The Little Rock Line

[davefoxx]

I’d just suggest a coat of Liquitex Gloss Gel Medium right over your painted bog bottom.  No pour; no creep.

DFF

[Bendtracker1]

Yes, it does.  I hadn't thought of that problem since the banks of the bog are finished.  It didn't bother me since I just added some more material to the riverbanks and covered it up.  That's not always possible.  I estimate the creep on the latest pour at about 3/8" on a river that is about 5 inches wide.

Wow, that seems like a lot.
Most of the banks are vertical or have a slight over hang which would solve that issue, but the few that are sloped could cause an issue.
However, I do plan to add some algae along most of the backs and in the smaller coves.
Either way it's something to consider, thanks.

[Dave V]

I've learned the hard way that pouring WS water products over foam leads to huge bubbles that form slowly over time due to trapped outgassing. As long as your water bottom is not foam (or any adjacent foam is sealed with plaster or Sculptamold) you ought to be fine.

But I second @davefoxx suggestion that gloss medium gel is the easiest, cleanest, and least-creepy solution. The only challenge is getting the surface perfectly flat for your swamp...it tends to retain brush marks. That's handy for moving water but less-so for still water.

[Bendtracker1]

I’d just suggest a coat of Liquitex Gloss Gel Medium right over your painted bog bottom.  No pour; no creep.

DFF

Very true Dave!
However when I laid down the Sculptamold I made it a little thicker with the plan to pour.  It would take me a lot of coats to build it up the banks.

I inspected the second deeper pour of Liquitex today and it looks good.  Very little creep and I also added a drop of brown acrylic to give it a bit of a murky look.
I think this is going to work fine.  The only thing I'm a little worries about is the area I need to cover is a bit large and this stuff does seem to skim fairly quickly.  But I have a good feeling about it.

[Bendtracker1]

I've learned the hard way that pouring WS water products over foam leads to huge bubbles that form slowly over time due to trapped outgassing. As long as your water bottom is not foam (or any adjacent foam is sealed with plaster or Sculptamold) you ought to be fine.

The bog was made by removing a section/layer of 5/8" ceiling tile.  I laid down a layer of 1/4" MDF and painted it with latex.  That should do a fine job of sealing it.
The banks were made from Sculptamold and again painted with latex.   So there shouldn't be any off gassing???

But I second @davefoxx suggestion that gloss medium gel is the easiest, cleanest, and least-creepy solution. The only challenge is getting the surface perfectly flat for your swamp...it tends to retain brush marks. That's handy for moving water but less-so for still water.

Agreed.
That's pretty much what Boomer does, except he thins it a slight bit with the GAC 500 to help spread it about and helps kill the sharp edges.
I plan to kill the perfectly flat surface that either medium leaves with something, be that GAC 500 or the Liquitex.
Anything to give it a slight chop on the surface.

[packers#1]

Off gassing would be from any insulation foam you used as a scenery base, which it sounds like you wouldn’t have any issues with since you have ceiling tile and MDF.

[Angus Shops]

Gloss medium comes in a variety of viscosities - I’m using one that is pretty much self levelling.

[Bendtracker1]

I wrapped up the bog this weekend.
I wound up using the Liquitex Pouring Medium, it worked like a champ.
The only drawback that I could find was that when it dried it shrank in thickness, then required a second pour.
It did not dry completely flat like resins would have but instead left some undulations in the surface, which can be seen in the reflections.

Once the second pour was dry, I added some finely ground, ground foam around the edges, weeds and trees/stumps. 
I think I'm going back and revisit the lily pads, they didn't turnout the best, kind of rough and the color is off.

[Frank Amato]

Oh man, so good.  Nice 'gator in that 3rd pic enjoying a swim!!!

  Frank

[Scottl]

Terrific result, wow.

[Bendtracker1]

Terrific result, wow.

Oh man, so good.  Nice 'gator in that 3rd pic enjoying a swim!!!

  Frank

Thanks for the kind props guys!

[shark_jj]

Truly outstanding work Allen.  I'm going to have to keep Liquitex Pouring Medium in mind.  What was the depth of the pour?  The drying period?  Any odors?  You have really captured that Southern swampy look, with the foliage in the water and the dead trees.  Impressive.

[Bendtracker1]

Truly outstanding work Allen.

Thank you sir!

I'm going to have to keep Liquitex Pouring Medium in mind.  What was the depth of the pour?  The drying period?  Any odors?  You have really captured that Southern swampy look, with the foliage in the water and the dead trees.  Impressive.

It's worth giving it a try John.  The best part the price isn't much different than the WS stuff is.

The depth of each pour was around 1/8" +/-
Each pour took at least 24-36 hours due to the size and the fact that my basement wasn't very warm at the time, we had a cold snap.
It started to get tacky within a few hours and the surface was mostly dry to the touch the next morning.
Absolutely none, other than the mild sweet smell of acrylic.

Thanks again. 

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Now... where's the snow?

[Bendtracker1]

Now... where's the snow?

Ha!  This was in 1979 Ed...Global warming wasn't on the front page yet.