Flocking Large Areas, PLEASE HELP!
RandyGr
In article <6qkufh$8a2i$1...@newssvr04-int.news.prodigy.com>, "RONALD P BONYAK"
<TOOL...@prodigy.net> writes:
>Also, one more question, whenver I flock I put down lots of elmers
>>glue then put down tons of flock, pat it all down with my hand and after it
>>dries I brush off all the extra flock you can still see the white
>underneath
>>the flock (btw - im using styrofoam as my board)! Any help would be greatly
>>appreciated!
>
>
>Start by painting the styrophome green, asuming thats the color of the
>flock, no, wait, that would melt the styrophome. Ummm... the only thing I
>can think of is put like paper on the styrophome, and pin it down, cover the
>pins with trees, and paint it green. Dont use glue, use the paint for
>flocking, it'll stick right to it.
No, you can paint it. And this is a great idea. But make sure to use a paint
that will not melt the styrofoam. I would suggest either a base coat of primer
(usually won't melt it) or a special type of paint that florists use. You can
pick that up at hobby supply stores that sell craft stuff.
And some melting would be ok. How many real battlefields were perfectly flat? A
litle texture is ok, just as long as the models can still stand up straight.
Let us know how it works.
Ducalguard
acrylic paint (just a hell of a lot cheaper than the 1 oz pots we all buy).
A good source or base material is the rigid styrofoam insulation that you
can pick up in 4X8 sheets at any hardware stores. We've all seen these
sheets...they're very hard on the outside because they have a fiberglass shell
with styrofoam insides. They're cheap and lightweight...costing about $8.00
for a 4x8 sheet of the stuff. Once I have my shell, I cut the sheets down into
more manageable 2x4 sheets, giving me 4 of these...
I then paint them green, which I had Sears mix up for me using the green
that I base my figures with...and it matches perfectly. For example, if you
want to use Citadel goblin green...take a bit of it and paint it on a non
absorbant or low absorbancy white piece of paper or material. After it is dry,
take it to Sears and they'll color match it using their machines...great way to
get a gallon of paint for a little under $12.00.
After you've painted your boards, then paint on a thin coat of water and
glue. Take model railroad flock (which is basically just sawdust) and spread
it over the glue. Touch up any areas that you may have missed or that aren't
that even and thick. Once this is dry, remove the excess and, if this is the
effect you want, spray down the boards with a water, glue, detergent mixture
(or, conversely you can pick up some terrain glue from Woodland scenics...great
for this). You can spray it through an good water bottle. I normally go for
two spray downs...letting the glue/water/detergent mixture dry in between.
This makes a very very hard shell of ground on your board.
Now, if you're like me...I hate the color of green that the model railroad
flock or grass comes in....talk about neon :) So, as a final preparation, I
paint the entire board with my green paint that sears had mixed up for me.
My boards are a little more complex than that as I have tree bases mounted
permanently on the boards and trenches sculpted into them, with craters,
etc...keeping the detail as low to the ground as possible...meaning no tall
buildings or trees sticking out. What you have after you're done is 4 modular
terrain boards ready for tons of gaming. I made mine about 2 years ago for
Warzone demos and I'm still using them...with a small touch up of paint here
and there...they will last a long, long time (at least 100+ days of use for
mine so far). Hope this helps.
Doug
Kirk Macdonald
Go to a house paint store, Home Improvement Warehouse-type place or a
DYI store (is that what they call it in the UK?) and have them mix up a
quart of something matching Goblin Green. Cheap, doesn't melt styrofoam
and matches your bases - if they're Goblin Green. I've painted a 4x6
gaming table and approx. 14 misc. hills, outcroppings and building bases
and still have some left over. Mix glue with the paint and use it to
hold down your flock.
Water down the elmers glue before you add the flock. The glue has a
tendency to surface dry, "skim over", quite quickly and then your flock
won't stick well. I've heard of some people adding a couple of drops of
dish detergent to the glue or paint to break down the surface tension;
haven't tried this myself, though.
--
Kirk "Gimme Danger!" Macdonald
Reply to : hag...@NOCHEESEgte.net - Remove NOCHEESE from my address to
reply
These are my own opinions and do not reflect those of The Boeing Co.
Ryoga Hibiki
Masters
It's not acid based
(florist use it)
And it comes in many colors
Ryoga
Tom Bryant
RandyGr wrote:
>
> In article <6qkufh$8a2i$1...@newssvr04-int.news.prodigy.com>, "RONALD P BONYAK"
> <TOOL...@prodigy.net> writes:
>
> >Also, one more question, whenver I flock I put down lots of elmers
> >>glue then put down tons of flock, pat it all down with my hand and after it
> >>dries I brush off all the extra flock you can still see the white
> >underneath
> >>the flock (btw - im using styrofoam as my board)! Any help would be greatly
> >>appreciated!
> >
> >
> >Start by painting the styrophome green, asuming thats the color of the
> >flock, no, wait, that would melt the styrophome. Ummm... the only thing I
> >can think of is put like paper on the styrophome, and pin it down, cover the
> >pins with trees, and paint it green. Dont use glue, use the paint for
> >flocking, it'll stick right to it.
>
> No, you can paint it. And this is a great idea. But make sure to use a paint
> that will not melt the styrofoam. I would suggest either a base coat of primer
> (usually won't melt it) or a special type of paint that florists use. You can
> pick that up at hobby supply stores that sell craft stuff.
> And some melting would be ok. How many real battlefields were perfectly flat? A
> litle texture is ok, just as long as the models can still stand up straight.
> Let us know how it works.
I would like to add a couple of suggestions.
For starters, use Latex paints or Acrylics. Both are water based and
shouldn't hurt the Styrofoam. Also if you are adventuresome and have
access to a plentiful source of sand or fine gravel, mix some of this in
your base coat. Please sift this for any plant or animal matter (read as
small bones) beforehand. Paint this on your terrain. Now depending on
the color you're using (I work with white) you may wish to "green the
next coat, Here is where craft paints are nice regardless of what that
fanboy twit at the GW store will tell you.
Get a couple of different shades of green, say a forest green and a
leaf green and a couple three browns for bare earth/different soil
colors. In the brown shades I use raw sienna, raw umber and burnt umber,
sometimes I throw in a little raw sienna too. Paint these colors on in
splotches, with a little more green than brown, and lighter greens. The
browns will be good in areas that might wear thin from use on the
terrain piece.
After this dries, paint on some elmers glue and start flocking! Do
this over a cake pan or other enclosed area where you can recover the
unused flock. Tap or shake the piece lightly after it is coated to
remove any of the really loose flock and set it aside to dry. After it
as set up for a couple of hours you may want to receipt it. I would
suggest only going over the really thin spots or areas of likely wear.
When it is finally set the work should be sealed. The cheap and dirty
way is to get an old spray bottle, the kind window cleaner comes in is
fine. In fact, have about a teaspoonful of window cleaner in and add
your glue and water. The glue and water should mix in a 3 to 1 ratio.
Shake it up and start spraying. The window cleaner helps to break up the
surface tension of the glue enough so it will spray effectively. Dish
soap may do the same thing, never tried it though. Soak the piece down
with the thinned glue and let this dry. repeat it a time or two more and
you should have a terrain piece that is virtually indestructible. Good
luck.
Tom Bryant
Myrmidon
Tom Bryant wrote:
> When it is finally set the work should be sealed. The cheap and dirty
> way is to get an old spray bottle, the kind window cleaner comes in is
> fine. In fact, have about a teaspoonful of window cleaner in and add
> your glue and water. The glue and water should mix in a 3 to 1 ratio.
> Shake it up and start spraying. The window cleaner helps to break up the
> surface tension of the glue enough so it will spray effectively. Dish
> soap may do the same thing, never tried it though. Soak the piece down
> with the thinned glue and let this dry. repeat it a time or two more and
> you should have a terrain piece that is virtually indestructible. Good
> luck.
>
> Tom Bryant
Good suggestions Tom! Also, as someone pointed out to me, Hair spray - which
is basically a form of thin Lacquer is also good as a sealant. Just use several
coats of hair spray on the flocking. It has the added bonus that your terrain will
smell nifty for a while too.
Myrmidon
Tom Bryant
Yeah the old Cheap "Final Net" stuff. Hey that reminds me I have an
antique hutch that needs refinishing...
Tom Bryant
Steve Miller
like a FRENCH whorehouse for a while....hmm....fresh fish? Blind man
passing a fish market? exclaimed "Howdy Ladies". It's late....old joke
Tom Bryant wrote in message <36CE143F...@muskegon.com>...
Nathan Mitchell
of my Grandfather's cronies was an old geezer who was a veteran of Spanish
American War, one of Teedy R.'s rough Riders. When he and Grandaddy would swap
war stories, Grandaddy was a WWI vet, they would always tell soljer jokes.
That joke was one from the Spanish American War.