I have a tunnel portal and a retaining wall that I need to join together.
They are Woodland Scenics castings. What is the best method to join them?
White glue, tacky glue or hot glue will work just fine. Happy New year.
I prefer Tacky Glue - avalable in the craft section of Wal-Mart or your local craft store. I also use non-shrink acrylic spackle to fill any gaps.
Nick
For cracks and neat joints CA gel works. I will use latex caulk if a tube is open. The other ideas are probably better. If you are going to paint with acrylic washes, be careful of getting any glue on the surfaces that will show.
Hot glue, CA, Gorilla Glue, caulk, more hydrocal or plaster, Weld Bond, contact cement, they should all work, but they’ll be much more effective if you use a file to make a thin planar surface on both items where they are to abutt each other when glued.
I like to use a carpenters yellow wood glue. This was suggested in the instructions of a Downtown Deco plaster kit and it worked very well. Been using it with plaster casts ever since.
I’ve used Gorilla glue with good success for the same purpose. Just use it sparingly and if any foams out of the crack, just cut it off with a utility knife.
Any of the glues or adhesives mentioned work fine. One adhesive not to overlook for mounting/ securing castings is “ceramic tile adhesive”. I have used it on many altered and scratch built plaster walls, portals, bridges, viaducts and rock cuts. The tile mastic holds and fills voids, can be wiped off w/ a damp rag or cut/ carved to shape for any fill in areas or defects.
It appears that you have already modified the wing wall to lap the right hand side of the portal and run at a right angle.
How do you plan on mounting the portal? On foam covered layouts the portal can be glued directly to the foam. An open grid/ cookie cutter, I mount a sub portal of ply or pine to glue the casting to. The advantage of this, is it gives a place to secure scenery webbing behind the portal, wall or abutment. Cardboard strip or screening can readily be fastened. Then the portal or other casting can be placed.
One note on portal positioning, always check your side and overhead clearances before permanantly mounting. Just guess how I figured this one out… A customized double track WS portal like your’s on a 42" curve, not placed high enough to clear double stacks and autoracks.