Tell me why this isn't a good idea. Re: Scenery

[tom mann]

So I bought some good quality 3M spray adhesive and I spray it on fairly thickly.  I then immediately place Silflor tufts, and they stick well.  Then, I use a Noch GrassMaster (the most expensive tool I own  ) and "statically plant" some 6mm grass.  After a few minutes, I then sprinkle dirt and use my finger to work it down between the "grass". The grass stays put (and mostly straight up and down), and the dirt is mostly attached due to the still tacky spray. 

This seems like a great way to work efficiently, but I'm leery since I don't recall seeing it anywhere and therefore it isn't a tried-and-true method.

I plan to follow up the area with matte medium to further bond the dirt, since it doesn't completely pass the "blow it off" test.

Thoughts?

[Scottl]

Sounded familiar...

http://youtu.be/BiniEUnbHXI

His results look pretty good, but he did not bother with the static unit.  I've planted grass with the cigar roll technique and it works well, even if it is slow.

[ryan_wilkerson]

I used a similar method but am not happy with how the dirt looks. It looks wet due to the adhesive that is holding it down. Anyone know if hair spray or some other product can give a more natural look to dry dirt?

[Kev1340]

Sounds like a viable method. Thanks for the link Scottl.

Cheers,

Kev

[DKS]

This should be interesting to follow, as I've seen some spray adhesives decompose over time and lose their tack. But that's not to say all spray adhesives do this; I suspect newer formulas have improved.

[tom mann]

This should be interesting to follow, as I've seen some spray adhesives decompose over time and lose their tack. But that's not to say all spray adhesives do this; I suspect newer formulas have improved.

All the better reason to follow up with the matte medium then.

[jpec]

All the better reason to follow up with the matte medium then.

+1
Whatever spray you use, please protect your lungs...
Jeff

[ednadolski]

+1
Whatever spray you use, please protect your lungs...
Jeff

+100

I hate that spray adhesive stuff.... messy + nasty....


Ed

[MichaelWinicki]

Interesting idea.

My only negative thought is that if you're working on one small area at a time, as part of a much larger area, that the overspray could be a problem.   

[Ike the BN Freak]

I've heard that spray adhesive will cause the scenery to have a slight shine to it.  But I've never tried it myself.

[tom mann]

+1
Whatever spray you use, please protect your lungs...
Jeff

Too late...I can see all you guys in my model railroading room...there is a giant Thomas in here too with angry eyes...

 

[Greyryder]

Too late...I can see all you guys in my model railroading room...there is a giant Thomas in here too with angry eyes...

 

"I think there was something funny, in that hippy."

[M.C. Fujiwara]

Most spray adhesives I've used leave a beady, gooey film akin to Ectoplasm.
Never had the inclination to spray over scenery.
Don't even want to spray hairspray over scenery, given the sheen it leaves.
Not much happy about white glue, either, but at least it "disappears" into the layers with dilution.

[rsn48]

I put dirt on first, Fraser River silt I treated to kill anything and get any free metals out.  I sifted the results many times into finer sifters eventually almost ending up with a powder.  But the powder wouldn't sink if applied over paint (didn't work), then 50/50 water and white glue (didn't work), then spraying it with alcohol (worked but left splatters), then white glue with wind shield washer fluid (worked but not that great) sprayed on, then finally heavily painted on 1/3 white glue and 2/3 of wind shield washer.   In the pic below you can see areas I worked on at various times so not quite uniform looking but since this dirt is a base for other goodies, I didn't worry about it:

[Hornwrecker]

The thing that's bothering me about using contact adhesive, is if it would have enough conductivity to give a good ground area (and a large enough size) to get the static grass application to stand up properly, compared to a water based glue.