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Building a Stormy Sea diorama


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Hello - I'm John

Please don't take my methods as the best for the intended end result - I have been building a Viking Longboat which will be pictured in a heavy lightening storm, so this is how I have been building up my Diorama.

Starting with a piece of scrap wood pinched from the timber section of my local tip. £8's worth of planed pine for the edging and a template cut of the ships hull

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Stuck together and position of hull decided

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Tacks and duck tape in place to stop plaster running into the bottom of the base

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Base filled with plaster of paris and left to dry

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Using the left overs of some old tile adhesive, I started building up the sea and waves - this stuff is quite sticky and is easily applied - and dries in 24 hours - rock solid

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This next picture has been sprayed using 3 shades of Vallejo greens, dark blue and black - prior to the airbrushing, I brushed over some layers of mastic to fill in some of the more unrealistic areas of plaster and also the enable me to make a flexible bed for the ship to sit upon

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This picture does not really do the base much justice as the sea look very cranky, but this is what it looked like before adding the Vallejo clear water effects which were added to give wave crest and wind direction to the sea surface

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Airbrushed lighting strikes

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This is the Vallejo Water effects added before it dries clear. Its not evident while still white but I brushed this stuff into the deeper wave bases in the direction of the intended wind - I'll add an update picture soon but I could see this morning (not pictured) that the sea surface is now starting to look more reaslistic but just as fierce.

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And to finish with - this is what I am hoping to deliver

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I hope this helps - but Like I say, I'm no expert but it may come in handy one day for someone else

John

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Looking good so far John...

I'm interested in seeing more of this.

I recognise the book cover as I have that book and will be reading it on a couple of days when I finish the one prior to it in the set.

Look forward to more of this.

Rick

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Thanks for the comments guys

I have spent hours and hours this weekend down my workshop and finished the diorama and model this morning before heading off to work.

I'll get some pictures up on the forum later this week - I need to get it photographed in good daylight and I'm away on business as of tomorrow for a few days

Watch this space, and thanks for the kind comments

John

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Hello again - so the diorama is finished and can be viewed shortly on the maritime WIP and RFI pages.

Here are the final steps I took to get the desired end result - perhaps not how others may choose to do so to get a similar or better effect but by far to the very limits of my own knowledge and experience...

1 - Vallejo foam and snow paste added to the where the underside of the boats hull will sit - this was then later pained to blend in with the surrounding sea.

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2 - Using some waste thin plastic food packaging (in this case one of my son's rustler hot dog packages - yuck) I cut the outlines of some basic wave splashes

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3 - These were then brushed over with Clear Vallejo water effects paste and left to dry off - adding more to get the desired depth on both sides and while tacky, teased with a cocktail stick to draw out the tips of the wave splashes.

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4 - Along with the trimmed down sections of the Vallejo water effects coated fish tank filter wool, the wave splashes were then cut into shorter pieces and added to the base using more Vallejo water effects as the adhesive which would dry clear and add further depth to the intended bow splash

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Various additional off-cuts and trimmed down sections of the Vallejo coated fish tank filter wool were then added around the ships hull once the finished model had been set in place (EvoStick Impact was used here), again using the Vallejo water effects to keep everything looking slippery and wet.

An finally to finish with, and as best a job that I can produce, here you are...

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Thanks for keeping interested - John

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Absolutely stunning. Really inventive, and the effect is spot on. What does your son think of it?

:mike:

Hi - cheers for the note - considering this kit was built out of one of my son's inspirations from the TV series Vikings, he helped me for the first month or so and then got himself his first girlfriend and completely lost all interest - he's seen the ship, and had the cheek to ask for the display for his room to sell it off as his own work to impress his new girlfriend - me thinks not!

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Where did you source the 'Duck Tape' and is it any good for Geese and Swans? lol. Duct tape. A rough sea has got to be one of the toughest environments to model. Congrats on a job very well done!

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Where did you source the 'Duck Tape' and is it any good for Geese and Swans? lol. Duct tape. A rough sea has got to be one of the toughest environments to model. Congrats on a job very well done!

Thanks Badder - Duck tape from the RSPB shop ! - or should I say Duct tape from Lidl !!

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Very nice build! I am also totally hooked on the vikings series at the moment. Love how the water turned out. Is that Ragnar in the front, sailing for Paris? ^^

New Series is out now - I'm on episode 2 - its looking just as good.

Yep that's old Raggers up front - Rolo and Floki have been left with an oar to pull their weight

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