Hupp n at em's Fallout - Big Boy Watchtower

[horridperson]

Awesome!  Really looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

[Warren Abox]

I'd suggest cutting your exposed areas out of the "skin" and building rounded struts that follow the curvature of the figure where it would have been.  In my head I saw the struts as horizontal "bows" like aircraft structure with circles cut in; Lightweight for a relatively lightweight building project and from a modelling angle really interesting looking.  I grabbed a google image; Unfortunately not rusty and weathered but it shows the unblemished styling I think you cound render in plasticard.  The breaks would have to be fairly sizable but with the huge model you have at your disposal I think it would be a neat looking space.

Not only that, but if the struts are big enough, it gives you more gamable space in the form of a sniper post that doesn't provide a full 360-dgree firing arc.

[Hupp n at em]

So I am torn between 2 road/asphalt solutions.  On the one hand, the asphalt shingle method produces seriously awesome looking results (see the This Is Not A Test rules).  On the other hand, I ran across a railroad message board topic while researching Wood Scenics Asphalt Topcoat alternatives: grey paint sponged onto EVA foam (those cheapo craft foam sheets): http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/11/p/247504/2760130.aspx
It's in the third reply. What do y'all think?

[horridperson]

I did a road test sheet in foam.  I liked the way it took paint and a wire brush gives the foam a nice looking texture. I'm not sure I like how foam "cracks".  I mostly used a pencil and thought it looked quite unconvincing; Too "puffy" rather than jagged.

On the other hand I really admired the roads featured in TNT and Joe shared the link which explained how it was done.  I thought they looked better than my foam test and liked the added durability the shingles offered over the foam.

I'm planning to have a go at a road surface very soon myself.  I'm planning to cut MDF roadbeds then layer the shingle over top.  If I tear it up and introduce potholes I'll add earthwork into the deformations and hopefully it will look ok.  Before I paint them I will probably varnish the built sections because I'm not sure how well the raw shingles will play with acrylic paint.

If I prototype my plan in the next few days maybe we could post up what we have done and compare notes.

[Cotton Eyed Joe]

Great job on the rust. It can be tough to get right. I have a ton of cars to do for my campaign and had some odious airbrush project in mind. You saved me a lot of time...

You know you doing good when other people are jealous!!.

[Hupp n at em]

Great job on the rust. It can be tough to get right. I have a ton of cars to do for my campaign and had some odious airbrush project in mind. You saved me a lot of time...

You know you doing good when other people are jealous!!.

Thanks man.    I actually found the tip on a car or train modellers' forum, can't remember which.  But it pays sometimes to remember that, what for us is only a part of our hobby, is the diorama modellers' entire focus.  Looking on their sites is usually good for a big slice of humble pie...