{"id":1720,"date":"2008-02-04T20:13:46","date_gmt":"2008-02-05T04:13:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fichtenfoo.net\/blog\/?p=1720"},"modified":"2009-02-11T20:14:59","modified_gmt":"2009-02-12T04:14:59","slug":"in-progress-%c2%bb-lighthouse-standoff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fichtenfoo.net\/blog\/in-progress-%c2%bb-lighthouse-standoff\/","title":{"rendered":"In Progress \u00c2\u00bb Lighthouse Standoff"},"content":{"rendered":"

01.24.08 \u00c2\u00bb Source, Concepts &
\nInitial Scratchbuilding<\/p>\n

I’ve been wanting to make a lighthouse for quite
\na while now. One of my original ideas for my Griffon dio was
\nto place it flying near one. After receiving the UC Hardgraph
\nCyclops Set, the idea came back to me. This diorama will feature
\na young boy standing off against a team of Zeon soldiers sent
\nto secure the family lighthouse as a strategic lookout.<\/p>\n

This diorama, like my Fireball<\/a>
\none, will take advantage of the vertical space in my display
\ncases. The base will be small, but the setting will reach
\nnear the vertical limits of my display. I’m estimating this
\nto be roughly 13-14 inches tall when done. The base is made
\nfrom some scrap lumber and will have the lighthouse, rocks,
\nfoliage, derelict rowboat, nautical junk, and other materials
\nadded on top of it.<\/p>\n

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01.24.08 \u00c2\u00bb The Lighthouse and
\nScenery<\/p>\n

The lighthouse is being scratchbuilt using an
\nold drinking cup and spraypaint lid as a base. These were
\nepoxied together and coated with a layer of stucco texture
\nget to give the surface tooth for the next step being the
\nlarge stone facade. The stones are slowly being added in sections
\nwith Amaco Marblex air-drying clay. Thin slabs are being applied
\nto the outside then the brick pattern sculpted in. The bricks
\ndon’t need to be too detailed as I’ll later apply the mortar
\nand a layer of in-scale-stucco to the outside.<\/p>\n

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\n\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"The
\narched door and boat are made from thin basswood. I used some
\ntechniques I learned from Chuck
\nDoan’s website<\/a> to paint and detail it to this point. I
\nstill need to make some black iron hinges and handle to the
\ndoor and oar supports to the boat. The boat is based on plans
\nfor a
\nsingle-sheet plywood rowboat here<\/a>. I scaled them down
\nfor this dio.<\/p>\n

After cutting the wood and gluing it into shape,
\nI applied a few washes of black india ink thinned with water.
\nThis gives the wood objects an old weathered look.<\/p>\n

When that is dry you ready the color of acrylic
\npaint you want to apply to the objects. I used liquitex and
\napple barrel acrylics here. Apply a wash of thinner (I used
\nmineral spirits) to the wood surface. Just apply to a section
\nat a time. When that begins to dry, brush on a thin coat or
\ntwo of your acrylic paint.<\/p>\n

When that dries in a minute or two, apply sticky
\ntape to the painted surface and pull it off. This lifts the
\npaint from the wood giving you a great chipped paint on wood
\nlook. Afterwards you can weather it further such as the water
\ndamage added to the bottom of the door.<\/p>\n

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01.24.08 \u00c2\u00bb PVN.3\/2 Zeon Technical<\/p>\n

The Cyclops set jeep is small, but has a lot
\nof detail. The wheels are a vinyl material which have no flash,
\nbut will need the sprue marks sanded down. The front wheels
\nare “steerable” which is a nice touch and the underside
\nis nicely detailed. A hatch in the back conceals the tarp
\nroof and the front hood hatch contains a spare tire. The engine
\nis located in the rear of this vehicle. The driver and other
\nfigures, like the jeep, are molded in color and are nicely
\ndetailed. The faces are a little soft in the detail area,
\nbut if you wanted you could replace the heads with aftermarket
\nones.<\/p>\n

The jeep is a quick and easy build however.
\nWhat you see above took all of 3 hours to cut, sand, and put
\ntogether.<\/p>\n

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01.24.08 \u00c2\u00bb New Stones<\/p>\n

I was messing around with a large piece of plaster
\nI poured the other day… carving some stones into it. The
\nstones look so good that I’m pitching what I have so far on
\nthe lighthouse and starting over with an all-plaster version.
\nTo do this I’ve poured plaster into the same shape cup I was
\nusing on the first. Then later I’ll carve the stones into
\nit with dental tools, then tap with a wire brush. It’s easy
\nto carve, looks MUCH better\/more real and has inspired me
\nto do a natural stone lighthouse instead.<\/p>\n

To paint the stones I thin some india ink and
\nvarious Apple Barrel acrylics. First I brush on a thin layer
\nof the paint, then a thin layer of the ink. Less-thinned ink
\nmakes darker stones. More thinned paint and ink makes for
\nlighter ones. For the mortar between I just rescribe into
\nthe bare plaster to reveal the natural white, then paint the
\nbare plaster with a thin india ink\/paint mix to tint it. Follow
\nit all up with a coat of prepared matt medium and viola!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

01.29.08 \u00c2\u00bb Blistering Heights<\/p>\n

After 4 days of carving then roughing up with
\na wire and nylon brush, the lighthouse tower is complete.
\nAnd I havea few blisters from all that carving to prove it!
\nHere’s pics. Next up is the upper deck and light components.<\/p>\n

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\n\"\"<\/p>\n

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01.30.08 \u00c2\u00bb Top of the Tower<\/p>\n

Today I finished painting the stones and started
\nwork on the top part of the lighthouse. After looking at several
\nlighthouse photos I decided to go with a decagonal (10-sided)
\nshaped top. The thin I-beams will hold clear plastic for the
\nwindow panes. The T-beams around the outer perimeter are the
\nsupports for the balcony floor which will be wooden planks
\nlike a deck. You can also see that I have one of the 2 windows
\ninstalled on the tower.<\/p>\n

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02.02.08 \u00c2\u00bb Land Ho!<\/p>\n

Happy Groundhog Day! How appropriate then that
\nthis update deals with the groundwork for this diorama. As
\nseen above, the base is pieces of scrap lumber glued and stacked
\nto make a sturdy platform. Added to this was rocks made from
\nplaster. These were made using the Woodland Scenics rock molds
\npurchased at my LHS. They look great and paint up beautifully.
\nOnce the rocks and such were glued in place, I covered the
\nbase in celluclay to blend in the ground to the rocks and
\nmake several sloped areas such as the slope for the stone
\nsteps. These too were made from plaster.<\/p>\n

Over the celluclay I sifted a mixture of dirt,
\nsand, plaster and small rocks. There were pressed into the
\ncelluclay and brushed off of the rocks. Larger pebbles were
\nadded afterwards and pressed in. I then steamed the plaster
\ncoating using my iron to add moisture via a very fine mist
\nrather than spraying it with a spray bottle which usually
\nmakes drippy messes, pits, and craters for me. Once this dries,
\nI’ll paint it up and apply some washes and folliage.<\/p>\n

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02.07.08 \u00c2\u00bb And now some green…<\/p>\n

Once all of the plaster\/dirt\/celluclay had dried
\nit was time to add the dirt coloring and some greenery. First
\nI gave all of the plaster\/dirt a coat of Prepared Matte Medium
\nto lock and seal it. Then once dry, I painted the base in
\na mixture of real dirt I sifted and water. Basically, paint
\nwith mud. Once again I gave that a coat of Matte Medium thinned
\nwith water aka Prepared Matte Medium. When dry I dusted it
\nall with various pigment powders such as Russian Earth, Dry
\nMud and Beach Sand.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I spent a day or two experimenting with creating
\nmoss. The moss
\nand lichen<\/strong> tutorial can be seen here.<\/a> My moss
\nmixture was applied thinly in spots that are shady and would
\nrecieve some water. I also applied some lichen to the rocks
\nfor added texture\/color.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Wooden dows were cut, weathered, mossed and
\ninserted as supports for a rope railing. The rope is beige
\ncrochet string which was perfect for this. The plants are
\na mixture of acrylic-colored and teased out hemp rope, real
\nsheet moss, real lichen, woodland scenics fine-leaf foliage
\nand silflor spring grass and flowering meadows. And that’s
\njust for what’s seen there so far. I plan on raiding the spice
\ncabinet for some other folliage and litter.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Lastly, here’s the top of the lighthouse so
\nfar. The light cylinder is clear PVC, large styrene tubing
\nand brass sheet. It sits on the small servo which will spin
\nthe whole thing to reflect the light 360 degrees.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

02.07.08 \u00c2\u00bb BRING ME A SHRUBERY!<\/p>\n

Nnnnnee! Nee. I needed some small bushes to
\nfill out some of the dio and bring it to life. Again I turned
\nto research and found that applying spices (parsley especially
\nworks nice) or dried crushed up green tree leaves to brown
\nlichen brushed with white glue works especially well. Using
\ndifferent mixtures of spices or crushed leaves to produce
\ndifferent colors on different bushes makes for a more random\/more
\norganic look. Unter the bushes I shoved crushed brown leaves
\nand brown bits of dried moss for the dead stuff from prior
\nseasons.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The ground leaves also work well for recreating
\nsmall creeping plants. My rear driveway ends up with small-leafy
\nplants that spread out over the asphault, in sidewalk cracks,
\nand everywhere else that’s bare. Just apply some thinned white
\nglue where you want these planst then sprinkle the leaves
\non it and blow away excess. Kinda like adding glitter to a
\nkids project.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I also added the veneer to the outside of the
\nbase to finish that off. I used a 1\/32″ birch plywwood
\nfrom Michaels. I stained it with thinned black ink then applyed
\nsome white drybrushing. When barely dry I then sanded it down
\nto get a nice old greyed wood look. I think I’ll add rusty
\nnails to the corners for the final touch. This makes it match
\nthe rest of the nautical\/rustic scene nicely.<\/p>\n

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02.13.08 \u00c2\u00bb Rust Chipped Paint<\/p>\n

Since I want this lighthouse to look somewhat
\ndilapidated I decided to have the paint for the top peeling
\nand chipping due to rust and harsh weather conditions. To
\nachieve this look I first primed then painted the parts with
\na Tamiya Acrylic drark gray then random coats of Nato Brown
\nand a rust mixture through my airbrush. Then I gave it a coat
\nof FFA and let it sit for a day to cure. The next day I sprayed
\nit with several coats of Hairspray and painted the white.
\nA few hours later I used water and wet brushes to loosen the
\nwater-soluable hairspray under the paint and create the chipped
\neffect.<\/p>\n

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02.14.08 \u00c2\u00bb Jeep Painting Part
\n1<\/p>\n

I’ll be doing this as a step-by-step tutorial
\nin my blog later, but here’s what I’ve got on the jeep so
\nfar:<\/p>\n

1: Primed jeep via airbrush with Mr Surfacer
\n1000 thinned with lacquer thinner and a few drops of Mr. Retarder
\nMild.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

2: Sprayed jeep with gray then random swaths
\nof Nato brown and a rust mixture. All Tamiya Acrylics. Later
\nthis will show through as random rust and primer coats under
\npaint chips.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

3: Clear-coated and sealed jeep with Future
\nFloor Acrylic (FFA) thinned 50% with Tamiya Thinner.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

4: 24 hours later 3 thin coats of hairspray
\n(hair lacquer) were applied.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

5: Jeep was sprayed with Olive green then parts
\nwere highlighted with JGSDF Olive Green which is a little
\nlighter.<\/p>\n

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6: A few hours later, using clean water, various
\nbrushes were used to wet the model and loosen the water-soluable
\nhairspray undercoat. This makes the topcoat of greens unstable
\ntemporarily so that they can realistically be chipped away
\nwith the wet brushes. Other implements (toothpicks, styrene
\ncard shards) can be used on the unstable surfaces to create
\nline-scratches. Larger areas of paint can be removed as well
\nas I did on the fenders. Remove as littler or as much as you
\nwant.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

02.16.08 \u00c2\u00bb Jeep Painting Part
\n2<\/p>\n

8: Now that the chipping is done, it’s time
\nfor decals. Normally I would coat the whole kit in gloss Future
\nFloor Acrylic. This time however I just brushed a few thin
\ncoats where the decals would end up. Note the gloss on the
\nfront fenders.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

9: Decals were applied and tools, dashboard,
\nseat cushions, and other hand-paint-necessary bits have been
\npainted. Mirrors and lights were painted with silver. Later
\nclear Tamiya was applied where necessary based on the light
\ncolor.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

10: Now a satin coat of FFA was applied. This
\nseals the topcoat from firther chipping attempts, accidental
\nor not and seals the surface for the solvent-based weathering
\napps.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

11: Next up, three applications of filters have
\nbeen applied to all the jeep parts. Filters are kind of like
\na wash, but not really… they’re hard to explain, but add
\na lot to the depth of a model. For this filter I mixed up
\na pale blue-green oil-paint mix with some turpenoid. This
\nalters the color slightly and blends colors together between
\nthe various colored parts. It also “seasons” or
\ntooths the surface slightly for the next step, discoloration.
\nNote also as I go, more and more of the jeep gets put together.
\nThis is based on what needed painted when and with minimal
\nmasking.<\/p>\n

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02.19.08 \u00c2\u00bb Jeep Painting Part
\n3<\/p>\n

12: Once the filters have dried\/cured for 24
\nhours, it’s time for the discoloration. This technique involves
\napplying small dabs of various oil colors then blending them
\nin with a thinner dampened brush. This gives the surface more
\nvariation in color and a more realistic and deep appearance.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

13: After the discoloration has dried, about
\n24 hours, a wash is applied. This wash is a mix of oil paint
\nto a dirt-color then thinned with turpenoid. This thin wash
\nis applied to the whole vehicle and all external parts such
\nas wheels, seats, etc… While it’s drying you might notice
\npools or water (thinner)-lines. These can be blended out with
\na stuff soft brush before the wash fully cures. Another 24
\nhours.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

14: Next up is pre-dusting with the airbrush.
\nFor this I’ve mixed Tamiya Flat Earth with Flattened FFA to
\nmake a semi-transparent dirt-mix. This is sprayed in very
\nlight mistings where larger amounts of dust would collect.
\nSide skirts, underside, and the rear pannel. More specific
\ndusting effects will be added next with pgment powders.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

02.19.08 \u00c2\u00bb Jeep Painting Part
\n4<\/p>\n

I didn’t expect to finish this today, but here
\nit is!<\/p>\n

15: The windshield was masked off where the
\nwindow wipers would hit. Then the windshield was lightly sprayed
\nwith my Tamiya Flat Earth + Flat FFA mix.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

16: The tires were painted in flat black then
\nhad a satin finish applied. Pigments were dusted onto the
\nwheels and then rubbed off with rubber gloves. This removes
\nall the pigment except for what’s around raised edges and
\nin the treads. A little bit of pigments were then brushed
\naround the road-hitting edge of the tire since it’s been running
\non a dirt road and would pick that dirt up.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

17: The machine gun was painted in flat black
\nand given a flattened FFA coat. Powdered graphite was rubbed
\nover the weapon to give it its gunmetal sheen. After it was
\nattached to the jeep it had just a little disty pigment applied
\nsince the weapon would generally be removed and kept very
\nclean and maintained.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

18: Pigment powders were applied dry with various
\nbrushes. Thinner was applied to these dry pigments to affix
\nthem to the surface better. The end result is still fragile
\nand should not be handled much, especially not with bare hands
\nas that could leave fingerprints in the finish. The underside
\nand rear panel recieved a lot of pigment, while the rest just
\ngot dust added in specific places. A little powdered graphite
\nwas rubbed onto the floor grates and sides where the crews
\nfeet would rub\/polish the surface.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

02.21.08 \u00c2\u00bb Lighthouse Details
\nand Figures<\/p>\n

While doing everything else, I’ve been painting
\nthe figures. These take a while since I’m using oils so it
\nends up being a process of paint one color or paint some highlights,
\nthen set under a heater vent till tomorrow. All I have left
\nnow is shoes\/boots, a little more eye detail, straps\/equipment,
\nand uniform details. There’s decals for some of it that I
\ncan apply then add oils on top of to blend. The red neck detail
\nand the insignia are decals. There’s also some yellow parts
\non the soldiers uniforms that need painted as well.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Lighthouse-wise I added the painted\/weathered
\ndoor details (minus the bolts for the foor hinge parts), some
\nchain (since BK liked that in a ref pic) fishing net, and
\nmy buoys. The buoys were made from styrene rods and spheres.
\nI still need to lay the rest of the grass and flowers.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The fishnet is made from some nylon mesh material
\nused for wrapping party\/shower-favors… can’t recall the
\nname. (edit: called tulle!) I wasn’t going to use it, but
\neverything else was way too thick. I wanted something I could
\ndrape, but this wasn’t it. Instead I had to make it into a
\nroll with some painted beads used as floaters.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The top of the lighthouse is complete except
\nfor the wiring. Waiting on an LED order to finish that part.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

02.23.08 \u00c2\u00bb Grass and Bird Poop<\/p>\n

At this point the figures are about finished…
\njust a little drying left before their flat coat and discolorations.
\nWhile waiting on them I’ve planted all of my Silflor grass.
\nThis diorama uses 3 different types of Silflor and bunches
\nof my own home-made tall grass. The Silflor used is “SF72221
\nDandelions & White Clovers”, “SF71021 Spring
\nShort 2mm Lawn”, and “SF72021 Spring High Pasture
\n8mm Lawn” from the Flowering Meadows and Spring Assortment
\nsampler packs. These were mixed-and-matched to get a natural
\nrandom clumping between the heights and flower density.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

In randoms spots I added some of my tall grass.
\nThis was made from short 2″ pieces of hemp-rope which
\nwere dipped\/soaked in various water-thinned green acrylics.
\nAfter these bits were dry I took a wire brush to them to thin
\nthem out and seperate the clumps. Then they were snipped with
\nscissors at various angles to randomize the lengths of grass
\nin the clumps. After that the bottom-side was cut flat across,
\ndipped into glue and placed on the scene. When the glue is
\ndry you can ruffle up the grass clumps to get them looking
\nbushy and blended into the scenery. Using these different
\ncolored clumps within the Silflor makes it more random and
\nnatural.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

There’s still a few pieces of grass that are
\ndrying, but while the glue dries, sprinkle the grass with
\nreal sifted dirt. Lightly brush this in so that it settles
\non top of and hides the white glue used to hold the grass
\ndown. Later you can press the dirt in more. I found that sprinkling
\nthe grass with crushed leaves\/spices makes for some nice random
\nlitter\/small plants thrown in.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

In this pic you can see some heavy rope resting
\nin the grass. Glue the rope down first, then plant grass around
\nit. This gives the rops the look of weight on the grass. Also
\nin this pic, the grass hasn’t been dirted or teased out yet
\nso between the flowers and plain grass there’s a definite
\nline. When the glue dries, this will be teased\/blended. The
\nsmall hole in the wood is to insert a nail or something to
\npress the on\/off switch for the lights\/motor.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

And what seagull-ridden natural scene would
\nbe complete without bird poop? I made a small nest using the
\nsame hemp rope cut into small bits. Small plastic Britta balls
\nwere painted and used as eggs and white oil paint with dabs
\nof gray\/black were used for bird poop. You know you’re into
\nthe small details when scale poop is added. You’ll notice
\nit throughout the scene… that “crap” is a pet-peeve
\nof mine as I always have to clean that “shit” off
\nof my kids toys\/swingset all summer. Grr.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

02.24.08 \u00c2\u00bb Last but not least…<\/p>\n

So this will be the final update for this in-prog
\nthread. At the moment the entire piece is completed except
\nfor the wiring of the motor and LED. Unfortunately I didn’t
\noder any LEDs until this past week so I have a few days until
\nthey arrive before I can finish it. In the meantime, here’s
\nsome final images of the figures which are done. Gun-straps
\nwere made from lead foil and boots have since been dusted
\nlightly with pigments..<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/p>\n

I used some Lifecolor Tensochrom “oil”,
\n“fuel” and “kerosene” to add some fuel
\nstains to the engine caps.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

And here’s a final teaser before wiring and
\nfinal pics.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n