"Working with Foam" Topic

Hello hobbyists.

I have acquired a few tables, and I want to construct some terrain using foam. I'm building both standing height and sitting height 2' X 4' tables. I want to make some cliffs, slopes and hills to cover the transitions between the two heights (around 6").

I've often heard blue and pink insulation foam recommended for building light terrain. I haven't tried this yet. I'd like to make some facades for the edges of the tall tables, to rest on the shorter tables. So some two-foot by six-inch cliffs, and some four-foot by six-inch cliffs (as well as a "wedge" piece for a more gradual slope).

How would you go about it? What are the general things to know about working with foam? Type? Tools? Tricks? Tips?

Thanks for any expertise or advice you can offer.

Cheers.

P.S. Because the tables will be modular, and possibly stored in completely separate areas of my house, I'd like the "cliffs" to be loose pieces that can store in a big bin, say under the bed, or on top of a shelf in the basement.

Buy the pink or blue insulation board at Lowe's/Home Depot. Remove the thin plastic linings. Use a hot wire cutter to cut it up and sculpt it into shapes. You may need to glue slabs together to get the overall dimensions you want. If gluing big pieces use dowels to "pin" them together. Then prime and paint with cheap house paint. After that add trees, flocking etc. as you would anything else.

Frankly once you start trying it you'll see it is really MUCH EASIER than you think.

You can cut the boards with hack saws or the like but the dust is dangerous so do it outside and wear a mask.

Be sure to add model railroading to your searches. Level trackwork and realism start with good foundations.

Where you live in the US (and the rest of the world for other readers) can greatly influence what insulation foam is available from a quick trip to the DIY store. Florida doesn't need 2" thick insulation. Montana would laugh at ˝" thick. Blue or pink are mostly a matter of a brand name.

And even the much maligned white crumbly Styrofoam™ can provide some light weight bulk for free after you unpack your electronics. Use a bit of care to corral the crumbs.

Hot wire cutters and special knives can ease the way with all of it. Be mindful of fumes or floating dust.

Oh! A thumbs up to the house paint suggestion, Extra Crispy. The DIY and paint stores might have given credit for returned unused cans and offer them for a discount, if you can find useful colors. At least they are likely to mix up a small size sampler.

But you'll want paint that can be cleaned up with water. Spray paint cans can melt your hard work with their solvents. And yet, there can be applications to use this to melt out caverns. (Outside of course, with breathing protection.)

Only some Home Depots/Lowe's carry it, since not every part of the country uses this type of insulation.

Box cutters, and/or scribing saws, serrated steak knives will help you do the rough cuts. You can then file, sand, gouge to shape. As mentioned, wear a good, tight-fitting mask (not those cheap little, white, paper ones, and protective eyewear too, since the dust/fumes are very hazardous to your health.

Avoid any solvents/paints that are petroleum-based, unless you want a very uneven, melted effect for your terrain.

Water and oil-based paints are fine.

I've built foam hillsides and cliffs up to about twice the height you're planning to use to connect your higher and lower tables. I think you have a very cool idea and it should work. One thing I'd suggest is starting with a baseboard of MDF/Masonite in something like 1/4" thickness (could be 1/8" or 3/16" if you want it thinner). This will give you a sturdy level base for the foam. When you go with foam sheets thicker than 2" the price increases sharply, and 3" and 4" thick foam will only be available from specialty foam suppliers, so you will have to stack 2 or 3 layers, unless you want to stand one sheet on end, which you could also do.

You can find a lot of info on constructing rocky hills from Masonite, styrofoam, and woodchips for the "rocky" effect on my blog at:

Www.Maiwandday.blogspot.com

If you scroll down past the latest river posts and a post on other hobby blogs you should reach a long post with blow-by-blow instructions for building one of my hills, which could possibly work as a general guide for your table-connecting slopes. If you can't find it that way just do a search for "hills" and you should see a ton of applicable posts.

Here ya go. Try some of these tutorials…

YouTube link

Good luck with your project.

grommet37

My build on cliffs might be of interest..these are modular stand around 4-5 inches tall

link

Hey Gromm,

Give me a hollar at my handle through A O L.

Grimm

Toothpicks are the nails of the styrofoam world. Use them to hold layers together and strengthen glue joints.