Am in the process of building my lay out and will be using dividers or back drops to separate scenes. I know I can use masonite, even thin drywall. but have heard that styrene may be better. Has anyone used it? What are the pros and cons, problems to expect, and how to apply. Does it paint well and where is the best place to find it?
Any help will be appreciated
Jon Whan
US Plastics, at http://www.usplastic.com sells sheets of styrene at very reasonable prices. They are the Rubbermaid people. I love the stuff for scenery. It is very easy to cut with a utility knife, and paints well.
Highly recommend styrene as backdrop. I got in it in Columbus OH at American Plastics Distributors, .06" sheets of 4’x8’ at $20/sheet. Also available on internet at usplastic.com for $6.59/sheet of 40"x72". (These prices are about 6 months ago). Should be able to find a plastics distributor in your Yellow Pages.
Recommended adhesive to use by them (which I used) is Tyebound Interior/Exterior Construction Adhesibe -solvent free.
I glued the styrene to dry wall around my train room (19’ x 21’), curving the corners with wood corner frames that have been published in issues of Model Railroader.
I used a latex caulk for the seams which worked fine in most cases, but a couple seams are not the best but acceptable. A really better solution is to use the automotive filler stuff, but I did not use it in the closed environment because of health reasons in the family.
The good part was, a single person can easily mount the styrene on the wall, using a few screws in the top and bottom while the adhesive dries.
It is very easy to paint. I used the MR published article on three bands of blue (dark to light, from top to bottom) and one more band of white at the bottom. I blended them together while paint was still wet and got a very nice sky, with no artistic skill needed.
Whether gluing to a wall , or attaching to a frame, I’d recommend styrene as an excellent alternative to masonite or linoleum (which I also considered). It can also be carried in a roll in your car.
This is also a cheap way to buy or have extra styrene available for scratch modeling, cheaper than buying small pieces at a hobby store. Get a piece, and you will see how easy it is to paint.
Have fun building your backdrop!
Hal
Hmmmm… $35.90 per 4x8 sheet in Tacoma, plus cutting fees, plus gas expense to get there.
USPlastic.com now shows their sheet price (40x72) as $16.42. Did it really go up that much (from $6.59)? They also have 0.040" at $11.14, but I wonder if that thickness would be a little too floppy.
George H
Definitely would not recommend using dry wall for any backdrop that is curved. It does not bend very well and is extremely heavy. In addition, cutting the drywall produces dust that acts as a descicant on your hands. A broken piece of styrene falling on your layout is not likely to do much damage (assuming a piece would actually break off rather than cracking). Imagine what even a small pice of drywall might do to your scenery or trains.
If you need a lot of styrene, go to Lowes or Home Depot and check the price for a roll of plastic flashing.
Yup - it’s made from oil, so…
I can’t agree with the others, any time I’ve tried (or my freinds have) to use Styrene in large sheets, it has warped to some degree.
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This was over a period of about a year. It paints about the same as any other plastic…
If you want a smooth bendable surface for your back drop, consider aluminum coil… This is the stuff they make the exterior window trim on your house with. Comes in 50 or 100 foot rolls, I believe 24-36 inches wide. I think you can by 12 inch rolls of roof flashing that is bare aluminum… You’ll need a few extra hands to get it set up but once installed, no cracking or warping and smooth as glass… The best part is you only have one seam, if that… Just be careful not to hit it with a hammer… I’ve also read of people using Linoleum (the large sheet material on your kitchen floor) …
All this discussion may be for not… How big is your layout??
Jeff
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