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How to Create a river on a grade

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How to Create a river on a grade
Posted by Kudlor on Friday, December 19, 2014 9:49 AM

Modeling the Fraser River canyon in British Columbia and want to have the river fall about 4" over some 12' -- modeling in N scale.  Normal river costruction is on a level surface with scenery brought down to river's edge BEFORE pouring the water resin. 

I'm thinking of pouring the River on a flat surface first (damming the edges), next placing the poured River on the layout at the desired grade and then bringing the scenery down to it.

You think this is a good approach? Any suggestions?  Thanks!

 

 

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Posted by JoeinPA on Friday, December 19, 2014 10:14 AM

That's probably the only way you can do it. I can't think of any other method that would prevent the resin from running downhill and pooling at the bottom. I guess you could arrange the river bed as a series of steps and waterfalls but that wouldn't fit your intended scene.

Joe

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Posted by Tom M. on Friday, December 19, 2014 10:37 AM
You might want to stair step your river bed at irregular intervals, thicknesses, and angles. At each step, you would then need to construct some rapids to provide the transition between levels. I've done this on a couple of swift water streams. Immediaely above each step, I create a dam using clear latex caulk, and then tease additional caulk into flowing rapids. The latex caulk holds the resin at each level. With care and a bit of additional dry brushing to create a frothy foam look, the dams are almost invisible. Good luck, Tom
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Posted by mlehman on Friday, December 19, 2014 10:39 AM

It is going to look weird if you do that. Once it cures, it should reflect light like water does and that will cause it to seem out of place.

I'd suggest pouring multiple coats of resin, which will result in a better end product than one massive pour. Resin does flow freely, but there is surface tension still. Once it gets thin enough, it tends to adhere, rather than keep flowing.

This will also aid in implanting stuff in the river bottom, as the first layer(s)  can be used to attach things, then covered with subsequent pours. I take it no whitewater in this stretch? You can still bury cotton or polyfiber in the river to make it look like swiftly flowing, turmoiled water. Pouring multiple layers also helps here. First layer to attach, fill with subsequent layers, then fill several more to make sure it's all "underwater." If you do want whitewater, then leave som exposed and teased into shape with a light coating of resin.

The trick here is to pour just enough to cover each time, without creating too large a pool at the bottom. Have something to catch or dam it the first couple of pours, then you'll know about how much to mix with subsequent pours.

Mike Lehman

Urbana, IL

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Posted by rrebell on Friday, December 19, 2014 11:09 AM

Why don't you paint in the illusion of depth and coat with gloss medium, I only use resin for areas that need real depth like ponds and things as resin always has a chance of not turning out right even though it usually dose.

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Posted by gandydancer19 on Friday, December 19, 2014 11:54 AM

Poured resin simulates still water.  You know of gloss medium, I'm sure.  Hobby Lobby has other thicker gel mediums that can be used for moving water that you don't have to pour.

Elmer.

The above is my opinion, from an active and experienced Model Railroader in N scale and HO since 1961.

(Modeling Freelance, Eastern US, HO scale, in 1962, with NCE DCC for locomotive control and a stand alone LocoNet for block detection and signals.) http://waynes-trains.com/ at home, and N scale at the Club.

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Posted by MisterBeasley on Friday, December 19, 2014 12:49 PM

How do you want the water to look?  That's not a horrible amount of slope, but if you're looking for flat water you should lay it flat, particularly if it's near the front of your layout.  Look to a real river for examples.  A sloped river with flat water isn't going to look right.  A model railroad has vertical stuff on it, so there will be a direct reference and the water should be perpendicular to those.

One thing you might do is stair-step the river, but make the steps behind scenery or structures so the river disappears for a while.  If done right, you'll hardly notice that it changes levels.  If appropriate, you might want to put in a dam or a small waterfall, or perhaps some rapids.  A lock would be an iteresting scenic feature, too.

It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse. 

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Posted by mlehman on Friday, December 19, 2014 2:19 PM

gandydancer19
Poured resin simulates still water.

Depends.

And I want to say that your gloss medium suggestion can also work, I just want to clarify that resin isn't restricted to still water.

My waterfalls are poured resin, over a core of polyfiber and plastic wrap. That's where I came up with the advice to pour in small increments to take advantage of resin's tendency to adhere. If I can do vertical, anything between that and horizontal will work with a little practice.

Anyway, here's how this one came out...

Mike Lehman

Urbana, IL

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Posted by Marc_Magnus on Friday, December 19, 2014 3:55 PM

Hello,

Nice to see people modeling in Nscale.

I don't know how hard is your riverbed but here is the method I have used whith excellent results and in a quiet fast time.

Following a few pictures of a riverbed I made for a diorama which was the subject of an article in an Belgian train magazine.

The riverbed itself was made from piece of gatorfoam glued togheter whith an hot glue gun like a stair. This allow the river to go down on a good incline whith numerous falls. 

 

The river bed was decorated whith real dirt, sand and pieces of rock, everything was glued whith white glue, the finished water was brushed whith Gloss Medium acrylic to form waves and ripples.

I didn't have used resin for water but a acrilyc product similar to the one offered by Woodland Scenic, it work fine and easy to use.

Falls were made whith translucid bathroom silicon; the falling water effect was achieved by gently brushing the silicon whit a small piece of a comb; when dry white acrilyc paint was brushed on the silicon to give a more realistic water effect.

 

For your question, I will do the riverbed whith gatorfoam because it's easy to shape, rigid and made in a minute; the whole riverbed on my diorama was made in 10 minutes; for the falls you could use the silicon method, but for long falls, I would use a piece of plexi or piece of translucid plastic, flexible enough to take some shape, covered whith silicon and made in form whith the comb method.

The big falls under the bridge is a piece of plexiglass covered whith silicon.

 

 

Merry Christmas.

Marc

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