Scenary question for you :)

[athaprime]

I have just tacked down chicken wire and fashioned it in the shape of rolling hills and I'm at that stage where I will be soaking paper towels in plaster and covering the chicken wire. Should I cover the chicken wire with a plastic sheet before laying the plaster soaked paper towels on the chicken wire? My concern is, if I lay the plaster soaked paper towels directly on the chicken wire I am going to get an outline of the chicken wire itself in the plaster when it dries. So, what's your advice on this? Should I lay a plastic sheet over the chicken wire first, or just go ahead and lay out the plaster soaked towels and smooth out any imperfections?

[Anonymous]

You will probabaly only see the wire mesh outline after the first layer of towels..additional layers can have a little thicker plaster on the towels.Then a final coat of plaster only, does the trick. The plastic sheeting, [ actually grocery store bags are as good as anything ] aren't a bad idea over the wire mesh first, mainly to prevent the watery plaster from running down into your benchwork. ....regards and good luck / Mike

[Anonymous]

I'm afraid plastic sheeting would prevent the plaster-soaked towels from getting a grip on the wire...you might put some plastic "UNDER the layout to prevent plaster dripping on the floor.
There's a product called Sculptamold that I like for smoothing over the top of hardshell scenery. You can find it in most hobby stores, & I believe it's available through Walthers. (www.walthers.com)
Sculptamold is a more flexible, lighter weight material than plaster... It also has a much slower working time, unlike most plaster.
I still prefer plaster for rock castings, but I really like Sculptamold for a ground cover base, & it works fine in conjunction with the plaster.
Go ahead & lay your plaster-soaked towels on the wire mesh...maybe a couple of layers. But try the Sculptamold...you can use it to do any patching, or smoothing out any irregularities you find in your hardshell base.
Good Luck!