Hello model maker and wargamer friends!
I want to present you our efficient, quick and easy way of scenery building based in silicone moulds. All our models were done with this technique without measuring, just by combining different pieces from our moulds.
Our buildings are made of E-35 plaster covered with polyurethane resin to harden the end result in a way never seen before with this material. (See the Resin Plaster section on the website).
Mix plaster with water until you have a thick paste, wet your mould with a little bit of water to allow the plaster to flow better into the details and to avoid air bubbles. You can use a water spray to do this and mix it with a 10% of glass cleaner, which will help eliminating the superficial tension of the silicone.
For small details as door knobs, bottles, chests, etc. use an unsharpened tool to make the plaster cover all the details. Vibration also helps with the elimination of air bubbles. To do so hit your mould on the side slightly and repeatedly, or just hit harder the surface (table) where the mould is sitting.
Use a rigid flat instrument (a measuring ruler for example) to level the top surface of the mould once the plaster is applied.
Now we have to texturise the interior face of the pieces. To do so, use a sponge. This step must be done during the hardening, just before the plaster gets too rigid but once it has begin to solidify. This process will give the interior of the pieces the perfect look and will let you paste window and door frames, wooden planks, furniture, etc.
This is how a texturised wall looks with this technique and some windows for a ruined house.
Now we’ll learn to customise your pieces:
This is an optional step but it will let you combine our pieces in new ways which will allow new combinations and building options. It consists of adding more plaster over your hardened piece to create a 90¼ degrees angle. It’s better if you attach the piece to a flat surface first and to limit the angle with a set-square. Once its dry you proceed to draw the same rock drawing as the rest of the piece. It will take you no time to do it. In this example we have also erased the window frame and we have closed the roof using the same technique.
Here on the left we can see two original pieces and how we have modified them quickly and easily with a saw and tools many of you I’m sure you already possess in your workshops.
We have eliminated windows and doors, we have removed some angles from some pieces and some of them have been stuck to each other. We have also separated the roof from the base. This simple but effective modifications give rise to many different models and different options when combining them.
In this picture we have set two different buildings that come out from the original pieces. We encourage you to create your own combinations using your imagination and of course, our pictures for inspiration. It is not necessary to measure in any way, which shortens the process of building and lets you enjoy your finished creations in no time.
Here is another example where we have cut the pieces and we have stuck them in different ways to create new structures. In some cases using real wood to cover lines helps hiding the ugly unions. And if you don’t have access to wood, just use one of our moulds that include wood texture!!!
Here we can see that by using one mould different buildings can be made. Here we have used mould #22 and for the roofs mould #41. Roofs can be created using other techniques of course, but it will be more time consuming.
Here we have built a huge house using the previous modifications. You can build them as you wish and make them modular. With our pictures and your imagination you will be able to change the layout several times without the need of casting the mould lots of times.
Our moulds include some pieces in the outside part of them, they are for free (like the wooden texture). You can use the same technique to reproduce them. In this case they are wood planks, with a little bit of imagination you can combine them to create all kinds of furniture (benches, chairs, tables, etc). Use your techniques and mix them with ours and you will have an excellent range of scenery and terrain in no time!
To cast these pieces we have used E-35 plaster, polyurethane resin and some epoxy at some points. It’s advisable to reproduce the smaller pieces with resin.
You can see the small pieces painted and the furniture (tables and chairs) made of plaster and treated with our Resin Plaster technique (see section in the website).
All these pieces are included in mould #21
We hope our system is of great help to you all!
Thanks for your visit!