George, just a suggestion. If you would turn the trees upside down so the branches are hanging down instead of pointing upwards. Then reshape them with the scissors I think they'd look much better?
Allen. I have thought of that myself !! It's not like I don't have (3) fake Xmas trees full of branches that I couldn't make a ton more that way.
Finally got off my duff and experimented with my first puffball trees. I used Woodland Scenics materials, Poly Fiber and three shades green Coarse Turf. The 2-1/2" toothpicks are sprayed with gray and brown. The Poly Fiber is first glued to the toothpicks with clear Elmer's and spray glue is used to hold the Turf. Now I need to do is make 4,445 more....... Allen Keller's video advises to use wisps of the Poly Fiber and it's good guidance, as a little can then go a long way. [ ] I also found Da'Bob's video helpful and I borrowed much of his technique. [ ] Working outside helped keep my lungs safe, and by the way, advice to wear rubber gloves is of value, otherwise your hands will look like this.
One of the bits of local lore around these parts is the tale of the "Green Man". The story dates back to the post WWII days. Legend has it the man was an electrical utility worker who was accidentally electrocuted while working on the job. He survived but his skin took on a green complexion. Sunlight would darker the color so he only came outside at night. The man resided near an abandoned tunnel once used by the Montour RR for an interchange with the B&O. That was the legend of the Green Man. But the real story was that although he did work for an electric utility company, he was also a model railroader and was making scenery for his railroad. It was a bitterly cold day not fit for outside activity and so he decided to finally add some scenery to an otherwise bare bones layout. So, with the thermostat cranked up he sat down with lichen and sawdust, a gallon of green paint, some glue and proceeded to crank out foliage for the railroad. Unbeknownst to him, at some time in the process the furnace malfunctioned and was spewing natural gas into the house. He paused in his efforts, taking a break to admire his work and lit up a cigarette. There was a huge explosion and although the man wasn't seriously harmed, he was covered with glue, lichen, sawdust and green paint. The story of him being electrocuted was made up to disguise the fact that a grown man actually played with trains. Parts of this tale were extemporaneously made up.
Began to place my first batch of puffball trees and they look better than I expected. A 100,000 more and maybe I'll be able to cover this mountain. I'll place some traditional, detailed trees in front of the puffball trees about halfway down the hillside, then change over to clump foliage further down toward the curve. I think this will provide good appearance and scale to the scene.
When I dismantled my previous N Scale layout 5+ years ago, I tossed all of the trees in a box. I found the box the other day and was pleased to rediscover a bunch of trees with soft metal armatures, probably by Woodland Scenics, dating from the 1980s. I'm pulling away the crusty old poly fiber and foliage, and should be able to use them again on DS&N v.3.0. The trees at the top of the rightmost photo are another batch of puffball trees.
It's been a month since I've posted. Tree-making progress has been slow, only because I've gotten bored with it after not much progress. I'm happy with the appearance of the puff ball trees, but I wanted to also make some detailed "armature" trees (as seen just above) to mix in and it's taken some experimentation. Woodland Scenics' Hob-e-Tac is used to make armature trees has some unusual properties. It's white in color as you paint the branches with it, but it dries clear and tacky. In my train room, it takes 90 minutes for Hob-e-Tac's color to mostly change, which presents a problem because by then I've long forgotten about it and have moved on to something else. You can't rush it. If it isn't clear, it doesn't stick. I've learned to set a timer and to hope I'm in the mood to mess with tree-making when it sounds. I also hand shred the Woodland Scenics Clump Foliage a bit more so that it'll be more likely to find a place to stick on N Scale armatures. I wish more of the foliage stayed put; a lot of it falls off. No pictures yet, as I'm still messin' 'round with things.
Great trees! If you vary the green color and the tree canopy size (larger trees to break up the uniformity) a bit, I think it would kick up the realism another notch.
And natural forests, unless recently clear-cut adjacently, have a combination of undergrowth and trees with branches nearer the ground around the edges of the forest. In the interior of the forest, the low branches, when shaded too much by the canopy to be able to provide food for the tree, are naturally shed. Nature is viciously efficient; 'survival of the fittest' is not just for animals. Forests planted and maintained for timber are a different matter altogether.
I didn't glue in the puffball trees; their pointed toothpick trunks are perfect for foam. I plan to remove some here and there and replace them with armature trees to hopefully achieve the effect you suggest. The good thing is that I can easily work it all until the trees look right.
I've discovered that painting it on with a very thin coat works much better, drying more quickly and evenly. When dry, it stays tacky for quite a while, so you don't have to hurry when applying the clump foliage.
