'cause I need hundreds of them...

I too will make a start on the monthly project this weekend, despite the self imposed ban until some of the house things are done, I'm sure there is some room for a little project during rest times :hmm

This hill needs some vegetation.



… and this is the real thing… and I mean the real thing, I was standing on the track bed of the disused Newcastle Emlyn Branch :thumbs



It's a bit overgrown, just a bit , but a good representation of the surrounding woodland none-the-less.



… and around the tunnel mouth.



Just got to find my camera now.

 

Found my camera :thumbs

Trees started…. twisted wire.



The current plan is to twist up a decent batch of trees, 20 or 30, and then mix up a big batch of my tree bark goop in a suitable container that will allow me to dip the wire frames into it.

The concept is to let the first tree hang and dry while the others are dipped in turn, eventually getting back to the first tree and dipping it again, thus building up layers of bark until it looks right.

A bit like making a candle.

We shall see.

10 trees twisted up so far, more to come.

The next one will have multiple trunks, something I've just noticed in the photos of the real thing above.

I do like making trees. :doublethumb

Great Start Marty, but only 20/30 to cover all your hills !

How tall are they ………….around 4/5 inches tall, or bigger ?

Nice slender ones, Marty. They look very believable already.

Mike

Might need one or two more then ya reckon

These ones are about 4 to 5 inches tall, yes. I'm going to do some, although not as many, 3 to 4 inches tall and some 5 - 6 inches tall.

We shall see.

 

[user=19]Marty[/user] wrote:

mix up a big batch of my tree bark goop in a suitable container that will allow me to dip the wire frames into it.

I do like making trees. :doublethumb

Marty

What are you going to use/put in the goop ?

 

Usually a mix of

Polyfiller
PVA glue
Water
Jo Sonja's texture paste
Diggers Oxide, the stuff used for colour tinting concrete and plaster.

The PVA gives the plaster some flexibility.
The water content, of course, allows you to make a thin pancake mix for dipping in, a thicker pancake mix for painting on or a thick paste for trowelling on and pressing in with the fingers.
Texture paste for some, um… texture and
Oxide to provide a consistant colour right through the bark goop, that way any chips don't show white.

The quantities are a bit theoretical, keep adding stuff until it looks right.

All of my trees have been made with this goop and so far they are all OK.

I use a very similar mix for the hard shell ground goop over my polystyrene formers, soaking the goop in cleaning cloths (Chuxs) and draping it over the formers, replacing the texture paste with sawdust and using a lot less PVA as flexability is less of a concern.  Maybe not the cheapest option but it works for me

… and I don't burn my fingers. :thumbs

[user=19]Marty[/user] wrote:

… and I don't burn my fingers. :thumbs

:oops::oops::oops:

 

[user=285]Alan[/user] wrote:

[user=19]Marty[/user] wrote:

… and I don't burn my fingers. :thumbs

:oops::oops::oops:

 

ooh cruel…
:twisted::cool:

[user=8]MikeC[/user] wrote:

Nice slender ones, Marty. They look very believable already.

Mike

I'll second that Mike. :thumbs

Those two towards the right that are overlapping look good already and they're just bits of wire.   The goop sound a bit like my porrage Marty.  :roll::roll:

It would certainly stick to your ribs Peter

Just for the record 'cause it may be useful to someone…

This is what I use to make the tree frames

An earth wire, a craft knife and wire cutters.



Using the craft knife carefully slit the plastic sheath and pull out the wire.



Using the wire cutters… um, cut the wire.



Trim the wire to the length that you want.



… and start twisting. In this case a tree that has originally been coppiced and then when the forest became protected from harvesting, allowed to grow to it's full height. The term for this is apparently, according to wikipedia, Overstood.  5 sustantial trunks in this one.



The bottom 10mm or so had to be soldered to hold the trunks together and while twisting the individual trunks kept getting in the way of the one being worked on. Maybe an hours work while watching television.



Another small single trunk tree was twisted up and added to the collection, it's a bit hard to see as it's standing infront of a larger tree in the back row, but it's number 4 from the right.
The coppiced tree is first on the left.
The tractor is there to help with a sense of scale.



And finally for today a close up of the twisted wire.



11 trees so far, more to come.

cheers

Marty I like the look of that wire :thumbs
 I've used the texture paste on copper wire, and it sends them blue. No great drama when they have to be painted, of course, but I'd prefer it if it didn't do that.

 I like where you're going with this. I've never been a fan of the shortcut puffball trees that populate many layouts.

Mike

I've no idea what metal the wire is made from, the original was scrap donated from a sparky on a building site.

So far there has been no discolouration of the bark goop I use.

Puffball trees, ughh, shudder.

Great wire that Marty; in the UK earth wire is single strand; grrrrrr!   And, needless to say, great trees.

Ken

[user=34]Ken[/user] wrote:

Great wire that Marty; in the UK earth wire is single strand; grrrrrr!   And, needless to say, great trees.

Ken

It's only triple here Ken - thick wires but not enough of them !!

Buying stranded wire of that diameter would need a mortgage I should think :roll:

Great hill Marty, I like your plantation plans, If the tree making becomes a pain! have some cleared sites on the hill with just tree stumps, forester,s have been at work, he he.
just started myself on a tree, what have I let myself infor.
goodluck with your project.
Derek

[user=34]Ken[/user] wrote:

Great wire that Marty; in the UK earth wire is single strand; grrrrrr!   And, needless to say, great trees.

Ken

you can try heavy duty multi core flex, shuold be about the same.

lol::cool:

Lovely trees Marty(just like the ones in your Newcastle Emlyn photo),and I like the sound of your "goop".Have you thought of taking out a patent???

:pathead

Cheers,John.B.:thumbs

Hey they're looking fantastic already,cant wait see the finished article!