PatKen - Start the thought process from the other end. Get a mental image of what you want the finished product to look like, then work back to the materials & methods: layered rock, tree covered hillside, gravel, etc. Foam's good for hillsides blasted with dynamite but other methods are better & easier for roling hills. An author by the name of Dave Frary is good at that stuff and wrote "How to Build Realistic Model Railroad Scenery' available from Kalmbach.
I agree with Tom, please put in your subject line a bit more about what you are insterested in. It's not fair on forum members to make the click on your post to see what you want.
What is best? That depends on who you ask. Some use foam and carve it. Foam sheets are more costly. I used cardboard strips which are almost free if you cut them from old cardboard boxes - the only expense really is the hot glue sticks. I went a little crazy with mine but you don't have to. Then I put plaster gauze over the webbing - another expense but if you order 5 lb rolls from Activa on Amazon it's much cheaper than Woodland Scenics or Scenic express:
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
Hi PatKen,
This is just a suggestion. It's generally helpful with garnering responses from other forum members if you are more explicit in your choice of subject titles - e.g. something like "Is foam best for scenery?" might be a better one? A good title helps steer the knowledgeable folks you want towards your thread and you are more likely to get an answer to your question more quickly. Given that most threads on the forum are generally queries, imagine if all of them had the exact same title of "Question?"
Again, it's just a suggestion but some forum members will pass over your thread because your subject title is nondescript...
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
Well, yes, there are other techniques. To kill two questions with the same answer, I would recommend Dave Frary's book on building scenery. He pretty much covers all the techniques in the book, including the use of plaster-coated towels over screen and the use of rubber molds. But the book does not cover benchwork, trackwork, electricals and other items that would be included in the "start to finish" phases.
Simon
Is foam the best material avaible for shaping hills, mountains and riverbed? Is there other technic used for scenery?
What would be the best comprehensive book, video and magazine for starting a project from start to finish? In your opinion.
Thank you for your anwser