I am learning scenery. My layout is modeled to depict the Appalachians. It has a number of rivers running between mountains which will of course have large boulders which have rolled down the mountain and wound up in the fast flowing river… I am molding the boulders out of light weight hydrocal. My question is: which should come first, the water or the boulders? If I place the boulders first, will the water resin mess up the color and finish of the rocks? If I pour the water first, then place the boulders will it be possible to model the flow of the water around the rocks? Thanks in advance. Jim
Jim,
I would think you should set little rocks on the river bed after you get the bottom painted, and work them up to the river banks first, and then place your large boulders on top of the smaller rocks, and then place some more small pebbles around the large boulders,and any other debris that may tumble into the river, such as tree branches and logs. lastly you can pour your water resin. It will not change the color of anything.
If this is your first time working with water resin’s, pour in thin layers and let cure completely. You can do as many pours as you like, in thin layers, after each pour has cured.
Sam
When I made my rocky river I mostly glued down everything - rocks, gravel, logs - before pouring the water. It meant I had to spend a lot of time teasing out the water’s edge with a toothpick and guiding it around the rocks. It was very time consuming but I still feel it’s the best way to go. I used real rocks, and I painted them to suit the surrounding landscape.
I did insert a few bigger flat-bottomed rocks into the wet resin and they worked well too. You just have to be very careful there’s no dust or grit on them because it’s a sure bet that it’ll fall off and land where you don’t want it.
If water rides up the sides of the rocks you can disguise it with paint. A fiddly but worthwhile job.
A little bit of off-white paint can represent suds and help it to look as if it’s flowing.
This pic shows how much work I did to it before pouring the resin:
and after pouring the water and adding some off-white after it had dried…
Mike
My advice would be to use real rocks instead of ones cast from Hydrocal. Unless you can somehow seal the hydrocal, a lot of it will soak into your rocks and wick upward around them,
Think I’d go with real rocks too. Set them in before pouring any water. Other items such as logs can be put in before adding water or in between pours, if you don’t want them to look like they go to the bottom. Swimmers and fish are added to the top layer or two.
One thing I did not see mentioned, when pouring your water, do not pour more than about 1/8" of depth at a time. Let it set a day or two before the next pour. Put a tent of paper or cardboard over it while it cures to keep dust and other unwanted stuff from settling on the surface and becoming part of your scene…
Also, the total depeth does not need to be more than 1/2" and can be less. Use varying shades of dark (deep) to light (shallow) to create the illusion of depth. I used my basic earth tone near the edges and a dark olive (mine is a not to deep swamp) in the deep locations. Put them both on and while still wet, blend them to get an even transition of color.
Good luck,
Richard
I have river bottoms made of Sculptamold, boulders cast from hydrocal, and small rocks made of everything from pumice to actual crushed stone. I have used WS Realistic water, Envirotx resin, and artists gloss medium. All have come out just fine. Different products work differently, but nothing has ever disintegrated or dicolored abnormally. If you’re worried about it, go ahead and do a test pour. From my experience, you won’t have any trouble no matter which way you do it.
I use WS “Water Effects” to show white water surging around real rocks and for water falls. Make the backdrop of a scene of a continuation of the river, that curves out of sight, rather than have the river go straight. Another thing that you can do is to place bridges so that the hide the transition of horizontal to vertical. For trees, I, personally, prefer to use Scenic Express Super Trees, glued to “sage” trunks (for close-up trees. A $25 box of Super Trees will make about 60 trees. For large quantities of trees you can buy a $120 crate, which will produce over 350 trees. Distant trees can be made from WS foam turf clumps. I soak three Super Trees at a time in diluted Matte Medium. Then, spray the armatures with spay adhesive. Finally, I sprinkle on various shades of green WS Medium turf, for foliage. I find that “Puff ball trees” look too much like green eggs in a crate. Group similar colored trees in small bunches, with bare space between. Fill in the base with occasional clump foam shrubs and other dead trees and debris. Another trick is to layer zig-zag cut out forms of conifer trees on narrow ridges. Distant trees do not need trunks, but should be placed only on placed on hillside ledges that would have enough ground for trees to grow “vertically”. Bob Hahn 
Hey Jim
This may not be the way the pros make their rapids. Here is the way I made mine.
I cut the gulch in the foam, then took rock castings of light weight Hydrocal, cut them into the foam, with the top side more or less level with the foam. Rocks are “usually” under cut on the low side. The rocks are set so the water runs from side to side. I then painted everything the colors of my choice. Starting from the top I let the “water” run naturally down the gulch. I haven’t yet got around to adding the foam.
For what it’s worth. [2c]
Enjoy the process
Lee
I would glue down real rocks {or Talus} into the river beds first, too.
First I paint the bottom to the color I want it to look…remember that water is not just crystal clear…except at the source of a spring, and then that, too, can be “polluted” with schtuff, too. THEN glue in rocks. I would not use hydrocal either, I would use the real thing.
But, I also suggest for added realism you glue in some twigs to act as fallen trees in the river, and bushes along the river’s edge.
Think about what is typically in a water way {besides shopping carts, etc.}, and add that for realism.
THEN pour “water” in in shallow doses and swish it around your rocks.
Since it is the Appalachian Mountains, maybe a well placed copper STILL with a water siphon near the river in the woods would certainly add some realisms…lol?!
[8-|]