Ever evolvin dio. ft. 'THE INDESTRUCTIBLE TREE' as ft. on youtube.

[Badder]

1 hour ago, PlaStix said:

Fascinating stuff Badder. I'm always impressed each time I drop in. You really have an eye for how this structure would look in real life. Wonderfully creative modelling.

Kind regards,

Stix 

Cheers Stix,

I'm never sure whether it's best to plan everything in great detail in advance then stick to the plan, or just let stuff evolve.... but it seems my nature is to plan roughly then let things evolve. 

Dioramas that impress me seem to have been planned in advance... following particular formulas. There ARE different formulas for different 'species' of diorama, but I've yet to actually follow one.

I have a rough idea of where this one is going, but the details and the subjects are .... er... subject to change.

Because I can't be having stuff that looks illogical, or half-baked, make-do, or out of scale! So no lichen for trees and bushes, no polystyrene ceiling tiles for walls and no buildings with inadequate access and illogical layout, in my dioramas!

Er..... polystyrene ceiling tiles.... are they extinct?

 

Thanks again,

I really appreciate your comments, along with everyone else's of course!

 

Rearguards,

Badder

 

[PlaStix]

38 minutes ago, Badder said:

Er..... polystyrene ceiling tiles.... are they extinct?

They should be - but some places do still sell them.

I have never used them for their intended purpose but I used to use them when I built exhibition model railways. I used them as the basis for the landscape. I used to cut them into suitable contour shapes before gluing them together and then covering them with filler to build up hills, etc. - those were the days!!

Kind regards,

Stix

Edited May 17, 2017 by PlaStix

[Badder]

Just now, PlaStix said:

They should be - but some places do still sell them.

I have never used them for their intended purpose but I used to use them when I built exhibition model railways. I used them as the basis for the landscape. I used to cut them into suitable contour shapes before gluing them together and then covering them with filler to build up hills, etc. - those were the days!!

Kind regards,

Stix

Hahaha...

I remember building a 3D hill with them at school, copying the contour lines on a map.  I think I must have been about 9 years old. I can still smell the glue we used!

Badder

[Badder]

With the corner stones re-carved at this end... a simple case of a scalpel joining up the lines on both walls.

 

The corner at the opposite end, where the stonework doesn't match rear wall to side wall. I've sanded down the stonework on the rear wall in readiness for a plasticard overlay which I made to match the stonework on the side wall. Although the overlay will cover the gap, I will still be filling it with green putty.

 

Here's the plasticard overlay, with the stonework carved to match that of the side wall.

 

This is the stuff I'm using for the 'moss' on the roof. I will use some for the groundwork eventually, though only in small clumps again. It's far too regular to use as an expanse, unless I'm recreating a well kept lawn.

TFL

Badder

Edited February 2, 2018 by Badder

[Badder]

Just bits and pieces....

 

Murky dark green 'moss' replaced with fresh green. This has subsequently been given a few washes to take tone it down a bit.

 

Shelving/bench in place. This will be loaded up with pots, tins, tools, etc I think. I will have to load it up before fixing the porch in place. The shelving is raised off the ground here to allow for the diamond floor tiles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here you can see the overlay  fixed in place for the cornerstones to the far right of the building. They need sanding down to the correct level.

 

 

And now for the lower rear wall......I've been putting it off. Can you tell?

 

TFL

Badder

Edited February 1, 2018 by Badder

[Ozzy]

Nice use of the grass Matt on the roofing, looks very effective.

[Badder]

50 minutes ago, Ozzy said:

Nice use of the grass Matt on the roofing, looks very effective.

The original clumps were cut out with a scalpel... well, most of them were, but the backing was sometimes visible and had to be trimmed off or hidden somehow. In the end I took to scraping the fibres off the backing and dumping them on pre-applied blobs of medium CA. I further secured the fibres with thin CA. The replacement clumps were applied in the same way. This time I won't be over-darkening them though!

 

Rearguards,

Badder

 

[Badder]

Let it not be said that I stick to my plan of attack. 

Instead of getting on with making the lower rear wall, I've diverted my attention to the moss and lichen on the walls. Basically, most of this moss and lichen will form an under-layer for creepers and ivy, so I wanted to 'sketch it out' those areas a bit better. Again, I used my Japanese 'Grit Paints', dabbed on with an old stiff brush. Some, I worked into the joints in the stonework, most I dabbed on the surface.

Earlier, I experimented with the flowers from Cow Parsley, the petals of which look absolutely fantastic for ivy and other leaves. From previous experiments I knew that the flowers, if left to air dry, go limp and yucky. So today I tried baking them in the oven instead. The method was much better than air-drying, with most of the petals surviving and holding their shape, but they also shrank to an even smaller size. Whilst they might prove useful to someone, sticking thousands of tiny ( 1mm ) leaves to my building is something I am not prepared to do!

So, experiment number 2 is now in progress. A report will follow later.

 

 

Meanwhile here's some pics. Be aware that the grit paint is freshly applied in these photos and there is some sheen where the medium has not dried.

 

 

 

TFL

Badder

Edited February 1, 2018 by Badder

[Badder]

Oh, and here's the kit's chimney. I decided not to use the plaster cast copy as it is too difficult to hollow it out neatly to the required depth. A bit of weathering to do and then I have to decide whether to shape the bottom of the chimney and fit it to the roof tiles, or cut a hole in the roof and insert the chimney. Whichever, I will be hiding and protecting the join with an apron of 'lead sheeting',(CA'd paper) as would be the case in real life.

The chimney's position is a no brainer: right hand gable wall, front. There's no window below here, so plenty of room for a fireplace.

TFL

Badder

Edited January 31, 2018 by Badder

[Vince1159]

Over the last few weeks i've been watching a rerun of Secret Army and this reminds me of some of the places aircrew were hidden,nice job Badder...

[Badder]

2 hours ago, Vince1159 said:

Over the last few weeks i've been watching a rerun of Secret Army and this reminds me of some of the places aircrew were hidden,nice job Badder...

Thanks Vince.

I remember watching Secret Army as a kid, but I've not watched the re-run. Perhaps I should. Wasn't the Gestapo bloke also the Headmaster in Grange Hill, or is my memory playing tricks on me?

 

Rearguards,

Badder

[Vince1159]

I've had a look through the cast list but can't see his name,i watched it as well but it's fantastc to be able to watch it again,you don't really appreciate it when your 12 (still got a crush on Juliet Hammond though)....

[Badder]

7 hours ago, Vince1159 said:

I've had a look through the cast list but can't see his name,i watched it as well but it's fantastc to be able to watch it again,you don't really appreciate it when your 12 (still got a crush on Juliet Hammond though)....

I'm not sure if she's still alive, but if she is you might have a chance!

 

 

 

[Badder]

Not much work over the weekend, what with removing 4 heaped wheelbarrows of weeds from the garden. (I like to let everything grow for the wildlife and only remove it once everything has gone to seed.)

Anyway, here's some stuff on some shelves. Don't ask why the owner is using U.S. Army issue ammunition boxes to keep his tools in.  Once the window bars are added I doubt anyone will notice what they are.

 

I'm thinking of making a raincoat and hanging it on a peg next to the door.

 

TFL

Badder

Edited January 31, 2018 by Badder

[Badder]

Chimney dry-fitted.  This is sited on the kit's plastic section of roof, not the plaster cast.

Rather than cut the base of the chimney to fit the tiles and glue it directly to them, I decided to sink a hole through the roof and insert the entire chimney. This meant that I didn't have to commit to cutting and thereby fixing its height. It also means a more secure fixing when glue is applied. 

The hole was cut roughly with a hot scalpel blade, the thin plastic being a breeze to deal with, and then filed to size with a flat file.  A CA'd paper apron will cover the join, mimicking lead sheet.

 

TFL

Badder

Edited January 31, 2018 by Badder

[Ozzy]

You've been nice and busy, I like the chimney I've been thinking about how and where to put a chimney on my build.

[Badder]

10 hours ago, Ozzy said:

You've been nice and busy, I like the chimney I've been thinking about how and where to put a chimney on my build.

Well, don't put it directly above a window or doorway!

Find where best to place the fire/stove if you were living there, then slap the chimney above that, or slightly offset if there's a kink in the flue.

 

Rearguards,

Badder.

 

PS went to my LHS today, the one by the theatre, and the damned place has closed down, owners retired. No warning, nothing. I first went there 35 yrs ago and have known them all this time. grrrrr

 

[Ozzy]

13 hours ago, Badder said:

Well, don't put it directly above a window or doorway!

Find where best to place the fire/stove if you were living there, then slap the chimney above that, or slightly offset if there's a kink in the flue.

 

Rearguards,

Badder.

 

PS went to my LHS today, the one by the theatre, and the damned place has closed down, owners retired. No warning, nothing. I first went there 35 yrs ago and have known them all this time. grrrrr

 

 

Thanks for the advice Badder, I will steer clear of windows and doors. I'm sorry to hear about your LHS and not even a closing down sale.

[Badder]

I decided to fix the chimney in place as it was getting on my nerves. No, not really. The problem was that I could only make the lead 'flash' when the chimney was fixed in place. I made the flash using strips of graph paper and folded it around the chimney, overlapping it to create a waterproof seal as in real life. I wasn't too fussy with the dimensions, figuring that the builder didn't want to cut lead sheet any more than necessary. Once in place, I then soaked the paper with thin CA.

 

Obviously, there was a danger of some CA overspill due to capillary action, so I wanted to get this job done now and have a chance to re-paint the area, rather than have to do it later when the building is finished.

 

As anticipated, there was some capillary action and so there is some tidying up to do. But first to paint the lead sheet.

 

TFL

Badder

Edited January 31, 2018 by Badder

[Badder]

I gave the lead 'flash' a coat of Humbrol Aluminium, and whilst this was still wet, a dry-dusting with Humbrol Black Weathering Powder. Once the Aluminium was dry, I washed over with thinners, spreading the black around randomly before applying a couple of spots of Rust Weathering Powder. I then quickly wiped over with a thinners loaded brush, letting the rust and black run and revealing some of the underlying aluminium and some white paper. The white paper looks like white lead oxide.... a fortuitous accident if ever there was one!

 

 

 

TFL

Badder

Edited February 1, 2018 by Badder

[Badder]

Well, I've been putting it off for far too long!

As you can see, the cast cracked in several places due to some impatience on my part, but I'm not at all worried. A bit of CA fixed those. And the cracks won't show anyway, covered as they will be with ivy. I didn't bother gluing the lintel back together at the doorway so the wall is actually in two sections and explains why it looks a bit wonky in the middle.

I used the same mould as was used to make the section above, and again, I will be filling in the doorway.

I am having to think about what to do with the windows.....

 

 

TFL

Badder

Edited February 1, 2018 by Badder

[Major_Error]

I do think those cracks will be nice and look like an very old wall (and a victim for explotion?)

But is the doorway wider on the top?

 

8-)

[Badder]

4 hours ago, Major_Error said:

I do think those cracks will be nice and look like an very old wall (and a victim for explotion?)

But is the doorway wider on the top?

 

8-)

Hi Major,

In real life a stone block wall wouldn't crack like that. Bricks do sometimes crack diagonally across the middle, the crack propagating from brick to brick along the load lines, but solid stone blocks are far stronger and the cracks would more likely propagate along the mortar lines. (As can be seen in the first building in this project) So for the sake of realism, the cracks have been filled with medium CA, and will be hidden under moss and ivy.

 

As for the wonky doorway, yes it looks wider at the top because it is. The entire cast snapped in half where the door is, so in the photo the two halves are just propped up against the building and I didn't bother to line them up exactly.

 

 

Rearguards,

Badder

 

[Badder]

The two halves of the cast have been carved and filed to shape, so as to fit the building. Their top edges now sit flush against the wooden baton that stretches across the rear of the building at ceiling height. I will fill the gap between the lower and upper wall sections with plaster.

 

Looking at the window apertures, you can see that the wall is only one layer of stone thick, so I will cast two more window surrounds and stick those on the inside so as to give the impression that the entire wall is double-thickness.

 

And although it's probably not necessary, my conscience says that I should reinforce the entire wall on the inside with PVA and strips of cardboard.

 

 

TFL

Badder

 

PS, well done Vettel!

Edited February 1, 2018 by Badder

[PlaStix]

Just been catching up - more wonderful progress. 

Kind regards,

Stix