Has anyone had experience using this product? I just reviewed the DVD Video demo by Joel Bragdon and the product looks pretty impressive particularly when applying castings to the scenery. I've ordered the trial kit and plan to experiment but I was curious as to other's experiences. ....Tom
Hi neighbor! I've used it on some Nn3 modules. Made some pretty impressive rockwork. Tom Knapp has also used it and we've compared notes. One thing we both agreed on was that the only way to color the rockwork was to use Bragdon's colors, which turned out well. It's messy stuff, like working with fiberglass resin. Drop cloths and gloves are recommended. I've got a couple of pictures somewhere. I'll try to find them. Or give me a call next time you're in Pueblo.
Yes, in the sense a fellow model railroader used it and it works nice. You won't believe the results you can get. See the video/slide show: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qwxc1zjHkjc The scenery has been made with Bragdon's Geodesic Foam. Just amazed at how easy this goes together. Being sloppy will work for you. I will be using these products for my layout.
My brother & I both have bought his kits. Rocks look pretty cool and to scale. We spent a Saturday making some for his HO layout. There is a learning curve. I am at the point of beginning to use it on my N layout.
I have seen some great results on layouts in Socal. One guy said they were very easy to deal with and he found the flexibility very helpful. He also used their coloring method.
I used it for a scene at the front of my layout, where I have a water inlet. I wanted this to be above-average scenery, and the Bragdon system definitely delivered. Sorry, the pictures do not do the rockwork justice here. This one gives a better idea of fine detail level that the foam can bring out: I also used one of Joel Bragdon's molds for casting the rocks. His molds have more fine detail than the generic ones. There is a learning curve. I would definitely reserve a weekend the first time, and make sure you've got a large working space. Follow directions. When it says use Tri-Sodium Phosphate, use it. Do NOT get the "TSP Substitute" stuff the stores want to sell you. It won't work. When I did my first casting, I used too much foam and the castings came out too thick. After you pour it, the foam expands a lot. The castings will be flexible initially, if you make them thin enough. Later, you can heat castings with a hair dryer to soften them up again if you need to curve them into corners. The castings also cut pretty easily. When I ran into trouble making my castings, I e-mailed them (Sunday afternoon, as I recall) and got a prompt response answering my questions and setting me on the right path.
