I’m thinking of using drywall sheets to make the walls (both an eternal wall and an interior wall.) on my upcoming OIF dio.

The drywall I have is 5/8inch thick so I’m wondering if I would have to thin it down any or if that thickness would be fine. And if so would a sander work of the job?

Thanks.

Well, you should be able to buy drywall in 1/2" thickness also which may be a bit closer to scale and easier than sanding. I read somewhere that you need to soak your pieces in water and peel the paper off of the gypsum. You can carve or scribe the gypsum when it it wet but you need to be careful as it can break easily also. Once carved or scribed, let it dry and then seal it with some cheap primer.

Cheers,
Charles

Thanks but I have a large supply of the stuff in 5/8 from doing carpentry work. And I should be able to thin it down with a power sander.

So I take it 1/2inch would be the correct size to make it or should I go a little thinner? I magen I could get close to 3/8 before running into trouble.

Size wize you're on the right track.

Texture and composition wize consider the paper exterior of the dry wall. Most OIF buildings are plaster or clay based substances. To replicate those well, I would (as mentioned) soak your dry wall with water to remove the outter layer of paper.
This will leave you with about 1/2 inch of 'clay' to scribe, cut, or texture, to represent an Iraqui building.
I think the paper will be too smooth. Remove the paper and you should be good to go.