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This step was started by filling in the flat areas
of the town module. Three-quarter inch thick pink foam was used for this
area. Foam was cut roughly to shape and placed on top of the road bed
areas. A black marker was used to trace the cut line from underneath the
tables. A step was cut into the foam at the lines to overlap the plywood
sub-road bed. By cutting the step one half inch deep then cutting in
from the edge a one quarter inch flange was left. This flange butted up
to the one quarter inch thick Homabed and was flush with the top of the
road bed. A chamfer cut on the edge of the foam created a drainage ditch
along side the track. Once the foam was fitted to the sub-road bed the
perimeter of the tables were marked on the foam and cut using a straight
edge. Foam was glued to the framework and sub-road bed using Liquid
Nails for Projects and a few well placed roofing nails to hold it in
place. Liquid Nails for Projects is a water based adhesive that will not
dissolve the foam. Other Liquid Nails products are solvent based and
should be avoided with foam. I found a thin layer of adhesive applied to
each surface with a notched trowel worked best. The adhesive was allowed
to get slightly tacky before assembly. Weighs and/or clamps kept foam in
position for twenty-four hours. Overnight is enough time for the
adhesive to set to prevent movement but it does not set up fully for quite a
few days afterward. The elevated areas
were built up with two inch thick foam roughly cut to contours. I used a
heavy breakaway blade knife with the blade extended. I prefer a knife to
a saw to prevent sawdust. I have heard a serrated kitchen knife works as
well but have not tried it. There was great deal of cutting and fitting
and scrapping of sections before everything came together. The nice
thing about the foam is it can be held together with pins or thin
finishing nails as bits are fitted. Once a level or two was to my liking
I glued the pieces together and let it set for a few days before moving
ahead with the next levels. The foam was cut to shape on the outside and
inside so the "mountain" is mostly hollow. A future plan is to model the
inside of the mine so it will be visible through a window in the rear
fascia.
After the layers were in place the knife and a
Sur-Form rasp were used to sculpt the foam further. The foam work took
a while and was probably one of the most time consuming parts of
the project so far. Lots of foam slivers and rasp chips to vacuum up! I
found if you take your time and get the basic shapes to your liking (as
well as thinking a lot about how the rest will look) the later parts go
much quicker. Next step is covering the foam with plaster cloth and
making and attaching rock castings. |
