As the title suggests..hopefully, I'm looking for ways to create a water scene texture, or printing where My double track swing bridge has sat for the past 7yrs.on painted plywood. It does work, but I would like to finally finish it..God willin' LOL.
It needs to be 28'' wide x by 32'' long, cannot be over 1/8'' thick. I have done many diarama's with sea scenes, choppy and wavy, but nothing like this. I have a few idea's, but I would like to hear from other's and their opinion's. I'm inclosing a pic' of the type of texture that I would like to try and capture. The color would be ideal also.
All comments Welcome.
Take Care!
Frank
There is a rather simple method of replicarting the rippled surface of water in a harbor.
Just glue a piece of so called "ingrain wallpaper" to the base, paint it in a dark, greenish/bluish black (or any color you want to have). When the color is dry, add a layour of glossy varnish - that´s all!
Ulrich,
I too thought of a similar way and it does appear to be the most viable and easy.
I also considered instead of the gloss varnish, use crystal clear .020 Acetate, it may give it more depth. Will have to do some experimenting with both ways.
Thank You for Your reply...hope things are getting better for You.
PS. This Tug will eventually be docked in it:
I built my car float as a removeable module. It sits on a foam base with a hardboard frame. The first step was to simply paint the base with flat black acrylic paint. I added a few bits of dark brown here and there, too.
It really only needed one thin pour of Envirotex Lite. I tinted the resin pretty heavily with black and dark green.
I did not mix the resin thouroughly enough, so I got into the situation of resin that never hardens. The solution was to simple mix up another small batch, well-mixed this time, and pour it over. The whole thing set up just fine.
Once I had the second pour on, I added some "floating vegetation" by dipping a toothpick in lighter green acrylic paint and applying it with a swirling motion.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Thanks Mr. B that is a good idea also.....looks good, But My problem is..it can't be over 1/8'' thick. The Double track swing bridge is operable and the center base that is screwed to the plywood has a lip on it that another base fits over with all the motor, ring gear and bridge shaft fit over and just rest inplace and it has to be perfectly level to work and be able to remove it when I would have to work on it. The end piers are also screwed to the plywood base, but they really can handle a thicker water and not interfere with the bridge working and they are also perfectly level, the center is the problem and it can't be lowered to allow thicker water.
It works just perfect the way it sits...took some time getting it aligned, leveled with both ends of the double track mainline...LOL. I'm just going to have to take some time and take some pic's of the area....been putting it off for a long time.
Thanks for Your reply.
EDIT: I was going to post a diagram of the bridge, but Photobucket has been screwed up the last couple of days...nothing works right and it is still that way.
Frank,
just an idea - a store selling wallpaper might give you a free sample of that ingrain wallpaper stuff. Why not give a shot at it and try it?
I have seen it done that way a couple of times and it looked really good!
I am most definitely going to try that with the wallpaper for sure. I believe it should do the trick also.
Thanks again for the idea...that's about what I was thinking about...a thin vinyl/paper with a texture to it.
EDIT: Here is a diagram of the bridge,ignore the notes on it, I did that for a person some time ago that needed a little help with it. You can see the center with the base that is not very high. That bridge is 27 5/8'' inches long and works like a charm, when perfectly level:
Another method you might consider is to paint the base of the harbor a grayish green and lay a 1/8" layer of Woodland Scenics Water Effects on that. You can use a dampened soft-bristled paint brush to form the surface of the water however you like. The Water Effects goes on as a white paste but dries clear in a day or two. Be careful to avoid making air bubbles as you apply it. You should place your tugboat into the water before it dries.
Don
See all the Don's Dream World layouts at http://ddwmodelrailroad.com
All ways lead to Rome, but some may take more time to travel.
There is no standard recipe for making water scenes - some of them involve quite expensive chemical stuff, especially when sold as hobby stuff. WS Water Effects is nothing else but acrylic gel, which can be had for much less than half price of the WS stuff.
Creating a realistic replica of rippled water takes some skill, when you have to apply the waves to a flat surface. Certainly the most efficient way is to use a base which already has those ripples incorporated and comes for close to nothing.
Frank, Again, nice work on the tug. A possible method for your harbor; a sheet of plexiglass painted on the back side your color choice with water effects added to the surface. Would give some sense of depth, 1/4" plexi is fairly stout, but maybe such a large expanse of 1/8" would be too flexible.
take care and regards, Peter
HO-Velo, would you mind posting a few more close up pics and maybe some with the early painting process? I've been interested in this sort of technique but haven't seen it in person anywhere yet.
Also, thaks for the textured wallwaper tip, Mad. I'll definitely explore that option and see if it looks good in my partiular scene!
Lastly, does anyone here know of a textured plastic sheet (lexan/plexi) that has RANDOM wave textue as opposed to the all uniform shower door look? Something similar to the textured wallpaper but in sheet plastic form? Thanks!
Raised on the Erie Lackawanna Mainline- Supt. of the Black River Transfer & Terminal R.R.
Thanks again for Your reply! I may sound like I don't have much experience with water effects, but that's quite the contrary...I do..but in ship diaramas that I am not limited to how thick the water may be and still be able to produce some sort of ripple effect, with depth. I believe the wallpaper idea will work. I ordered some yesterday, but a couple of rolls of it. It sparked an idea for Me LOL.....The wall going up the stairs.
HO-Velo Frank, Again, nice work on the tug. A possible method for your harbor; a sheet of plexiglass painted on the back side your color choice with water effects added to the surface. Would give some sense of depth, 1/4" plexi is fairly stout, but maybe such a large expanse of 1/8" would be too flexible. take care and regards, Peter
Peter,
Thank You for Your kinds words. I have changed some parts and added some to the tug since the photo. One being the Davits for the Lifeboat. The kit ones were just too fragile and were bending from the weight of the boat. I had added lead small ball fish line sinkers to the inside of the boat to keep the rigging taunt. I made new ones out of brass rod. I also added a rear working deck light to the stern with Pico SMD's, they are half the size of the Nano one's. The whole top deck comes off with just a screw inside the smoke stack. Which leaves Me to another point I neglected to express. What ever I decide to use for the water, I want to be able to remove the tug from it. So any type of resin's are out...that also go's for the center pier....I must be able to remove it, for maintenance and any other problem's with the mechanic's/wiring. The center pier fits over the base which is screwed to the plywood.
My idea was to use clear plexi-glass like You said, but as thin as I can get it, might also use crystal clear Acetate, which I have already, over the painted wallpaper, with cut-outs in it for the center pier and so the tug can rest in it, rather than sitting on top of it. The whole area is made out of cabinet grade ply, perfectly flat and level, so that won't be a problem. Just got to do some experimenting...it's been there 7yrs. so it can wait a little longer......I hope I can, LOL
I like the texture of Your water in the above, I would just have to change the color some. My area is more from mountain to outskirts of city.
Thanks again.
My Envirotex pours are very thin, and would probably be good enough even if you forced them to stay under 1/8 inch. What I worry about, though, is getting the plywood sufficiently covered to hide the wood grain.
By priming the plywood with something like Kilz, using a layer or two of black paint and then a pour of tinted Envirotex, you might kill the grain look. Any ripple effect could be on top of the Envirotex, and you could exclude any areas that have a thickness restriction.
Capt. Grimekwould you mind posting a few more close up pics and maybe some with the early painting process?
My pleasure Capt. G, learned of plexi-water from Kalmbach book How To Build Realistic Model Railroad Scenery by Dave Frary. Paint: Createx acrylic. Water effects: acrylic gloss gel medium applied with a narrow popsicle type stick, technique learned from Terranscapes video.
Regards, Peter
You may find another option to explore HERE, Frank.My contribution there just occurred to me as I read the OP's post.
Wayne