Need 4" high 3' long curved stone retaining wall

[Anonymous]

I'm building a small HO layout with two tracks close to each other but 4" difference in height. I'd like to build a cut stone (or similar) retaining wall between the levels about 3-4 feet long and about 4 inches high. There's no room for even a drastic slope for rock and a retaining wall would look nice. It's on a curve.

Most of the wall type material I see in Walthers is 1) rigid plastic, 2) embossed paper or 3) doesn't say exactly what it is.

Any suggestions for building a curved stone retaining wall like this?

[eastcoast]

Curve could be difficult. I am having a similar problem.
I had to take the Cornerstone brickwall and cut it into sections and fit them
together as best as I could. Takes a whole lot of patience but I feel it
will look nice when done. OR....
try to shove blueboard under the higher elevation and coat with thin
layers of plaster, almost like doing joint compound. Just a thought.

[Anonymous]

The plaster thing sounds possible, but I was hoping to keep it simple. There are some embossed paper textures that I could maybe glue onto poster board and bend around but I'm not sure that will work either...

[dehusman]

Buy 1/2 or 3/8 drywall. You can get damaged 2x4 pieces for a buck or two. I prefer 1/2 in is because the plaster seems to be firmer and less crumbly. The whiter the gypsum the better usually. On one side draw a cut stone pattern. for example 1/4 x 1/2 in stones for HO. Using a utility knife (one of those retractable blade types), cut through the paper into the plaster and score the rock lines you've drawn. After you've cut the joints about 1/8 in into the plaster, start peeling the paper surface off the drywall. A large part of the paper will chip off. You can scrape off the rest. In the procrss your will make the surface uneven and rock like. When all the paper is removed, you can brush it with a stiff bru***o smooth it if its too rough or you can leave it rough.
Cut it into sections, 3-4 inches wide and gle them in place. Spackle chan be used to fix any chips, cracks or gouges.
Paint the raw drywall with a flat grey or tan latex paint. You can get mismatched colors by the gallon for $5-10 at paint stores. Then use those little bottles of acrylic craft paint from hobby/craft stores (Apple Barrel, Ceramacoat, Folk Art are some brands) in various rock colors to paint a few individual rocks contrasting colors. Thin thecraft paints with water and make washes of various browns and greys and stain the rocks. Its all water soluble, and really cheap. You can also use the drywall to make bridge abutments, tunnel portals and stone bridges.

Dave H.

[Anonymous]

Take a piece of light cardboard, bend it to the shape you want, using wood blocks or anything that can hold it in shape. liberally coat it with glue/water mixter (to get it to seep into the carboard better), when it dries you'll have a lightweight curved wall, ready to be painted and detailed.

[Anonymous]

I believe it is Faller that makes the embossed paper stonework. It looks really nice, i used it on the foundation of a o-scale building i was working on. Once i toned it down and weathered it a bit, i was very happy with the results. Plust it is very inexpensive. Bill

[Anonymous]

Dave H,

Dave H here. [:)]

QUOTE:
You can also use the drywall to make bridge abutments, tunnel portals and stone bridges.

As I often do I over look the obvious. I'm at a point where I am ready to install 2 tunnel portals. The problem is that no one makes the size I need (height).

Thanks for the drywall tip. I have a couple 18" x 36" pieces kicking around the workshop from an old project.

[vw-bug]

Use PLaster or Hydrocal. Make a form from your layout. Let it dry two-three days, then you can use your exacto to make the reliefs of the stone. They just had a good article about how to do that in a recent Narrow & Short Line Gazette.

[Anonymous]

You can use heavy cardstock as a substrate, to which you glue a paper-printed stone texture. To bend it around curves, all you need to do is score it on one side (the convex side). Since you'll be covering it with paper, it won't matter if this means the cut/scored side is towards the viewer. You can cut out a piece of cardstock to serve as the curve template, too; just trace the plan of the curve and then cut it out with your X-acto. Glue the bottom edge of the chip-board wall to the template, and then you'll have a flat flange (the bottom leg of an "L") to attach to your layout. The template will hold the curve in the shape you want while you attach the paper texture.

The only downside is that this is all paper-based, and hence prone to damage from water-based scenery methods. To bring you topography up to the top of the wall, you might need to get a little innovative, depending on what your normal scenery techniques are.