My Favorite Milestone
There are precious few aspects of model railroading that I don't love. Admittedly, operation is one of those rarities. When it comes to layout construction, I can't think of anything I don't enjoy; but there are, undeniably, my favorites. At the top of the list: scenery. So, when a layout reaches a stage when I can start scenerymaking in earnest (as opposed to sneaking in little token patches, just to see some green among the benchwork), I'm in my glory.
The Z Scale Gorre & Daphetid has officially reached the Big "S" Milestone. In this case, "S" has dual meaning: Scenery, obviously, and Sculptamold, my favorite terrain-forming material. Mark your calendars—3 April 2011, first Sculptamold batch for the G&D (above). I made a small one so I could test the color, not that the color has to be perfect, since most all of the Sculptamold will be hidden under some sort of ground cover, be it vegetation or just dirt.
I will say, though, my "small" batch sure covered more ground than expected. I'd only anticipated doing the two right corners of the layout, but there was enough left to do much of the hill behind the industrial siding. Note that the stuff looks really, really dark in the photos. This is normal when it's wet; it will dry to a nice neutral greyish-tannish-brown. Alas it will take 24-48 hours for it all to set—the one and only down side to Sculptamold.
If you're a beginner looking to build your first serious layout, you'll find quite a few veterans like myself who will recommend Sculptamold for terrain. It's available at most big craft stores such as Michael's, and if that's not convenient, it can be purchased online from many sites.