snow for dioramas

Woodland Scenics makes a decent snow, and it's eapecially good in that scale... It has some "sparkle" that makes it look pretty good.   Personally, I use baking soda for snow, but Doog have a seizure if I recommend it... I've never had any problems with it, but he has a couple horror stories using it...

I usually paint my celluclay ground and "drifts" with white latex paint, and use the baking soda on folliage and the model(s) and tires/tracks... 

Some guys have used flour, but I'd advise against it.  It turns yellow and attracts critters unless it's REALLY sealed well... Weevils will get into it and a scale-foot long bug doesn't usually work on a diorama...

 Here is my 1/72nd Panther.  I used talcum powder sealed with hairspray

DO NOT USE BAKING SODA!!!!!

Here's the thread about it, and all the problems it can cause--not just my experiences, but several modelers. Hans has just been pure lucky!

Paste it into your browser...

/forums/827973/ShowPost.aspx

Use Woodland Scenics snow powder, or talcum powder is also a viable option for snow in 1/72.

HAHAHA! It was only a matter of time

Luv ya, Doog!

Steve

Hans has just been pure lucky!

Some would say almost magical...

hi,

  woodland scenics makes a product called winter effects ,it has snow,and ice effects ,i found it in my local AC MOORE ,its meant for diorama and school projects,they have other kits for rock making and water effects,desert dios,ect,  many uses and bases.

   hope this helps

the doog wrote:

DO NOT USE BAKING SODA!!!!! Here's the thread about it, and all the problems it can cause--not just my experiences, but several modelers. Hans has just been pure lucky! Paste it into your browser... /forums/827973/ShowPost.aspx Use Woodland Scenics snow powder, or talcum powder is also a viable option for snow in 1/72.

DoogIf memory serves your's reacted on a pastic model, correct? I used baking powder on my last with very little on plastic..Does the "reaction" go for ground work as well? I sealed mine up best I could.....Do I have a time bomb on my hands or just heartbreak? Many thanks!

Doog's dilema (sounds like a title, don't it?) with baking soda can be read here:

/forums/827973/ShowPost.aspx

I've never had anything happen even remotely echoing his experience, but that's just me talkin'... I've used it for snow as well as for adding texture to muddy tires & tracks and for exhaust system and general hull & track rust... 

So maybe just a 50/50 chance huh?...I just wondered what the difference in powder and soda is, Ever use powder Col.? And If luck has anything to do with it I'm screwed!

"I'm travelin' down the road, I'm flirtin' with disaster."

It's not a question of if, but when. Been there, done that.

Use something else, or just wait for the ooze.

Powdered Epsom Salts, (Magnesium Sulfate) is a good home-brewed alternative. You need to grind the crystals up though, like with a mortar and pestle. No ooze, no critters, no worries...

I use powdered silica. Chemically inert, stable, nothing eats it. Just don't breathe the stuff. Can you say pseudovolcanopneumosiliconiosis?

OK Hans....your case is an enigma. Maybe certain paints are less reactive then others. Sodium Bicarbonate is amphoteric, meaning it reacts to both acids and bases. I'm not familiar with the pH ranges of model paints, but I'll bet there is a noticeable range above and below a neutral pH of 7. In any event, Sodium Bicarbonate is not inert and decomposes readily, both thermally and chemically. Why risk screwing up your models when there are better materials readily available?

It took probably 10 years for it to catch up with me, but it made a mess of many of my models, never again...

I dunno...

Could be because I don't mix it with anything... I mean, it's just "snow" sitting on celluclay... I spray glue onto the tempera-painted groundwork, sprinkle it with soda, knock off the excess, done... When I sprinkle it on a model, it's straight and not mixed with anything either, just hairspray or water/white glue for a fixative...

I've used it to add texture to "rust" for exhaust systems too though, with no issues... 

Hans, with what I've read of your modeling habits, your models probably aren't around long enough to see any negative results fro the use of baking soda!

Don't you regularly cannibalize and reso them?

Hey--wait a minute!  Hans von Hammer, Arm and Hammer...

Maybe he's not as neutral on the subject as we might expect

Seriously, I've used baking soda in the same way that HvH describes, and I haven't had any problems yet.  I've glued it to Celluclay, used white glue (Elmer's) brushed onto the surface first, and I've also used it to represent snow on armor and on soft plastic Italeri GI figures.

Kykeon wrote:

Can you say pseudovolcanopneumosiliconiosis?

NO.

Kykeon wrote:

Well, then I guess you aren't going to like floccinaucinihilipilification any better....

Flozzynozzynolipfication. My kids laid that one on me when they were trying to be Smarmy know it alls.

de009 wrote:

i am working on a kursk dio with a tiger tank and a few infantry in 1/72 scale any suggestions with making snow                                 de009

             wake up with a bang