Garden Railway Forum

"Wow, that got stiff fast"

"If I stick my finger there...."

"I'll pack it in real good"

"It's so hard!"

....

We're making jigstones. Get your minds out of the gutter!

Keep on dropping it on the bench from about 2" off - you'll get rid of the bubbles that way......................

MDLR:67679 wrote:Keep on dropping it on the bench from about 2" off - you'll get rid of the bubbles that way......................

Your trick worked! It's just that as we were trying to work out the measurements of cement/water it kept getting too thick to work with and we almost ruined the mixing pot at one point!

Have a full set nicely drying on the bench. Hoping for the best. The ones we made on Tuesday are okayish, but not perfect.

You're much better off with a sloppy mix (if you'll pardon the expression) - they may take a little longer to dry off but you can guarantee that it'll flow into all the detail. The same applies when you cast window frames, doors and other details from car filler - keep it sloppy!

MDLR:67683 wrote:You're much better off with a sloppy mix (if you'll pardon the expression) - they may take a little longer to dry off but you can guarantee that it'll flow into all the detail. The same applies when  you cast window frames, doors and other details from car filler - keep it sloppy!

The ones that were gloopy took a while to set though! I'm not sure they look any better, to be honest.

"Ew, it got on my hand." "Good thing you're wearing protection."

MDLR, you give me advice over the phone, and then I forget.

What was your suggestion for the roof?

PeachBottom:67694 wrote:What was your suggestion for the roof?

Either a moulded roof from a Jigstones mould made with fibreglass car filler, or a corrugated roof from styrene sheet, or (if you insist) a corrugated card roof (coz I know you've got the relevant equipment) well soaked in shellac - ask Tim if he's got any. It's a meths-based "varnish" which will impregnate the card and make it reasonably weatherproof.

Another way is to make a ply sub-roof and make corrugated iron out of the central section of food cans, heated up with a blowtorch to remove the coating and plating (so it goes rusty) and pinned to the sub-roof with Peco track pins. Take great care - cut tins are SHARP!

MDLR:67699 wrote:... a moulded roof from a Jigstones mould made with fibreglass car filler

Can you recommend a brand? I tried it with Isopon P38 (as suggested by the jigstones instructions) but thought the whole thing seemed a bit thin and delicate, as well as translucent at the thin parts (big problem if we illuminate the building). Also, I suppose a rigid sub-base would be necessary if the building is too big to be covered by a single moulded piece- I had thought of using perspex daubed in matt black to render it opaque.

TommyDodd:67701 wrote:Can you recommend a brand? I tried it with Isopon P38 (as suggested by the jigstones instructions) but thought the whole thing seemed a bit thin and delicate, as well as translucent at the thin parts (big problem if we illuminate the building). Also, I suppose a rigid sub-base would be necessary if the building is too big to be covered by a single moulded piece- I had thought of using perspex daubed in matt black to render it opaque.

I used P38, but the golden rule (as with resin buildings) is to paint it inside and out - I once had a building that glowed in the dark before i painted it - white spray primer is good enough...............

PeachBottom:67694 wrote:MDLR, you give me advice over the phone, and then I forget.

What was your suggestion for the roof?

I have that trouble with verbal instructions too. Gets me into no end of hot water with the wife!

Peter in AZ