Water at the edge of benchwork

[Motley]

I just carved out a river. The river is at the edge of the benchwork.

How do I keep the water in? Won't tape stick to the water?

Here's what I got...

[ollevon]

I just used plexiglass, screwed on the edge then run a bead of silicone on the inside.

[twhite]

Michael:

I don't know what you're going to be using for water, but I wouldn't worry about it sticking to the tape after it's dry.  I poured WS water on Bullard's Bar, and 'dammed' it with blue painter's tape while it dried.  After it was dry, I peeled the tape off and there was no damage to the 'water' at all.   You can see the 'water' at the edge of the layout in the photo.

The trick is to make sure that your 'dam' is absolutely leak-proof while your water is drying.  The blue painter's tape is really good for that, as it's very pliable on the surface, but comes off clean as a whistle.

That's going to be a VERY neat scene when you're done.  That bridge is terrific!

Tom

[ollevon]

here is another shot. you can just barely see the plexiglass in the lower left corner

[G Paine]

First, I would suggest that you install a facia of 1/8" tempered masonite to cover the rough surfaces of wood and styrofoam. Seal the joint between the masonite and styrofoam with clear silicone caulking. The Masonite will provide a smooth surface to apply a dam using duct tape. I use Unreal Details Magic Water, a 2 part resin for the water. It can be tinted with a drop or two of paint like Floquil roof brown or greens. Before you make a pour, be sure that there are no holes anywhere in your river - even a pinhole will drain your water onto the floor. The Unreal Details website has a lot of information about their product that can be applied to similar products.

http://www.unrealdetails.com/

[Motley]

OK I see. I'll use the blue painters tape then. Wasn't sure if it would peal off cleanly.

I'll be using Magic Water.

[richhotrain]

ollevon,

I love those scenes on your layout.  Gorgeous work.

Rich

[selector]

Just use the green painter's tape from your local hardware store, but do use your finger tips, even your thumbnails, to press it well and truly tight to the edges so that your water medium doesn't find a route to slip through.  And, place newspaper in several layers under that dam anyway.  It's cheap insurance.  Under the newspaper place a layer of plastic wrap or a garbage bag.

If the edge of the water has some tape residue when you peel off the tape, you can use WD-40, cooking oil, or even sand-paper to lift it off.

You can see the top 1/2" or so of the edge of my 'water' in this photo.  I choose to leave it bared.

[richhotrain]

ollevon

I just used plexiglass, screwed on the edge then run a bead of silicone on the inside.

I like ollevon's method of the plexiglass edge.  You can always camoflauge it further with underbrush along the edge or even a guardrail to suggest that the river is flowing underneath a road.

Rich

[MisterBeasley]

I glued a strip of styrene to the edge of the layout, like everyone else, being very careful to seal the edges.  Even then, I made sure I had something on the floor to catch any leakage.  (There wasn't any.)  Once the Envirotex was set, the styrene came off easily.

[mlehman]

I used old school casting resin for my rivers. In two cases, the rivers crossed the layout edge on a curve. I used some aluminum sheet and duct tape to form a temporary dam to hold the casting plastic in place. Peeled right off and left a clean, slick edge after things set.

[Medina1128]

Here's what I'd do:

1. Paint your river bottom before doing anything else.
2. Use a scrap piece of plywood that overlaps the "river" you carved out.
   
3. Clamp in place, then trace out the profile of the river.
4. Run a bead of silicone or acrylic latex just below that tracing. If any oozes up, just let it dry then cut it away with a hobby knife.
   
5. Mask the joint between the river and the plywood, covering up the riverbed.
6. Spray Pam cooking spray on the wood to act as a releasing agent.
7. Pour your river. Leave the plywood dam in place until you have all your layers poured. Give it plenty of time to set up.
   

I've had good luck using glossy Mod-Podge.

[yankee flyer]

OP

At the edge of my lake, If you notice there is a 1 1/4"  "Plexiglas" fence around the edge because I felt that everything was downhill from the track and didn't want the trains to end up in the water are over the side in case of a derailment.   I put the fence up and caulked the edge, then poured the WS water and covered the rough wood with strips of wood paneling.

Lots of ways to do it.

Lee

 

 

[View:http://cs.trains.com/TRCCS/themes/trc/utility/:550:0]

[ChadLRyan]

Michael,

Since your 'edge' is more that an inch or few, I would really suggest you not use just tape.. I taped off this edge on a display track I hollowed out, & the tape went a little wavy on me. From now on I will use something sturdier for a backing straight edge.

Also, something not discussed yet, is what to do with the "wicking" or webbed edge that happens on the ends. After I peeled mine, I chucked it up into a mill & took it down!  (Cuz it was easy & flat, & the mill could make an even, perfect cut in the limited space).  Then, what I did was to sand down the milling swirls & brushed on some Future, that's it! I should have sanded a little more, as some swirls & rough show, but the Future darn near erased them!!!   What do ya all think? (Lower right corner.)  The dust & smudgies on the track ties are more distracting to me.. 

 

[richhotrain]

Chad,

Unless my eyes deceive me, is that a shopping cart in the water?   LOL

Oh my, that trestle must run through a bad part of town.

Great special effect !

Rich

[G Paine]

ChadLRyan

Also, something not discussed yet, is what to do with the "wicking" or webbed edge that happens on the ends.

I agree with Chad, wicking is a problem. With Water magic, I found the edge did wick up onto the duct tape. When it was dry, I used a fine file and extra fine sandpaper to smooth it to the "water level." This left a foggy edge, so I brush painted a gloss clear coat to cover this.

Another wicking problem is Water Magic and similar products will soak up into any ground foam that it touches. The ground foam will become hard and shiney, and most of your first coat may be soaked up. Let this happen, finish your pours then add additional foam to cover up the shiney ground foam.

[ChadLRyan]

Rich, Yup, it is a shopping cart, I beleive by Gold Medal Models. I thought they were the coolest things! I snipped the nose off it to make it look embedded into the muck, & bent in the rear panel to look like gravity works. Some people that see it in real life don't realize what it is, cuz it is kind of small for non-modelers to see, I heard it called a catfish trap once..  

[wjstix]

I chose to just do it "flat". I painted the riverbed flat black and let it dry, added a wash of watered down blue acrylic paint then before it dried added a little white and light blue in spots. Then I took a dry 2" brush and gently dragged it along the paint in the direction of the river. After it all dried I added a couple of coats of Future floor wax. Oh I think I also added some small ripples with acrylic gloss medium and a small fan brush.

Don't know how well it shows, but the "water" is basically flat, maybe 1/32". Just several layers of paint and varnish....

watch?v=HfmkQnVLGLs

watch?v=AKd1sHnqmwc