Sygnusdale... Behind the scenes!

[BlackPearl2006]

Sir Wolf Knight, very awesome read!  I was recently frustrated with the fact that my sys x 3268 castle had no proper environment besides the living room floor, and I wanted a mote around the castle as well.  So I bought a large 2-inch-thick styrofoam to act as the base of the new castle grounds.

I also bought some of this insulation foam in a can (only one) with the idea that I would spray it along the base of the castle where it meets the ground to give it a more natural look (as oppossed to straight flat ground) as well as carve out a real mote that surrounds the castle.

My question to you:
will the insulation foam stick irrecoverably to the castle walls?  Do you think I can mask the walls first?  Or do you think it's a bad idea altogether?  From what I gather, this foam is potent stuff and does not come off whatever it touches (including hands).

Also, I know you carved the edges off of your foam, but how easy would it be to carve the foam to a specific shape to fit the landscape?  (in your case you just used the existing shape that resulted from you directly spraying the foam-- ridges and bubbles and all, from the looks of it.)  Like, if I sprayed too much and the hill was bigger than I wanted, could it be carved down to my desired specs for slope and curvature?   Or is it tough to carve?  And is it filled with lots of bubbles?

Thanks in advance for your help!

[Wolf Knight]

Ok Atto here's what you can do:

The foam is indeed too sticky and its better not to place it directly on a surface, unless you are absolutely sure you want it to stay there. So the idea of spraying it direclty on steck parts is out of the question. Even if you remove it, it will leave stains on the plastic...

I'd suggest, if you want to make a slope, hill or ridge, make sure you spray in layers and leave each layer to get crusty, but not too crusty, before you spray the next layer, just to avoid the slimy cave effect I got, which will reveal itself when cutting the foam, which btw is very easy to do so if the foam is dry solid...

Once you finish the spraying, and the foam is crusty but not too crusty, you can gently place the steck parts on the surface you want. It won't be solid yet, but it will be crusty thus not allowing it to stick on the plastic. The foam is elastic so it will just touch the steck parts and expands toward the other end, thus taking the shape of the part towards which is up ahead...

So, to sum up,
1. spray in layers, and leave each layer to dry a bit
2. dont let it get too crusty
3. it can be cut easily once it solidifies
4. before it solidifies its elastic and not sticky, so its easy to press something gently up against it
5. make sure you wear gloves

Hope this helps Atto! If you still have questions don't hesitate to ask. I am looking forward to your results!

[tonguello]

just a piece of advice guys.... be carefull with spraying stuff on styrofoam.  Some products with certains solvents "eat" and melt the styrofoam. try it first on a small area. 

[Wolf Knight]

just a piece of advice guys.... be carefull with spraying stuff on styrofoam.  Some products with certains solvents "eat" and melt the styrofoam. try it first on a small area. 

sound advice Gaston 

[Rasputin]

HI

That is a very professional looking diorama you made there. It really looks like the ones playmobil used to make and have in shops.

thanks for sharing your pictures and techniques 

Rasputin "The Mad Monk"