Hi, all. I'm in the process of building my first diorama and am practicing with some scrap wood and a junk model beforehand. In my test build, I put down a layer of sculpt-a-mold to act as a dirt/mud road then pressed a panzer iii hard into the road, then removed it. The goal of course was to avoid having the tank look like it was floating on top of the terrain. Now that the groundwork has dried, I can't get the tank to sit in its tracks properly. So now it looks like the tank is sitting on top of the terrain. I didn't want to leave the tank in the groundwork as it dried for fear that it would be stuck there foreve and I'd have to paint the groundwork around it.

So, my question is, do you guys have any tips for making a vehicle look like it's sitting in the terrain?

One option, though you would have to do it over or add more sculpt-a-mold is put a piece of plastic wrap (saran wrap) in between the tracks and the ground work. Press it in and leave it until it starts to firm up then remove.
- John

Some times it's a good idea to completely finish the vehicle and press it into the fresh ground material - sculpt-a-mold; celluclay; etc., and leave it there to dry like that. The vehicle will then be firmly attached to the terrain and you will have to do the rest of your scenicking by working around the model. As John said, you could also add an additional thin layer of sculpt-a-mold around the vehicle later, when you are ready to place it in position. It is also a good idea to pre-color your ground material when mixing it.

As it's just a test build, I can absolutely add more groundwork and try the saran wrap method. Thanks for the idea. I thought maybe I could use baby powder to the same effect... lay the groundwork, put down some baby powder where the tank will go, press down the tank, then leave it there till the groundwork is set or mostly set. Hopefully the baby powder would allow me to pop the model free from the hardened ground. Does that have any merit?




Thanks. I hadn't thought to pre-color it. I had planned on laying a rattle-can black down as a primer, then doing the earth tones from there. With a kit stuck in place, it would be hard(er) to do that. Good call though. Thanks for the tips.

I wouldn't use baby powder as I think it would just soak in.
The drawback to the saran wrap method is it slightly rounds off the edges (which you can fix if you remove the model and touch it up before it hardens). The only sure way for accuracy and exact match up is as Biggles said and make the model part of it, the only drawback to that is its a one way trip. (only have one chance)
- John

Charles,
Buildup your terrain as required and with materials of your
choice.
Let all this dry....once dry, cover the required area for the tracks or wheels
with natural sculpting clay....sold in many sizes.
Next gently press the vehicle wheels or tracks into it to
the desired depth.....while it is still fresh...remove the
vehicle and let all this air dry....paint accordingly and
reposition the vehicle in the set imprint.

Cheers,
Joe

The drawback to the natural sculpting clay is that it will crack as it dries! Into lots of pieces! Big pieces; little pieces! It can be glued back together with CA, and the cracks filled with more clay. But it really is a PITA. And it's heavy. Believe me, I've tried clay a few times, and never again. Stick to Celluclay or Sculpt-a-mold.

Hi,
you can check out my "tip" on my blog - see here:
http://miniarmour.net/2012/10/17/jsu-122s-part-18-base-surface-structure-and-details/

cheers,
V.

Thank you all for the input. I ended up trying out the saran wrap method for my test build. Came out okay, but as mentioned, it left some of the edges a little soft. Nothing that a little pre-colored groundwork won't fix. I'm going to experiment a bit more then move forward with my actual build.

Thanks!