I have been trying to find a good technique for making realistic ground, earth, soil, dirt (call it what you want) but have not found much information. The earth would be for the base of a dio, and I also am trying to make a shell hole in the center big enough for a (1/72?) KV-1 tank to fit in.

Thinking about recreating this photo in diorama form.

Thanks for the help
Dee

I live in Pensacola near NAS there is alot of red dirt laying around at construction site. i just pull over pick some up and use it in my diorama.

Gday Dee
Think that at that scale you could use small stones/pebbles for the larger chunks around the crater, so long as you keep referring to the pic for scale reference with the KV-1...
As for the base itself, try any sort of woodfiller product from a hardware (HomeDepots in Ca. right?) and
mix up with water. You can add cement colour during the mixing to have a strong base colour without additional base painting... Even sand at that smaller scale can be effective clods etc.
By the by, that is some photo!!
Cheers
Brad

Dee, I use coffee powder, tea leaves, powdered chalks, and acrylic powders in different combinations. The latter two for dusty soil and the former two for more earthy soil. I find real earth and sand to be too coarse at scale, except for showing rocky ground and small stones.

do you glue the dirt down?

I have used the following technique before which seems to look ok...well I think so:

make your basic groudwork shape, using whatever method you usually use, once everything has set (overnight), then work your way over the parts you wish to be exposed Earth, covering them in just water...wetting the areas.
While the areas are still wet, get some plaster or powder filler on a spoon or spatular and softly tap the spoon causing the powder to sprinkle onto the wet surface area.Leave to dry overnight, the effect should look like small earth clods or uneven rough surface. For bigger clods, tap the spoon harder to release larger amounts of powder.
give it a go and see what you think.

I just use plain ol dirt from the back yard. I usually sift it, and can add rail ballast into the mix. Lately I've been using sanded tile grout. Wonderful stuff. Very fine, and somewhat "sculptable" as it's curing. Comes in a ton of different earth tones. I just mist some water on it to get it damp, then add my white glue/water mix and as it's curing add footprints, wheel/track ruts etc.

so a combo of water, white glue and sifted dirt will adhere and look good?

Hi Dee,
My last base was made in 4 hours ----(including trees)...using "railway ""flock""and "Sandy earth"
Mark out - in pencil-areas for the "ground cover"and track -wheel lines (check the track width)...
Build up the ares as required (I use scrunched up kitchen roll covered with a layer of same -moist with pva/water mix. .While it sets.......cover lines with a run of pva(white glue --I use cheap wood glue) spread-fill in wheel/track area...cover with "brown "lightly......
While this is setting spread the glue over the "grass/earth "ground area........tap of excess off"tracks"
Then cover the whole area with the ground cover...allow to "dry " for a few mins ....I meanwhile take my ! "proper " ! earth already put it through a seive(have a set of 3 )..this gives me "stones-for rocks"-----smaller for "earth-rubble" and last for"top-soil-dust"
A thin line of pva along edges of tracks then dust with earth then add "flocks to suit --tyre and treads can be set with edge of a piece of plastic
Set "rocks" and smaller earth in position --give liberal coat of "fixer"and dust with your "grass"
Go and have a beer /coffee -or put the hair-dryer on low and give it a dry---then tap of the residue(I have a small battery p-c vacuum)
As it dries you can adjust coverings
with spots of glue and pinches of the flock/earth dust-add long grasses and bushes as required
Ensure model fits at various stages so that it is not "hanging" over the ground but fits IN
Allow to dry --extra earth can be applied as needed from the "dust " ...especially about the tracks
FINALLY---give it a "fix " ....I use a cheap "hair spray .
A couple of pics

Hole and sides REAL earth

REAL earth in and around blade
Larger size in my gallery
As i have been requested t do some "quick " ..""20 minute bases""demos this week-end at Scot Nats ..I will try to get photo's from the videos and post
Hope this helps
aye
BARV
(GOSMG)

Generally, bringing sand/soil from outside, you'll be bringiong in organic material which can rot or grow, neither one is something you want.
For the scene you've chosen, I'd build up a base with styrofoam, either packing material of comercial stuff from a craft store aith a rough depression for the crater. Next I'd mix up a large batch of Celluclay, adding some earth colored acrylic paint, white glue and HO railroad ballast along withthe water to make an oatmeal thick slurry. Lay this over the styrofoam base and on the side. Smooth the sides down with your moistened hands. (Yeah, this is messy!) Some small pebbles could be used if you've rinsed them thoughroughly and pressed into the moist mixture. You can now finish up with paint and dry brushing to bring up the texture and add some commercial grass product outside the spray pattern from the crater.
Bare earth:

I 've used celluclay with good result. Get yourself a copy of Shep Paine's Guide to Diorama building and/or Lynn Kessler's How to Build Armor Dioramas. Both are exellent resources.

I've used Celluclay with good result. You should pick up Sep Paine's How to build Dioramas and/or Lynn Kessler's How to Build Armor Dioramas. Both are great references.

Hi,

A neighbor of mine was putting in an underground sprinkler system and there was a patch of superfine dirt. It's perfect. Just look arounfd or try a mortar and pestle and grind your own. If you are at a standstill, let me know and I will send you some.

Sealhead