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CHAPTER 9

SOME YEARS AGO I bought a SierraWestRailroad Camp kit. I used most of its buildings ona diorama I described in the 2007 LOGGING,

MINING & INDUSTRIAL ANNUAL. Two structures (a truckrepair shop and a boiler and welding shop) and a lot ofdetail parts remained. They and a passenger car are thefocus of the diorama in the photos.

Recently someone asked how I design a diorama. Heprobably wanted to hear about how creative I am but myanswer may have disappointed him. I am unable to visualizea complete scene. I have to experiment with mockups. Icreated cardboard representations of the two structures and

A CAR REPAIR SHOP DIORAMA

BY SCOTT KINZEYPHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR

1:87.1 SCALE

then decided to include something I had never built before:An all wood passenger car. It was fun to assemble andpaint. If you have never built a wood car kit I recommendtrying one from La Belle Woodworking’s extensive line.

A car repair facility seemed the best way to display thethree major elements. I forced myself to devise a multi-levelscene to create visual interest. A car repair facility probablywould sit on flat ground but, in this case, I decided artistrywas more important than absolute realism.

Several other kits also were lying around including onefor a wagon and two horses. It fit so I used it.

One trick I learned for creating interest is to design

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mini-scenes on a diorama,little things to attract atten-tion and entertain the viewer.Notice, for example, the twoladies talking to a worker;both women have bibles.What do you suppose theyare doing? And look at thedog. He wants attention andis excited about the visitors. Ilove to include dogs and catson dioramas. They are smallbut subtle placement tends toadd life and interest to ascene.

I want to devote the restof the article to scenerytechniques.

Gluing Ground CoverSome people have asked

how to glue down ground

cover. I mix a simple solution I call “Molly glue”. Why“Molly”? My wife’s terrier, Molly, used to follow my wifewherever she went. That dog was virtually “glued” to my wife(and, I might add, was very protective). Hence the name.

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But Molly glue is only one component of my technique.After I create a scenic base from Sculptamold®, I brush on asolution of white glue and water. Then I sift on groundcover consisting of various shades of fine dirt, ground foam,and other debris. I explained that on page 90 of the 2007LOGGING, MINING & INDUSTRIAL ANNUAL. You must applywhite glue to the base or the Molly glue will betoo weak to fasten the ground cover.

Molly glue consists of seven partswater, two parts denaturedalcohol, and one partLiquitex® mattemedium.

Denatured alcoholis available fromLowe’s or any other largecontractor supply house andmatte medium from HobbyLobby or any large craft store. If youhave used neither of those products, buy

them and experiment. I use themin many applications.

The best way to mix thefixative, without using your wife’smeasuring cup, is to find a bottlewith a good lid. It must be atleast semi-transparent and thecapacity should be more than tenounces. My favorite bottle is 16ounces.

Measure seven ounces ofwater in a measuring cup. Pour itinto the bottle and use a blackmarker to make a horizontal lineof an inch or less at the waterlevel. That mark will make iteasier to mix the next batch. Fillthe measuring cup with two moreounces of water, pour it into thebottle, and draw another linewith the marker. Add anotherounce of water and draw the finalline.

Pour out all but the first sevenounces (the first line). Adddenatured alcohol until the level

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reaches the second line. Mix in the matte medium until itcomes up to the top line. I usually pour in slightly morematte medium since it is the glue. I experimented withstronger Molly glue using more matte medium but it dried

with a slight white film.Shake the bottle and let the solution settle until the air

bubbles disappear. Make a note of the specific ingredientsand related quantities for future reference, otherwise youmay forget you used matte medium instead of white glue.

Let me caution you about using white glue,especially since matte medium is much more

expensive: Glue is too thick to blend properly and tends toblob at the bottom of the bottle. Matte medium dissolvesbeautifully and is worth every penny and you may findyourself using it in many other ways.

I typically spend betweenone- and two hundred hourson a diorama. The last stepalways is applying groundcover. Once I had a gallonof white glue and used it.Globs landed on the groundcover and stayed there. I hadto remove everything andstart over and have sincegiven up using white glue.

Some modelers use aspray bottle to apply fixativeto ground cover. I prefer aneye dropper. It takes longerbut none of the mixturebeads up on fine dirt andruins my work. I first use aneye dropper with puredenatured alcohol to wet theground cover. It absorbs intoall the materials and holdsthem in place as I applyMolly glue.

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The idea is similar to the wellknown “wet water” technique.“Wet water” is a solution of whiteglue, water, and a few drops oflaundry or dish washing detergent.Supposedly it goes on easily whenyou apply it from a spray bottle butI find it always beads up on finedirt. Denatured alcohol, on theother hand, absorbs so quickly intoevery material it never beads up.Then add Molly glue with an eyedropper, saturate the ground cover,and wait a day or two. It dries hardand the scenery looks great.

Roads and VehiclesGluing things to roads can be a

challenge. The glue must be strongenough to withstand the rigors oftransit and handling. Too muchglue is unsightly. The key to hidingglue lies in the colors you use on the road. So let’s build aroad and, at the same time, I willdescribe an easy way to create astrong, invisible bond:

Apply Sculptamold to yourdiorama base and wait until itstarts to set. Rub your fingerover the areas where youwant roads and walk-ways. The more yourub, the smootherthe area becomes.That helps tocreate theillusion of a

road since roads should be smoother than other scenery.Mix up some fine dirt with plumber’s putty, a dry

powder that will lighten the dirt. Roads typically are lighterthan the surrounding areas. Glue down the road dirt (finedirt and plumber’s putty), the surrounding dirt, and groundfoam. Wait until everything is completely dry.

Apply pressure with your finger or a Bright Boy trackeraser and rub the road surface. The larger gran-ules will break off and the dirt color will change.Then add vehicle residue with Bragdon black and

dark gray weathering powders. I use a bushypaintbrush to splash down the chalk;

then I rub it around. You mayblend the shades together

where appropriate.