Plaster Towers

Like those in Antwerp, the well-known "centers"

This was published in Modelspoormagazine 54 - more pictures and text can be found there...

Round shapes are hard to produce using classic scratchbuilding materials. Casting a plaster cilinder shape and milling it, using a classic power drill is an inexpensive and suitable alternative.

We don't need much materials: fine plaster, as sold in do-it-yourself stores a round plastic box, as used for photography a two-inch flat-headed nail. In the boxes' bottom we drill, exactly in its center, a suitable hole for the nail. This nail is pearced trough halveway, as straight as possible.

Mix the plaster with an equal amount of water, to become a liquid milk-like substation. Don't stir it to firmly, as we don't want any airbubbles trapped in the casting. Wait long enough - at least a day - for the plaster to set, then push the casting out of the box. Let the casting dry thoroughly. A week should be fine. The nail will be used to hold the casting in our powerdrill, and to "plant" the tower in the rest of the scenery.

Use a real powerdrill, not a minitool, as a Dremel-like's motor runs far too fast and would be demolished by our next steps. Place the powerdrill firmly in a drillstand, and rotate the casting slowly, to asure the nail is nicely placed in center of the casting. A bit of gentle bending might help correct any non-allignment. Use a container to catch the milling dust, and don't wear your best clothes, as this will be a messy part of construction. Work at a very low speed (200rpm is plenty) to reduce dust and to respect tour drill. Protect your eyes and ears as well. Using very rough sanding paper (e.g. 40) the tower-shape is becoming apparent.

With a standard, firm hobbyknife the rest of the hape is milled. By holding this knife in various poses, we can get the final shape of the little tower. Start with the most distant part, and mill fom shallow to deep. Experimenting and trial-and-error are the best tutors for this part.

As our projct is still in the powerdrill, we can cut the horizontal lines, to imitate the stones.

The vertical lines are scribed by hand, using a fine hobby knife.

Painting and wheathering is a matter of personal taste. I used the followong:

• airbrush with “Pacemaker Grey” (414266, Polyscale)
• washing with“Dirt” (414308, Polyscale)
• drybrushing with“Concrete” (414317, Polyscale)
• pastels
• matte varnish

As you can see, one doesn't need complicated or expensive tools to get a nice result. Not calculating the plaster setting time, one needs about one and a half hour to create something alike. The costs are next to nothing.