(Modular) Stonework Ramblings

[Sangennaru]

Hello everyone!

I've been experimenting with a few stonework techniques since a while, and so far i've found three interesting techniques, although the third has several sub-techniques that could be adapted.
So... here it is:

1 Carved ceramic structure

Here the structure has been created as a single chunk of ceramic plaster with the shape of the final wall piece. The advantage is being able to create complex shapes with many edges and curves, but the carving process is rather time consuming.

2 individual ceramic bricks

This seemed promising, but the bricks were standing out too much. I guess that with a finer file work they could fit better. Far too much involved for that though.

3.1 Sharp polyurethane bricks

While i liked the shape, the sharp corners made them look weird, both quasi-industrial but very rough on the faces. Weird.

3.1 Soft polyurethane bricks
Here i wanted to have something softer (to contrast the sharp corners of 3.1), but it ended up being a bit cartoonish. I had good reactions by the viewers, but still something was off.

3.1 Intermediate polyurethane bricks

I might have found a good compromise here, but i'd like to hear from you. What's your opinion?

Thanks for watching, i'm really looking for suggestions and ideas about that. I'd like to make a rather large range and find a good company willing to take it, but first i want to spot the right technique.

Thanks!!

Jack

[Khadrin Stonetooth]

I like best the soft polyurethane bricks. They don't look that cartoonish to me. Anyway that's a tremendous research job you've done here.

[Daeothar]

I find the individual bricks absolutely the best looking! With the right painting, I'm 100% certain that those would create an ultra realistic result.

They look  exactly like those in the sandstone buildings we have around here, down to the detail.

My favorite for sure... 

[majorsmith]

Skills

[Sangennaru]

Thanks everyone! I wasn't expecting appreciation for the ceramic bricks, that's interesting!

As for now, i'm prepping the first cast for all the foam bricks walls, eager to see them cured!

Cheers, and thanks!
Jack

[Khadrin Stonetooth]

One is curious on how you make them polyurethane bricks if it's no trade secret. 

[Gallahad]

My favorites are the individual ceramic bricks and sharp polyurethane by far. The rounded and softer bricks look too much like river rock.

[M Blakey]

Wow! Well I won't be any help here I think they are all great. would love to see these produced

[H.G. Walls]

I like all of your attempts, although I do agree with you about the soft polyurethane looking a "bit" cartoonish, which may not be the popular opinion. If you forced me to make a choice (and it is difficult) I would choose the intermediate polyurethane.

[Sangennaru]

Thank you all!! I'd love to see them produced somehow as well, in a larger range possibly!

I have to say, while looking at the last three sculpts in resin they don't look MUCH different and they could almost fit together well.
Here's a quick shot, with paint on the differences should flatten even more!



I'm still tending towards the intermediate solution (the one with the door), but it doesn't seem that different to me right now

One is curious on how you make them polyurethane bricks if it's no trade secret. 

Oh, no trade secret at all: Simply cut foam cubes, slightly smooth the edges, then with a rock add texture and cuts with an exacto. Pretty straightforward. Took me a while to master the process, but now i can build a wall like the ones above in little more than one evening.

Now, for something more "juicy": I'm in DESPERATE need for suggestions, now that I have a feasible way to build walls (and i've got a decent woodworking set of skills, so that i can make ruins of half-timbered houses, in the style of Escenorama) i'd really need a larger project, to fill a whole table and to offer to any possible buyer company a full range to setup. Possibly modular.  

So, if anyone is so kind to be willing to post drawings, it would be terrific!!!

Thanks everybody for the very kind and encouraging words,
Jack

[ancientsociety]

Oh! You're the lazy forger! I just liked your FB page and never made the connection 

Can you tell me what you make the "ceramic" bricks out of?

[Andym]

Different horses for different courses! They all have their uses! The soft polyurethane ones, for example, look more weather worn and rounded. They all, when based, would great as ruins!

[Patrice]

Very nice results with all these materials! 

...and your stones overlap properly, as any self-respecting stone mason would have them, avoiding "coup de sabre" mistakes as much as possible.



A suggestion for painting: the spaces between the stones does not always appear darker than the stones; for example if the mortar joints are a mixture of local sand and lime they would appear light greyish yellow (as in some parts of this old wall near my home where some very old mortar joints remain - perhaps one day I shall feel self-confident enough to repair them properly, the hole where the sand came from still exists not far away it has been shown to me by a guy whose father did these joints 60 years ago).

[Sangennaru]

Thanks everyone! Sorry for the late reply, just got back from Vilnius - not much stonework there.

Oh! You're the lazy forger! I just liked your FB page and never made the connection 

Can you tell me what you make the "ceramic" bricks out of?

That's ceramic plaster, a sort of ultra-hard plaster, that holds the details quite well. It's also a pain to carve, due to its hardness.

Different horses for different courses! They all have their uses! The soft polyurethane ones, for example, look more weather worn and rounded. They all, when based, would great as ruins!

Thanks Andym! I think that i will eventually keep working with the latest of the polyurethane solutions, as it is much faster and gives good results.

Very nice results with all these materials! 

...and your stones overlap properly, as any self-respecting stone mason would have them, avoiding "coup de sabre" mistakes as much as possible.

Thanks! I really tried to avoid the coup de sabre when building the model. I'm glad you approve ^_^

A suggestion for painting: the spaces between the stones does not always appear darker than the stones; for example if the mortar joints are a mixture of local sand and lime they would appear light greyish yellow (as in some parts of this old wall near my home where some very old mortar joints remain - perhaps one day I shall feel self-confident enough to repair them properly, the hole where the sand came from still exists not far away it has been shown to me by a guy whose father did these joints 60 years ago).

Noted! Considering my sculpt-to-paint ratio, it will be a while before i paint something with those, though! ^_^

Soon more experiments in this direction! I'm trying to go modular as well! ^^

Cheers
Jack

[Sangennaru]

Hello everyone!
Following your stream of suggestions and feedback (together with the facebook ones) i've decided to go on with the latest of the tests.
Before going on with the individual walls (which will compose a set of 3-6, still to see when i'll get bored) i wanted to have some stonework strips to use for the building basement. That's often the weakest spot of any scratchbuilt half-timbered house, so i made this jigsaw connected parts, that could fit well both in line and at a 90° angle.
Off to molding tonight, sharing for now the original master.



C&C welcome!

Jack