Making Ground Cover

October 1, 2010

Model railroading (like any hobby) can be expensive, but there are lots of ways to save money. Making your own scenery props is a good example.

Making Ground Cover

If you want to avoid paying retail prices for commercially made ground cover, then have a go at making your own. Some inventive model railroaders use everything from coffee grounds, tea leaves, to ground-up fresh mulberry leaves. They use their microwave ovens to dry the leaves out, before putting them in a blender. They often combine different leaves to get the desired color and texture.

Sawdust is also an inexpensive material for making ground cover. Fabric dye (from the supermarket) can be used to color the sawdust. Mix up the dye, following the directions on the label, and carefully add it to your sawdust. You need to keep adding the sawdust until there is no more liquid. Pre heat the oven. Then put the colored sawdust on some baking paper (as it will stain anything it comes in contact with). Make sure it is spread out evenly and not just in a big pile. Put the baking dish in the warm oven, for an hour or so, to allow time for the sawdust to dry out. DO NOT cook the saw dust as it could catch fire. The oven should be warm enough to dry out the sawdust, not heat it up. You can bag the sawdust when it has dried out and cooled down. Use white PVA woodworkers glue to stick the colored sawdust to the ground or on tress etc.

I hope you found these model railroad tips useful.