I was wondering if there was such a thing for modeling pavement. I have used various types of plaster products in the past and am using water putty on my current project. I can never get these types of products smoothed before they set up and always need to sand down the high spots and fill in the voids. A self leveling product would do away with this step. I had though about mixing the putty a little more watery than recommended but wondered what that would do to the strength of it. I wouldn’t want to use such a product on roadways since they should be slightly crowned but it would be fine for a large parking area like I am working on now.
You can use sheet styrene. Try 0.050 or 0.060.
Hmmm, I was putting in a new hardwood floor and used a self-leveling product. I seem to recall in the directions it stated it would make a good surface down to 1/16" thick. It reminded me of very wet silly-sand. I got it at Lowes in the flooring section. Don’t remember the exact product name. I never thought of using it for MR work. I would say it was closer to concrete than plaster, so it might be too heavy for MR work.
I’ve been told adding vinager to the plaster will slow it’s curing time. Folks said start with a couple teaspoons per pint of water.
There is a levelling compound called ‘LePage Poly Underlay Floor Leveller’ but it isn’t sold in the US. (They are part of Henkel.)
I got some and used it to fill in a depression between two tables. Sets up pretty hard, all it needed was some sanding to level and feather the edges. Works on wood or concrete. You mix it up and apply it just like plaster.
why not use envirotex? isnt it self leveling? you use woodland scenics paving tape or strip styrene to make the road thickness?
I’ve used strip styrene for concrete pavement but I am doing an asphalt area now and it just doesn’t have the right texture for that. I am trying to simulate an aged surface with lots of cracks and patches using a technique that Dan Crowley posted a link for last year. It involves putting a thin layer of paving over foam board and after it sets, pressing down creating natural looking cracks.
1/16" would be just about right for what I am trying to do. I know there is self leveling concrete so maybe that is what this is. Still, at that thickness, I would think it would be possible to work cracks into the surface. Concrete is used as a counter top material so I don’t see any reason it could not be used on the benchwork of a model railroad. I may give it a shot.
You could mix up Hydrocal kind of thin, and with a bit of light tapping it will flatten out pretty well. You’d have to build a frame, just like a real concrete pour. Durhams Water Putty can also be mixed thin, and if you add vinegar it will set up slowly.
A while back someone else suggested pouring your “pavement” on a sheet of flexible material like cork or foam roadbed. Then you can lift it from underneath and bend it a bit, which will cause the hard surface material to form natural cracks.
This sounds like the same technique I refererenced earlier in this thread. There was a link to a website that explained the technique in detail but I just checked it and it seems to have been taken down. I printed it off last year and have been wanting to try it.
The problem I have had with traditional plaster type materials is when I skim the top to smooth the surface, the plaster wants to adhere to the knife and it pulls up little peaks that don’t resettle. I try to keep working it until it gets as smooth as I can get it but invariably I end up having to sand and fill the surface after it sets up.
I would really consider thinned Durham’s wood putty… I use it for larger bridge footings/abutments and it levels in small areas (2x2 inches) nicely. The edges may stick/be rounded, but I bet if you put some vaseline on your forms prior to pouring, this would eliminate some of the surface tension at the edges and hence rounding. Also, styrene edges may have less interface tension/friction, so may make better edges… Good tapping and this stuff settles and levels nicely… I have never tried the vinegar to slow down the process, but I would be interested to find if that works.
Brian
Concrete patching cement is good in layers as little as 1/16". I recently needed some Dash Patch (similar to Durham’s Water Putty - but a [censored] of a lot harder). They did not carry Dash Patch, but had a similar material (sorry - can’t remember the brand, but it was an Ace Hardware) that took over an hour to set [:(!]. It was workable from the start and did not “level”, which for a road is good - all roads have “crowns” for water run-off. Just my [2c]
Self-leveling pavement wouldn’t work well for roads on hills. [;)]
Once the plaster road is troweled into position, I find that using a wet paint brush and retroweling the road will give a smooth surface. The plaster is pulling because the mix is already setting up. Water and good smooth 3" putty knife should stop this.
I use veneering plasters, Unical, Diamond etc, for this purpose. All my top coat plasters are colored w/ masonry dyes. This plaster will have a working open time of up to 1/2 hour pending mixing water temp and mineral content.
An added tip to adding a crown to the road surface is bend the 3" putty knife to put a very small arc at the edge.
The grey/ brown dyed road surface once dry is a perfect base for final weathering. Any chips, scratches of breaks won’t show.
Well you could try stippling it with liquid cement to craze the surface to give it texture. It’s just as easy to carve cracks into styrene as plaster. You could use the gel type cement with some coloring mixed in to represent tar patches.
jecorbett wrote:
“I’ve used strip styrene for concrete pavement but I am doing an asphalt area now and it just doesn’t have the right texture for that. I am trying to simulate an aged surface with lots of cracks and patches using a technique that Dan Crowley posted a link for last year. It involves putting a thin layer of paving over foam board and after it sets, pressing down creating natural looking cracks.”
The only thing I can suggest is to put a SMALL amount of plain white vinegar into the plaster while you are mixing it. This will retard the setting time and allow you enough time to level off your pavement. Experiment with a test batch to check proportions and results. Check Dave Frary’s excellent “Scenery” book for more info (I cribbed this tip from him);
If you are using Durham’s water putty, you can actually re-wet the surface with a damp sponge once it’s dry and continue to smooth out the pavement. I think this product is ideal and many traction modelers use it for paving over street trackage. It also takes color very well.
In general, there are many types of plasters available, so don’t be afraid to experiment on a scrap piece of plywood, homasote or whatever your baseboard is so you can get a feel for the material. No matter what type of paving material you eventually use, be sure to work in an area no larger than 18"-24" to give yourself adequate time to work it smooth before it sets. NB: It’s also easier to carve in expansion joints and/or paving stones just when it has set up but before it has cured hard.
Hopefully these little tips will help, so happy paving!
Jeff
I’ve used Ralph Lauren brand “River Rock” gray latex paint (avilable at Home Depot stores), it has a sandy texture to it and simulates an asphalt surface quite nicely IMHO.
Hi Everyone:
I have used the following techniques for constructing roads and parking lots. Create the rough surface first [e.g on foam] then cut the road shape from thin cork sheet [Michaels] - this is cheap and you can cut curves etc. I sually stick this down with a thin layer of sculturemold but foam calking would do also. Using cork allows the roadbed to conform to hills and curves [unlike styrene sheet]. When dry, I put a thin layer of drywall mud - you can put some black paint pigment in the mud for a base colour so that it will dry up grey. When dry just sand smooth - I suppose you could put a crown in the road at this point if you wished but I don’t bother. As the last steup I paint the surface with an appropriate finishing colour - I find the “graphite” acrylic paint from Michaels gives a realistic blacktop finish. You can then add the stripes etc. I tried a self levelling compound [from Europe] before this and it was most unsatisfactory. I also tried an instant product that you unrolled from a roll - it is soft black and looks like the same stuff used for window sealing. It always stays soft doesn’t look real but is good at holding up vehicles on a hill if you push them into the soft road - my grandsons love this bit!!
Alan
CSX_road_slug wrote:
“I’ve used Ralph Lauren brand “River Rock” gray latex paint (avilable at Home Depot stores), it has a sandy texture to it and simulates an asphalt surface quite nicely IMHO.”
Which color did you use? It don’t see a gray listed in the river rock line on their website.
http://rlhome.polo.com/rlhome/products/paint/items.asp?haid=75