Model Railroading > Red sandstone cliffs around Gallup NM

Does anyone have any ideas on making red sandstone cliffs for an HO scale layout.    Cliffs that are east of Gallup NM on the north side of the tracks.    

Richard.

These HO scale red bluffs are carved from 3" foam insulation board.
A power jig saw with a long blade made the general outline cuts, then a thin blade sharp knife (sold as a fisherman's cleaning knife) made the horizontal cuts, followed by a light sanding to get the tops rounded off and blend things together. Then I painted it with blended latex interior room paint.  The first time I got it too bright and had to re-do it with some white and light gray mixed in.
If I were to do another scene like this I'd make the horizontal lines super fine, those bedding planes are hard to see on the prototype.
The hardest part is to get the glued layer to cut cleanly and to take paint the way the foam does.
They are on top of some of the same material that is supposed to represent much older igneous rock.
The tall bluffs are painted on the wall immediately behind the 3-D bluffs.
This scene is about 24" deep.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/23/21 12:04 by railstiesballast.

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Don’t want to get too nakedly commercial here, but Rubber Rocks are the easiest way to do this. They are thin, flexible rubber sheets it’s highly detailed bedrock textures on one side. You can attach them to the layout using hot glue or construction adhesives. 

Full disclosure: They’re made by Cripplebush Valley Models, and  I own the company. 

Here are a couple sample photos, both from HO dioramas. 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/23/21 12:16 by march_hare.

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I attempted to replicate those same cliffs at North Guam on my layout. They form a view block on a peninsula down the center of the layout. I built a form out of cardboard strips and brown paper. I added a thin coat of paper towels soaked in hydrocal (dental plaster) which formed a very rigid base. I then troweled on a thick coat of plaster of paris and carved it with a dull x-acto knife and a small palette tool. I colored it with thin washes of acrylic paint.

It has more relief than the cliffs in question but is a good representation of the scene I was trying to replicate. On the far left of the rock face it blends into a wall and I just painted the cliffs with acrylics - and I'm by no means an artist - trial and error is your friend.

I also thought of trying to carve pink/blue building foam sheets with a hot wire cutter. Cover it with a thin coat of plaster or white paint. Then stain/color with acrylics. Let us know how you make out with this project.

1. Cliffs at North Guam on the BNSF
 
2. Carved plaster cliff face

3. Painted cliffs.


Jim



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/23/21 12:18 by JayK.

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Two more, in N scale.

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Wow fantastic model photos.     I was afraid to say North Guam as I figured no body would know where that is.     I have many pics that I took out there over numerous trips.   One even got published on the cover of the short lived Amtrak Southwest Chief route guide.    

Richard Harris.

You killed that lash up with the "kodachrome" unit splicing the two blue and yellow units! Kidding aside, all of these photos are very nice,folks.  Different methods  creating the cliffs and bluffs.All nice.

SantaFeRuss

Fusion Fiber is perfect for these kind of scenes.  Really easy to work with- until you use a latex paint, you can re-wet it and move it around again.  Really neat for making cliffs like you want.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JSRImRqbZ7A