat easier - no white spots.
Jim Policastro
Nice work Jim. I’d like to see a pic when it’s done.
Tilden
Structolite it is then. Hard to argue with those photos. I carve my rocks in the styrofoam and then paint them with interior latex. I have them mix a base earth tone from the color charts and then get a few of those small six or eight oz.cans of black and white etc. and mix them wet as I paint. take a look.
reklein
Very nice rock formations - I have to practice some new carving techniques. I have been doing Eastern formations with mainly horizontal strata but I’d like to try some different geologic areas.
One thing about Structolite with its granular surface is that a very light drybrushing with a white or ivory color really makes the rocks pop out giving the scene depth.
Jim
jimsrpo-I wish I would have known about that structolite a month ago. Do you know if it goes by any other names? My local HD has never heard of it. I checked the HD and Loew’s web sites and they don’t list it.
I just use regular plaster of paris. My ‘rock molds’ are made of aluminum foil, thus avoiding the possibility of have any two rocks look the same. I buy the plaster in bulk, therefore paying much less than I would for the small amount I would get from WS.
My 2 cents and hopefully will help you decide.
Hydrocal is a great product but the working time is very short, it starts to set in 15min and almost completely dries in 30-60 min. Sculptamold had a much longer working time. I like Hydrocal because use in conjunction with WS stains, you can achieve great looking rock with relative ease and the fact that it dries quickly allows you to work quickly although in a small area at a time. Sculptamold is good when you have a large area to work for.
My preference is use WS Platerclothes over foam and newspaper pillows and just use Hydrocal to fill and sculpt terrain slightly and use actual rock mold for rocks with Hydrocal with great results.
I think if you are not sure, you should try both working with small areas at a time and see what you like better. I find WS system is relatively easy to achieve great result with a lot less mess than others methods so I pretty use WS stuff exlcusively now. Yes, it can get expensive but with the time saved and less mess to clean up, I think it’s well worth the money. I even use their high density foam as well as they are really a lot better than other lower density foam which again has less strength and much messier as well and actually works out to be about the same price at the end.