And suggestions, some say roofing shingles, others says plaster and what not. Any other Ideas you can contribute?
Here's some help for a Z scaler. Try this: telusplanet.net/public/crowley/ashphalt_roads.htm Cheers, Jim CCRR
crush coal up into powder then carve foam into a pile then spray glue onto the foam and poor some coal dust over it
I've used the black spongey rubbery trackbed. Takes paint and chalk well, and easy to crown the surface by laying matchsticks underneath. Heavy vehicles will leave dimples in the surface if left in the one place for too long. That's the only negative feature I've found with it. Mike
Hi, I'm new here, but here's my method for creating asphalt; I use black "pebble board" that is sold at a local arts and crafts store. It looks just like asphalt and is only as thick as a poster board. I use pastels and colored pencils to weather/detail accordingly. As you can see, one problem is that seems are created. Also, if you use it for street running, it gets tough to trim around switches and curves. But for average roads, it usually looks pretty good. - Dan
I have also found that 3/16 thick cork sheet painted black works fairly well! It has the asphalt texture.
I "paved" the road out with a layer of plaster, then came back with varyig shades of gray chalk & rubbed it into the plaster using my fingers. When freshly laid, asphalt is black, but it fades over time to a shade of gray. Instead of fingers, I would imagine a piece of sponge would work as well if not better. As for the chalk, I shaved off the chalk over the roadway using an ExActo knife.
All appear to be good ideas. But I would prefer to keep the material as light as possible. Mounting board is light weight and inexpensive, available at your local art supply store. Dan88 - Welcome to Trainboard! We are happy to have your participation.
Here's how the sponge trackbed looks I hide/patch joins with DAS modelling clay, and paint to match [or mis-match if I want to] The road can be crowned by placing toothpicks or similar underneath when gluing. Mike
I use a fine grit sandpaper (it's black in color) This type is wet or dry so glue will not wrinkle it when it dries to the benchwork. Then I dust it with whatever color I want to weather it with
I have had sucess in the past with wet or dry sandpaper. 200 girt seems about right in HO scale and you can paint it or weather it anyway you want and it will not bubble. I put it down with photo mounting adhesive. This also work well to represent tar and gravel roofing. Gary
I had a feeling Woodland Scenics sell it. Mine was Aussie made by AMRI I think. I could be wrong. O gauge bed might be worth a look. Mike
Dan85 - Would the black "pebble board" be known as something else? Our local Hobby Lobby has never heard of it. Something I tried was a thin cardboard similar to poster board that comes with a slight texture and in various colors. I would like to try the black "pebble board" if I can find it.
