You can also take the rock mold while it is still somewhat soft and place it where you want the rock to go . The plaster will adhere to the terrain and when the rock has dried out a bit more then you can peal the mold off .
I checked the resolution and it was way under the 2000 pixels you mentioned. Mine did the woo woo woo thing, also.
Regarding what happened over the last couple of days, let me offer this quote from Phantom of the Opera - Carlotta: For the past three years these things do happen and do you stop them from happening? NO! And you two, you are as bad as him. These things do happen. Until you stop these things from happening, this thing does not happen! Ubaldo, andiamo, bring my doggy and my boxy! Anyway, below are the three pics that were referred to before these things happened. I've never used any molds before, but these came out great. This material is very strong. After an hour of curing the mold peeled off without too much effort. No cracks, no breaks. Before casting, I did put a drop of Dawn on the mold, and swished/rinsed with water. Afterwards, I washed the mold and made nine more castings, until the four pound bag was nearly emptied. The next bag arrived today. The mix ratio is powder 3:1 water. The first one I used three ¼ cup measures with ¼ cup of water. This had a bit too much waste. Subsequently, I slightly reduced the powder to somewhere between 2/3 cup to ¾ cup, keeping the water constant at ¼ cup. This amount filled the mold perfectly with almost no waste. The second picture shows how I propped up the edges of the rubber mold with rolled up paper towels, to help keep the flexible perimeter level. The third picture shows the first 3 castings. Today, I painted all 10 with a very thin Pewter Gray wash. As applied, the wash is variable in shading, giving a more realistic appearance. I'll be making 10 more castings so I'll have some to break into smaller rocks.
You can also add some water based colored paint (e.g., acrylic) when mixing. Pick a color that is close to your final color. It will help in the final painting (you may not even need to paint!) and if small pieces chip off over time, you won't get blaring white spots.
That's a good idea that others have also suggested. This being my first time, I didn't want to introduce another variable into the final outcome. However, the unevenness of the gray tone, after applying the wash, makes it look more natural, I think.
This pic is of the 10 rock wall units, after painting with a gray wash. They look similar in shading, but not identical. After they're placed on the layout, they may get another very thin coat.
Today I started placing the rock wall panels on the layout. They're about 1/3 complete. To cut the units to length, I'm using an X-acto saw and some pliers normally used for glass cutting. To stick them onto the pink styrofoam, I'm using joint compound (starts pink, cures white). It doesn't drip, sag, and has a long set up time. Going to have to do a lot of touchup with Pewter Gray.
These are a work in progress. The now dried joint compound needs to be painted and the wall needs a lot of touch up. I shortened the first panel by sawing partially through. Then I gently tapped it to break on the cut. Of course, it decided to break on a diagonal. The first pic is at a tunnel entrance. I inserted a pre-made wall section, from the last layout, but I'm not crazy about it. May have to take it out. The second pic is segmented to better follow the curve. The third pic shows an area where the Blue Top RR had to remove additional rock to allow safer passage to Amtrak's longer passenger cars.
Now up to the down ramp, which is likely to be the most difficult, together with the tunnel entrances. Picked up the Freight Terminal Building, which will be the second industry. Also arrived from Japan (no delivery charge) were a Church and an unfinished home. Saw a video using heavy watercolor paper for roads. Said it doesn't pucker and wrinkle when wet. We'll see.
Did a lot of work on the wall today. It's mostly finished. Going to wait on the color appearance verdict from my wife. She has a particular eye for color. Anyway, I'll blame her.
Just completed all the stone work at the tunnel entrances. It looks rough and all the seams show, for now. Painting should take care of that issue. The second tunnel was completed with some leftover Woodland Scenics panel walls. They were extended above the upper level to provide fall protection for the village residents there. Since I still have more panels available, I'm going to extend that upper level barrier along the open side, by cutting them into strips. I've been using an x-acto saw for all the cutting. It isn't made to cut hard plaster but it did OK, with a lot of effort.
You might try a Zona fine tooth saw. They are said to be better than Xacto. I have a Zona fine tooth and really like it (for woodworking), but I don't have an Xacto saw to compare to it. Zona has a fine tooth saw with 32 tpi and a 0.010" kerf, 1-3/16 depth of cut. They also make a medium kerf saw with 0.015" kerf and 16 tpi. I have not tried the latter. The Xacto razor saw is also 32tpi, but cuts a 0.008" kerf (two thousandths less than the Zona fine tooth.) The Xacto blade length is 4.5" and depth of cut is only 7/16"
