hello out there i have a dio on teh way in the look of a downed king tiger on the side of a ditch. i have teh ground cover finished well mostly and i havwe the ditch part worked out but how can i get wet dirt to stick enough so taht i can opour the resin in. can anyone help?


thanks much! Graeme

Don't use wet dirt! Dry it thoroughly for a few days before you use it. Leave it in one of those plastic tubs you get from Chinese takeaways on a window sill so its bone dry. Once it's dry give it a really good shake to break it up and leave it to settle. Then crush it with a spoon so it's really fine. Remember what looks like a little lump to your eye is a foot wide lump in 1/35th! Apply your mud with white glue then leave it for 24hrs so it dries properly. If it needs more then so be it. Once you apply any resin or varnish that will make it look wet. Don't forget if you're using real mud there's all sorts of crap, insects etc in it. Take your time and get rid of all the crap in it and you'll get better results. The best subsitute for mud in dios I find is real mud providing you are patient. Living in a waterlogged nation it's never a rush job as everything takes ages to dry out here :-) .Hope that's of some help.

Hello Karl and Graeme

Good solid advice on the soil! I have taken the trouble over the years to collect sand and soils from all over the country. Each sample has been sifted with a kitchen sieve to remove veg matter etc. and have bagged each and labelled. Good, dry soil / sand is essential for good groundwork. When I layer my groundwork, I apply a coat of PVA adhesive with an old paintbrush over the still wet polyfilla and then sprinkle over soil and sand. This sets like concrete and never comes loose. Resin and varnish pass over this very easily (let dry for at least 48 hours)

Hope this helps!

Cheers
Garth

thanks a bunch both of u. definetly helped.



Graeme

If you do use real mud or soil, I suggest you put it in a microwave for a minute to make sure that you kill off any other insects or bacteria that might be living in it.

Dave

how would you mix your dirt and glue?

Using a small paper cup I would put 1 part finely sifted dirt and one part whiteglue. With a popcicle stick or something of the like I would insert this into the mixture and stir until the correct desired consistancy is obtained.

If you want to do it that way!

Actually, I would use lite dry wall patch mixed with raw unber paint. This has the consistancy of mud, looks like mud and drys like mud. The color can vary (like mud) dependant upon the amount of color you use. With this you don't have to worry about something (mold) growing out of your diorama 6 months down the line.
I would steer clear of using any organtic material as no matter how you microwave it, boil it or otherwise attempt to sterilize it there is still the chance that something (bacteria or spore wise) survived. Pity to do all that work only to have it self destruct several months after it is finished.

Cheers,
C.