Suigun Line dioramas

[CaptOblivious]

I've just posted the first photos of my first Suigun Line diorama:
http://akihabara.artificial-science.org/?p=75

I'm a little sad to say that the track is too high to easily splice the diorama directly into a temporary layout on the floor, as was the original plan. I'll figure something out, though...

[bill937ca]

Very interesting.   ;D  A great start.

[Bernard]

I'm very interested in seeing the rice paddies develope. I've never seem anyone modle that. You're off to a really good start.
I guess have a dog is better than a cat when it comes to trains. One of our cats has no fear of model trains.

[Martijn Meerts]

Definately a good start ;)

For the ballast bit, I generally use a brush for the ballast in between the track, I tend to put a thing layer there to add more texture (in case I'm using grey), or to cover up the grey ballast (if I'm using brown.) For the sides I tend to just use my fingers or a small teaspoon to shape the ballast. It doesn't have to be perfectly straight, so using your fingers works fine ;)

Another option could be to use "wet water" (stupid term, just regular water with a drop of 2 of dishwashing liquid), and spray that on the ballast before touching it. A few grains will stick to the brush because they're wet, but generally they're a lot more workable. Just make sure to use a sprayer that creates a very fine mist, the woodland scenics sprayer for example doesn't work, it messes up the whole ballasting. Also, don't try using only water, it'll turn into a mess =)

[CaptOblivious]

Thanks!  ;D I'm pretty excited about it, being my first foray into scenery...

...starting a new thread for ballasting...

Our dog is intrigued, yet terrified of trains. We have a cheap HO freght train we pull out for Christmas. We will put candies or treats on the flatcar, and he will watch them go round and round...and sometimes he tries to get up the nerve to try and take one. So much fun to watch...

From here, the rice should be a straight-forward application of static grass, with a twist...you'll see  ;)

[kashirigi]

If you want to connect to different sections that have slightly different elevations, maybe you could put a bridge between them. You can always make scenery for the underside of it later.

Instant gratification.

[CaptOblivious]

I thought I had photographed the results of my static grass rice paddy, but apparently not. It didn't turn out.  :'(

Anyway, this exercise has taught me a lot more about modeling than any wargaming scenery ever has! Despite the frustration, it's been very useful. I hope that y'all learn a little too :D

Read more about it here

[Bernard]

The rice paddies are really coming along.
The few times I've used atatic grass I've had problems but what a good solution using artists tape strips. Have you seen the little device that makes the grass stand up with I believe with static electricity? (But would you do that with a rice paddy?)

[CaptOblivious]

Oh, you misunderstand! The tape seems ingenious, but it doesn't work at all. Not at all. I'll have some more photos to share very shortly...here it is.



I think this looks very bad. It just looks like a lawn below the tracks---a continuation of the grass on the slope really. Anyway, it is not at all evocative of rice. This attempt at rice has since been scraped up, ready for a second go.

[CaptOblivious]

I use Woodland Scenic's shaker to apply static grass. Squeezing it through the small holes seems to work well enough to make it stand up, plus a gently blowing on it while it dries. The stuff works well as a general flocking, for unkempt grassland anyway, it just doesn't seem to really evoke rice very well at all.

Here is a recent photo, with most of the static grass rice scraped off, but flocking including static grass liberally applied elsewhere. It's still a WIP, of course. The trees in the back aren't even glued to anything yet, just piled up against the wall. It's really starting to come together, I think.



I've got some more ideas for how to do rice...I'll try them before I report on them, but I will most certainly report on them and how well they work.

[bill937ca]

Oh, you misunderstand! The tape seems ingenious, but it doesn't work at all. Not at all. I'll have some more photos to share very shortly...here it is.



I think this looks very bad. It just looks like a lawn below the tracks---a continuation of the grass on the slope really. Anyway, it is not at all evocative of rice. This attempt at rice has since been scraped up, ready for a second go.

Over the season, rice paddies vary greatly in their appearance. Seedlings look like grass.

http://www.coara.or.jp/~mieko/rice.htm

http://www.yesicanusechopsticks.com/thesequel/rice/

http://www.japanippon.com/shizen/ricecycle/ricecycle.htm

In the small image on the Wikipedia Paddy field page this looks like grass.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Rice_Paddies_In_Aizu%2C_Japan.JPG

[CaptOblivious]

Our collective rice paddy problem may be solved. While browsing for grass product, I ran across the products of a company called MiniNatur, who produces a whole range of very interesting grass products, many of which I suspect will be suitable.

I visited their website (http://www.mininatur.de/) and found this: http://www.mininatur.de/de/index.php?page=galerie_japan
A Japanese diorama with an amazing early spring-ish rice paddy in it. Gonna have to give this stuff a try.

Downside is that it's rather expensive...

[CaptOblivious]

I have found a cheaper but much more tedious solution to the rice problem at this blog:
http://morii.blog.eonet.jp/rmodel/2008/10/post-90ac.html
The basic procedure is to plant bunches of Woodland Scenics field grass into pre-drilled holes (!!!) But the results look really good. I might try this.

[Shashinka]

I have found a cheaper but much more tedious solution to the rice problem at this blog:
http://morii.blog.eonet.jp/rmodel/2008/10/post-90ac.html
The basic procedure is to plant bunches of Woodland Scenics field grass into pre-drilled holes (!!!) But the results look really good. I might try this.

Thanks for the links, Capt'n

[SubwayHypes]

wow that looks really cool, love the dikes, to fix that "boring" grass why not just take a darker green colored grass and make little ridges.