Building Better Boards

[von Lucky]

Whoops - didn't click on your link or pay attention to the URL.

There really is a rich seam of untapped modelling goodness out there.

[Andym]

Nae bother Von! i'm hoping people will post their own tutes they've been following!

Got another one here. Its called 'Frocks'. Using sofa foam to build cliffs and mountains. I've used it a couple of times. Its cheap, easy and a good atternative to cork bark. You don't have to use powders to colour them. Watered down paint work well too......

http://members.westnet.com.au/mjbd/html/foam_rocks_-_frocks.html

[Daeothar]

Holy cow! 

And just yesterday I was asked to prettify some upholstery foam, which our DM intends to use as rocks (a gorge to be exact)  during tomorrow's session.

I was planning on cutting the surface a bit (he already cut the basic shapes) to create some texture and then spraypaint them and add some small patches of flock. But I think I'll hold off on that and will get myself some joint cement/topping coat (whatever that translates to in Dutch) and do it right this weekend...

[Eric the Shed]

Brilliant find Andy...

Going to have to throw away all my cork now...

[elysium64]

Love that link Andy now bookmarked.

[Andym]

If you get Polyfilla in Belgium Daeothar, its this stuff mate....



Use an old decorators brush to slap it on. The rougher the brush the better.

[Daeothar]

Cheers Andy; I think I know which stuff to get now... 

[eilif]

Holy cow!  

And just yesterday I was asked to prettify some upholstery foam, which our DM intends to use as rocks (a gorge to be exact)  during tomorrow's session.

I was planning on cutting the surface a bit (he already cut the basic shapes) to create some texture and then spraypaint them and add some small patches of flock. But I think I'll hold off on that and will get myself some joint cement/topping coat (whatever that translates to in Dutch) and do it right this weekend...

Warning!!

If you're using upholstery foam (squishable foam rubber), anything that is even remotely rigid will crack and break over time when picking up the pieces, putting minis on it, etc.  Even spray paint will dry crispy and brittle and break when the foam get's compressed a bit (which it will) you'll be constantly having to fix it.  Frocks works for model train layouts because it is not being moved about and handled, but wargames terrain is very much the opposite.

Upholstery foam is a fine product, but you've got to stick to flexible materials like acrylic paints and washes. I did a bunch of foam hills using heavy layers of spray paint and spray textured paint.http://chicagoskirmish.blogspot.com/2012/08/terrain-tutorial-caverns-and-rocks-fast.html
They look great and are reasonably sturdy, but a few months after I wrote that post I found that the edges crack sometimes.  the next batch will be all acrylic paint with just a light dusting of spray paint for highlights and a touch of texture.

You could put it on a very sturdy base and use alot of filler, but I  think using joint cement on upholstery foam for miniature gaming terrain is asking for trouble.

[Andym]

The trick to it Eilif is the plaster you use. The finishing skim I use is fairly runny and if you use an old brush and squidge it in, it soaks partially in. You might find you were using some sort of hole filler which doesn't take as well.

I've been copying the frock method for a couple of years now and the pieces have kicked around my brothers garage with no damage mate!

[eilif]

Thanks, good To know.  Maybe I'll give it a shot.  I've promised my buddy some cliffs in April and I've salvaged some really thick pieces of foam from old couches.

[Andym]

I'd love to see the results mate!

Here's another tutorial. This time its for sculpting......

http://mandragoreminiatures.free.fr/home.htm

[verd]

Great ideas in this thread!!

Another great tutorial (IMHO). I'm very tempted to start a winter game board 

http://www.wargamingtradecraft.com/2015/01/creating-snow-and-ice.html

And another one with a good tip to keep your glue in good conditions:

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Prevent-Super-Glue-from-Drying/

[eilif]

That super glue idea is pretty ingenious and cheap!

I tend to use it pretty quickly, but I've had a few bottles go bad in my time.  I bet it would work with a larger jar and more rice for Gorilla Glue which is also moisture activated and tends to go bad over time.

[von Lucky]

Now that there's a place to pin these things, I keep bumping into great pages:
http://gothamcitysub.com/

[dampfpanzerwagon]

I believe that the skills that Model Railway Modellers use are in the main inter-changeable with wargaming. I regularly browse and pick up Model Railway Modelling magazines and search through forums - you are rarely disappointed.

Tony