Muddy / Water Puddles

[Wolfclaw]

Im building a diorama of Helms Deep, and have the wall and rocks and everything done so far,

Im about to create the land for the muddy water and so forth. The land / mud will be made from acrylic putty then painted. Im curious to know how to add effects to make it look wet and watery. Any ideas?

Regards
Karl

 

[funnymouth]

gloss, or water effects.

 

[Wolfclaw]

Water effects, As is mention above.

 

[Highbulp Billy]

I\'ve used layers of gloss varnish for small puddles on bases which was fine but if you\'re looking for larger areas then GW\'s Water Effects should be ideal.

 

[krom1415]

Yes, I would say the gloss varnish and the water effects idea as above, are you from the UK, or USA?

 

[airhead]

Look at your local model train shops and find some water effects there. It will look a lot like white glue, but dry clear. Use thin layers (1/8\" or less) as it takes forever to dry otherwise. You should get a quart (liter) for the price of a few ounces of what you\'d get at the game shop.

Same with static grass & flock.
Good link:

woodland scenics

 

[generulpoleaxe]

vallejos water comes out clear, realy handy for getting an idea of the end result as you are working.

you can\'t do the waterfall trick with it tho as it won\'t dry with the ridges.

woodland scenics is the one for that.

 

[Wolfclaw]

Thanks alot all much appreciated!!!!

 

[Godlikebuthumble]

Orginal gepostet von Highbulp Billy
I\'ve used layers of gloss varnish for small puddles on bases which was fine but if you\'re looking for larger areas then GW\'s Water Effects should be ideal.

What he said, only get another brand than GW\'s and you\'ll get twice the amount for the same money...

 

[Wolfclaw]

Thanks , i was going 2!

 

[Wren]

I used Woodland Scenics Realistic Water for the water pool on this base. I have to say I\'m not too happy with the product. When I first applied it, it shrank considerably overnight. It took 3-4 coats over several days to try to keep it level. I had to do some other stuff to the water and pack it up for transportation, so I was limited as to how many times I could reapply, but the shrinking seemed to level off some. Really I guess it just slowed down. Just over a year later the water has shrunk down to the point where it more looks like slime covering the rocks on the bottom than a level pond.

For this recent miniature I decided to try Future Floor Polish. I had read a dioramas book from the historical painter side of things that recommended this for smaller areas of water like puddles. I applied the Future twice, and so far I haven\'t noticed any significant shrinkage. I plan to check the base again in a year to compare, but so far I\'d have to say I\'m a lot happier with the overall look and behaviour of the Future than I was with the Realistic Water, but ymmv.

 

[Antenociti]

it shrank considerably overnight. It took 3-4 coats over several days to try to keep it level

Aye it does do that - a lot and you can end up with a very visible miniscus, especially with small areas.

Klear (UK) Future (USA) is much better for small puddles etc as Wren suggests.
It also has 1001 other uses so its an invaluable component for the modeller/painter/scenery builder/moulder

 

[MClimbin]

I had the same problem as Wren with Realistic Water, you can see it here: :cussing:



I\'ll be trying something else next time, perhaps Future...

 

[demonherald]

If you want to add extra effect into the finish try mixing some appropriate coloured paints into the varnish or wet effect whatever you are using this will give the effect of muddy water....

 

[Wren]

I\'m sorry to hear you had the same problem, MClimbin, though it\'s a bit of a relief to find out I\'m not alone. I wouldn\'t think this shrinking would thrill the model train crowd the product is designed for, their stuff is meant to last for years I would think.

 

[airhead]

I have used it on terrain. Thin coat (1/16\" or so) and had no problems with it. I have heard that you have to build it up in layers or it takes forever to dry. I just last weekend put some in a mini base to do a swampy effect - then read this post. I had set them aside to dry and have not had time to go look at them, but I will tonight.

If I was filling a deep area, I\'d probably use a finishing resin or epoxy. No shrinkage, but smelly and more expensive.

Is it just me, or does the water effect look like tacky glue (gold bottle stuff)?

 

[Antenociti]

yeah its just thickened PVA

 

[Cedric]

Check out Hirsts Arts Web page, tips and tricks section. They have several how to\'s on water effects and a I think they use envirotex pour on varnish. I\'ve tried a casting resin from Michaels called Castin\' craft- clear liquid plastic. It costs about $10.99 for 16 oz can -the catalyst is sold seperate in a little bottle around $5. you can base paint in one color then mix just a little color into resin before pouring. I\'m sure a little testing with colors you could acheive a fine murky water effect.

 

[airhead]

Ced, that is what I made my Gelatinous Cube with. You have just about reached the pinicle of mess and smell for a craft project when you start using that stuff.

What about gel gloss medium? or gel matt medium? anybody tried those?

 

[Cedric]

I guess then it depends on the size of the water feature. I use a cap off a pull top water bottle \"it\'s a little bigger than a thimble filled it 2/3 full added one drop of Americana craft acrylic paint light blue then added about 2 drops of the catalyst and stirred the heck out of it with a tooth pick. It was just enough to fill a 1in X 1in square 1/4 in deep. I didn\'t notice any odor but then again it was just a small amount.