Advice on grass...(w/ UPDATED pics)

      I drill holes in the base material and stick in the grass with a drop of glue on the bottom.  There will be a lot more going in, so this is just a start right now.

   As for the Mod Podge, I was hoping to get the water about halfway up the roadwheels on the M-56 Scorpion.  The Mod Podge is the third water product I've tried.   It's really frustrating because you read about everyone's techniques for making water on here, and each is different, but I can't afford to go out and buy ten different products at once to see which one is best.  Not to mention with two kids, hobby time is at a premium.     So I guess I'll start looking for some Envirotex next then.

     Hans, do you mean shorter tufts of this stuff first (the same stuff I'm using), or lay down a base of some of the crumbly grass products?

   Thanks all for your tips so far!

I learned a new way to plant the grass last week, I used to do it the same as you, but this new way yields better results, IMHO.

Take a few strands (however many you normaly use) and get it organized . Find some thread and tie the bunch of grass in the middle, or close to it. Trim the excess thread. drill your hole like normal, but it may need to be a little larger since you'll be putting twice the grass in there. Put a drop of glue in the hole, then push the middle of the grass bundle into the hole, hiding the thread. I use a bamboo skewer to push the bundle down into the hole, but a toothpick works for smaller bundles. The thread color does not matter, since it is hidden anyway. You can also cut a little off one end of the bundle to make shorter grass.

This method makes the tufts look a little thicker and hides the root section better.

Shorter stuff would be like static grass, dirk... Aa a money-saving alternative, you might want to try sawdust, or pencil sharpener shavings... I make my own grass with a mix of the two, (my grandaughter empties the pencil sharpeners in her school into a ziplock-bag for her grampa, lol..)  plus some commercial stuff... For the sawdust, I put a regular all-purpose blade into the skillsaw and just cut up some old 2 bys, fiberbord, whatever, here and there...  I also use unraveled hemp-rope for that type of long grass as well.. A foot of it will do a couple dioramas...  I get it in Wal-mart or for darker colors, craft stores, the kind used for hanging planters..

For muddy river water, I use plaster and then top it with Pod-Podge for the gloss..

dirkpitt77 wrote:

As for the Mod Podge, I was hoping to get the water about halfway up the roadwheels on the M-56 Scorpion.  The Mod Podge is the third water product I've tried.   It's really frustrating because you read about everyone's techniques for making water on here, and each is different, but I can't afford to go out and buy ten different products at once to see which one is best.  Not to mention with two kids, hobby time is at a premium.     So I guess I'll start looking for some Envirotex next then.

Thing is with Mod Podge, ilt's essentially Elmers Glue, but thicker. It dries by evaporation of the base, which means you have considerable shrinkage and laying down a thick layer will requite exponentially  longer curing times, sometimes days before you can lay down your next layer which will then shrink down. Envirotex and Liqitex are two part epoxies. You can easiliy get a querter inch at at time and it will reamin a quarter in thick when cured. Regarless of how much you put in, you can apply another layer within 24 hours, even on very humid days. Mod Podge will take longer when it's humid since the air can't absorb the moisture as well. Resins cure chemically.

A note on resins... Don't get in a hurry and mix extra hardener to speed up curing time.. It generates a lot of heat, and this is no Sh*t, I did that, and it didn't just melt my Kingfisher, it set the model on fire...

   Holy cow!

     I'm going over to Ft. Collins later to pick up some Jeep parts.  I think a source for Envirotex.  I might swing by there and pick some up.

     Static grass!  That's the word I was looking for!   Ok, I'll try that too.   Like I said, this has been an experiment and a learning platform for me.....so this is good.  Thanks all for your help, again.

---Chris

     Well.....this is how we learn, right?

     Here are some updated pics with a few more grass clumps and some static grass also added in.  I included a pic of the two products I am using for shorter grass; Blended Turf, and Coarse turf.  In addition to those pictured I am also using the longer grass of course, and some Woodland Scenics "Fine Foliage", which actually looks like scrub brush type stuff.  Obviously I have a lot more of the longer grass to put in.  Also, I was thinking of using the Coarse Turf to create a "shaggier" transition between the really short stuff, into the longer grass and the scrub.   ***I did notice that the camera flash made everything pretty bright, and shows up the thin spots in the coverage.  Also, the ground that is not covered in grass is much brighter in the pics than in the real thing.

   As always, I appreciate everyones tips.  Fire away with your thoughts!

--Chris

Looks like you're getting there... The model RR "turf" is too small a scale for what you're doing though... It's ok to use as a filler, and to add into worn areas, but, in 1/35 scale it looks like what it is... Foam and fibre...

About the water... I know you're not done with it, right?

     Yeah, I'm gonna fill it out with some of the other stuff.

    And I have to go pick up some Envirotex, so yeah, the water is definitely not done.  Which reminds me--Hans, the Envirotex, is that the Envirotex Lite?  I did a search online and that's what's been coming up the most.  Is that the actual name?

Yeah, lite is what I got here....

You are doing a good job with your diorama, dirkpitt77. If this is your first, it will be your hardest. You will think and rethink things over and over to the point of frustration.  As you do more, you will have gained the experience in techniques and research of your dio settings. Keep it up, because it gets to be alot of fun as you challenge yourself to more complex settings.

(I am still a newbie at this..have done only half a dozen...and the members on here are incredibly skilled builders and have alot to teach!)

      That's good, cuz I have a lot to learn!  LOL

--Chris