Newbie here....any advice on modeling realistic looking sidewalks would be great. I was going to use Smooth it from Woodland Scenics, hope i'm on the right path. My main concern is good methods to do the curbs and the joints in the sidewalks. Thank you.
Welcome to the forums!
I haven't done any yet, but the threads I have seen use sheet styrene and often a piece of square styrene the same thickness for the curbs. You don't say what scale you are in, which will determine the approximate thickness you want to use. For joints, just a sharp hobby knife to scribe lines. Driveways, file the edge down to the slope you want. WS Smooth It that I have seen used was always for roads, though there is no reason not to use it for sidewalks, other than working close to buildings might offer a bit of a challenge to get a nice smooth, thin layer.
If you go to the right of this page you will see a search box. I know there have been several threads on this over time and you may find several that will give you a better answer than I can. Also, there are some pre-made sidewalk pieces in the Walthers catalog, but it sounds like you want to make your own.
I'm sure you'll get some more suggestions, but this will give you a start.
Have fun,
I used foam sticky tape. You can use one-sided or two-sided sticky tape. Lay it out so that it touches at right angles where there is a corner curb at an intersection, and then simply radius it to scale with a sharp hobby blade. Later, mix a bit of Plaster of Paris and some paint of a suitable mix/colour, and spread it very thinly over the exposed top and side surfaces of the tape. It should dry looking quite good. You can go back and score the expansion joints. I elected to score them first, and made sure they were visible when I spread the top coat.
-Crandell
Weclome aboard!
I use styrene sheets for my sidewalks, and Durhams Water Putty for my roads. In this first shot, I built up the white part as a base for the sidewalks, and then poured and smoothed in the putty so the entire surface was flat. I painted the putty, normally a light tan color, with a gray acrylic wash.
Next, I made a second styrene layer, which would actually be the sidewalks. To keep the buildings in place and prevent light from leaking out under them, I cut out the center of each sidewalk section in the shape of the building:
Here are the sidewalk sections, glued in place. I painted them with acrylic craft paint, in a lighter shade than the roads for contrast. The concrete lines were drawn on with a ruler and a number 2 pencil.
City sidewalks are busy, crowded places. Small details like mailboxes and fire hydrants add a lot. I've used the Walthers streetlights and operating traffic lights here, too.
By the way, if you're going to use a lot of styrene, consider buying big sheets from a plastic supplier. I ordered mine from www.usplastic.com, the Rubbermaid people. For smaller sheets, go to Wal-Mart and pick up some plastic For Sale signs. It's the same stuff, but it's a lot cheaper than when it's sold as a "hobby product."
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Mr. B:
Impressive as always.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
Thanks for all the great suggestions and pictures. Keep them coming! Oh, I forgot to mention the scale... working on HO layout with my beautiful wife. Any other tips and tricks for some first timers would be welcome. I'm excited to have stumbled on to the forum.
Hi silentman: Welcome to the forum. HO scale, styrene sidewalks scored with back of exacto knife, sq. styrene curbs, and painted aged concrete. DJ.
Great result, DJ!! Nice shot, too.
Here is a rather poor demonstration of the foam tape I was describing earlier. The tape was applied directly to extruded foam, the surface of which was also painted with a plaster of paris and paint mix to give it texture, and both were scored to represent expansion joints/pour joints.