"best material for bigger terrain bases" Topic

What would be the best material to use for bigger terrain bases (approximately 25-30 cm in diameter).
I want to make some jungle/forest terrain pieces.

I have used carboard, but this has the tendency to bend.
(I have to store my terrain in the garage, where it is slightly damp.)

I do not want my bases be to thick, but the have to be rigid.
What would you here advice? Foam, wood, …?

Thanks in advance

If you are storing terrain in a damp environment them rigid plastic would seem to be the best option as wood will warp and metal will rust (Possibly sheet aluminium would work too – if you could source it).

I tend to use 3mm MDF/Hardboard. 30cm is the largest I'd go with it though. bevel hte edges with a belt sander or a precision file, and you don't notice the thickness.

I used to belong to a club whose clubhouse was in a dank basement. it didn't warp really. MDF does tend to take teh shape of what it's being stored on over time. so flat surfaces are important.

I use hardboard/Masonite.

Thick ( 3mm styrene) is great. Light, thin, skrong, and I get large pieces from commercial signes (Like Real Estate signes, large no trespassing and industrial safety signs.

3mm thick plastic card. The best place to get it is from a sign-writer or sign maker. if you have difficulty go to an office supplies store and buy a No Smoking sign or a For Sale sign. The plastic signs are cheaper than the plastic card from a model shop.

Tony

Sorry Smokeyroan got there just in front of me!

Tony

Try a couple 1'x1' tiles from Home Depot or Lowes. Not the flimsy vinyl self-stick ones or the heavy ceramic ones, but the composite tiles. They are $1 USD each and can be scored and snapped or cut with a saw.

They are called vinyl composition tiles.

link

I prefer MDF/hardboard or thin plywood bases for most terrain. I paint the underside as well and have very little problem with warping. The heft of the wood helps keep things in place, especially on a felt ground cover. The thin plastic will also warp over time as one of my friends found out.

I've used 4mm MDF, because that's what my local DIY shop sells, thick plastic sheets and self-stick vinyl tiles. For forest terrain you describe, I would probably choose the MDF. As others have noted, it's all about the storage.

I have been replcing my old polystyrene and foam core terrain with varying thicknesses of MDF sheets over the last 6 months. My first attempts frustratingly warped out of shape due to damp and changable weather. I then sought some professional advice and found that each piece just needed to be completly sealed after shaping and before applying any kind of adhesive.
I use an acrylic varnish over all the bare wood. I then paint the top surfaces with whatever color acrylic paint, texture paint and then glue for any flocking. We have had some extreme weather fluctuations over the last six months and its all still perfect, without a hint of warping. I also store the peices flat.
For forrest bases I have been using 3mm thick MDF placemat blanks from a craft store. Like others I bevel off the edges with a power sander so the base blends in to the base board.
I hope this helps
Ewan

Armymen has a great suggestion. The styrene will work too. You might want to get test samples to see if they "droop" at the size you need. Not sure that is a deal breaker for you though?

Thanks all.
Lost of options I am going to try out :-)

Hi,

I've just made some of these for some new snowy terrain and used 2mm plasticard. Great stuff – never warps.

Cheers,

Phil

If you stick two of the 12"-sq. vinyl, peel-n-stick floor tile pieces together (glue-side to glue-side), they will work: they can be had for $0.39 USD each, at Menards, or other DIY stores. I use them for basing cardstock tiles of rivers and 2-D dungeon layouts, while using the cut-off's to make figure bases: 1"-sq., 1" x 2", 1" x 3", etc. They can also be used to make movement trays. There are many possible uses for the inexpensive, peel-n-stick vinyl floor tiles, as demonstrated on my blog page.

To use them for terrain bases, either apply a craft foam sheet to the glue side, or glue two pieces together, then paint/texture the terrain side how you choose (I paint with PVA Glue, then apply sand, let dry, repeat with bits of different colored sand, and/or paint, followed by ground foam, as 'ground cover'). Cheers!