For sealing polystyrene, a mix of 50:50 PVA and water, then add flour till you get this kind of plaster style paste, then a teaspoon of salt.Plain Flour and Salt. Coat that over and you get something thats completely rock solid, and doesn't crack as easily as plaster.

I've heard the word yeah more in this video than I have throughout my entire 30 yes of life! However, the information sprinkled in between the yeah's was wonderful. Lol

I just have to say... I HAVE SPENT COUNTLESS HOURS LOOKING FOT THIS VIDEO. No joke. I was getting really depressed that I'd never find it, and then it fell out of the sky like an Angel!!! You are an Angel! Thank you so very, very much for posting this. I am very happy. :D

Spent the better half of an hour looking for a guide to working with polystyrene. Could not for the life of me find safety tips. This video was exactly what I needed and more.

Yeah..White stuff .. yeah .. BnQ .. yeah .. Pink stuff .. yeah .. Wickes .. yeah .. or Search for .. Space Board Eco Insultation .. yeah. Hope that helps yeah? ;o)

on the end of a sentence im like, wait for it... wait for it... yeah

Wonderful tutorial covers all I need to know about how to make Styrofoam mountains for an Alpine train layout.

I'm just starting to get into the whole terrain building scene for my next D&D one-shot and let me tell you - it is daunting. It doesn't help that everyone on the internet has different opinions and advices on what's the best way to do stuff. It's helpful that you get to the basics and consider those of us who are new to the hobby and can only use the most simple stuff to begin with. Thank you.

This is 7 years old and still golden

I have just started modelling, this is a really useful intro to the ins-and-outs of polystyrene.....keep up the good work that man !

This is great! I'm just working on my first terrain project, and this is a really solid primer. Thank you so much for making it!

A great intro to using foam - thanks. Thanks especially for the summary of sealing and gluing - really useful.

To say that I really liked that video would be an understatement! I feel like you taught me so much more than other KZfaqrs who might have better editing but they don't even come close to teaching me this much about something so interesting.

Excellent video. Really informative, loved seeing the difference between expanded polystyrene and the polystyrene foam! Thank you so much!

Thank you so much for your invaluable tutorial on polystyrene and other incredibly useful tutorials. I had to build the mountain at the back of the Rorke's Drift Battlefield and I was in a mess!! We can't get proper styrofoam in South Africa, so using the real "bobbly" stuff, although slightly more compacted, was a challenge. My husband and I have just built the battlefield of Rorke's Drift which is 119cm x 2,475cm and is 1:72 scale. This is in 3 panels and is not a wargame, but a proper depiction of the battle. We have built it for Fugitive's Drift Lodge which is situated there. We are complete amateurs at modelling, (my husband builds model WWII aircraft and ships) but the reaction we got from the client was fantastic. so thank you again for all you wonderful tutorials.

Best intro to the medium. About to build a table and this is priceless thanks.

I'm extremely happy I found your channel. All of the others are much too exquisite and advanced for me because, quite frankly, I don't know a thing about building terrain. Thank you so much for making videos for guys like me on the basic level; it gives me hope that I actually can make decent terrain!

These are great tips! I'd recommend running a vacuum while cutting these near the intake. It helps to limit the mess quite a bit. Also, for the paper mache coating with paper dipped in thin PVA, I would recommend using strips of the plainest paper towels.

These videos are simply the best. I have built terrain for some years but still pick up some good tips from them.

Thank you so much! I have a diorama for an underground hangar I have to build for my design project. I now have a pretty good idea on how to go about it and what to use to create the rock faces.

Great vid. You're very informative! Covering both types of foam plus all sorts of different tools was amazing, and very helpful for someone about to enter the terrain building scene.

Mel is in fact the man. THE MAN! Your newest subscriber-for-life thanks you for your educational channel. And it's "expanded" polystyrene, also known as Styrofoam. Of course. Yeah?

thank you so much for this. i don't build your sort of thing but am a crafter heavily into recycling. you have given me great solutions and ideas to recycle polystyrene packaging and to make into stamps for printing x

Marvellous tutorial. Good presentation, structure, and of course content. Precisely what I was looking for as I was looking at how to start off with polystyrene. Subscribing and going to look at more videos from you.

Absolutely brilliant tutorial, am just getting into terrain building and this has been a great help. Really informative and has made the prospect of making my own board so less daunting, thanks and keep up the good work

Most informative video, glad i stumbled upon it. answered every question i thought about, pertaining to Polystyrene. Two Thumbs up!

Brilliant guide chap! I noticed some comments ask where to get the thin sheets and that's exactly why I went looking for the DIY. I get them with electronics, small furniture and the like (packing-holding material), was looking for exactly the process to seal up those foam-beads, on to the farm fields next! :D

Hey Mel, really enjoyed the video. I was watching it whilst I painted some miniatures and you made me remember how easy polystyrene terrain was to make. I went and found some in a cupboard and had two gateways finished before the end of your video! :-) Cheers for the advice. Keep posting. Great work!

ok, i have now learned as much as i needed to know regarding the medium of polystyrene. thanks so much, i have been making models for 40k for over twenty years, but still i have had no idea how to make modular terrain. now i feel much more ready to make my own, thanks once again.

superbly articulated and easy to follow and I know exactly what to use whilst being on a budget for the cheaper but nonetheless just as effective results. class.

Brilliant. You have a great teaching technique, so accessible. Thanks.

This was an absolutely excellent video! Thanks!

This is such a great video man! So interesting and informative! Some great ideas here that I’ll definitely use 😃

really great and enough descriptive, thank-you very much

Brilliant tutorial and summary dude

Glad you found it useful mate. Once PVA is completely dry, it's easily painting with most paints mate. You shouldn't need to seal the paint when it's dry but if you're desperate to, just give it a thin coat of watered down PVA mate. If you can hold on, I'm working on a set of videos covering foliage etc now mate.

Love watching the old ones again...

Very detailed presentation. Appreciated. I've recently begun to delve into the terrain building hobby for my RPG games. I testing using mold building and cheaper versions (like Styrofoam) methods. I already had tools (hotwire tools /glue gun, etc) so it's good to see how to use them. Thanks for the clear explaination of the various types of material.

I'm looking at differing materials and techniques for modelling railway scenery, this video is very helpful giving pro's and con's to widely available materials which primarily could be up-cycled from cut off/redundant building materials or packaging, cheers.

Great. Exactly what I was looking for!

Brilliant tutorial, thanks it answered all my questions

A couple of other tools that I've found useful: * Woodworker's rasp - Pretty much a cheese grater with a handle. This will rapidly shape foam moderately precisely. But it's about the messiest thing you can do without fluids. Make sure you're running a shop vacuum constantly when using this. * Bandsaw - Best tool I've ever used for making straight-ish cuts in foam. You can tilt the head to cut on a consistent bevel and you can feed the foam as fast as you like. The cuts are consistent and very smooth. Of course it will cut off fingers almost as fast as it will cut off bits of foam, so know what you're doing before you even think about turning it on -- it's hungry for your blood. 8-)

Thanks man great tutorial even after 7 years

Great. Yeah I found it hard to get a nice coat over PVA with acrylics but I suppose I just need to add more coats. I am glad you're a PVA pusher, as I pretty much thought it was God's grace of wargame terrain and crafting needs. I'll be keeping up with your channel and backtracking a bit also. Cheers.

Excellent, detailed video. Thanks for posting, bro! Cheers.

Thanks for getting this out mate looking to make some terrain for my D&D game!

Just the kind of video I was looking for! Thanks!

Good tutorial, thank you from USA 🇺🇸

Still cant get enough of your tutorials dude :D

This was an outstanding video, I can't thank you enough for it and I'm really looking forward to watching more of your terrain vids but for now my brain is buzzing with ideas thanks to you so I'm going to start cutting up bits of foam and see what I can come up with :) Liked and subscribed and looking forward to more

Hi Mel, just googled, who invented polystyrene, came up with Eduard Simon, lovely video, thanks for sharing.

I have to say I really enjoyed this video too! Very well done. In my case, I'm feeling partial to the heat gun...great textures! Thanks

Thank you for the tutorial. Very informative👍👍

This has been super helpful!

Glad you're finding them useful mate

Fantastic overview. Thank you very much.

The figures as well !such as holiday villages!

Fantastic video*! Your content is always brill and you give a lot of detail. Youve helped me alot with starting scenery :)

Great video mate. Nice to see it broken down into easy steps and made easy. Down to TP tomorrow for some pink foam! Haha. Keep up the great work!

Am glad I found this video it was exactly what I needed thank you

Thanks for the good tips.

Thanks for the helpful video ! Great stuff!

A VERY informative vid. THANK YOU so MUCH.

So cool for craters!

That was super useful, thanks so much!

Thank you very much, you just gave me a head start. You have a new subscriber!

Back in the day of very tightened purse strings, I hand-made a hot-wire cutter using an old, unloved junior hacksaw and some fusewire. I taped a sock around the handle for insulation, wound the wire taut across where the blade would've gone, then simply heated the wire over a gas ring. Surprisingly effective if you happen to be broke and desperate!

Thanks so much for this mate. Couldnt get my outcrops to stick. didnt think to use sticks to pin them!

Thanks great tips and tricks doing my first war board and helped me so much ... Yeah

Excellent info YEA ❤

So helpful. Thanks!

great job Mel!

This video makes me think I can have a go without spending a fortune on equipment, great stuff!

this is what i was looking for. thanks so much!!. now i can make my own dioramas.

Thank you so much, this was a very informative video. ❤️🇦🇺

I once had a fracture along the ball line... painful. Haha. Good video 👍🏻

Thanks for the video!

Okay that bit at the end was what I needed, "battleproofing". Cheers buddy, earned a like! Only tip for the video, a cardboard sign up with each thing you're talking about would let folks jump to what they need, otherwise great stuff, but possibly contemplating this fun thing called...."smiling"!!! :D Have fun with it! Enjoyable video nonetheless

Love your videos my dude.

Excellent tutorial! Thank you!

Awesome video! Great job, bro!

Soooo helpful! I subscribed. YEAH!

Brill vid ! Just what we newcomer modellers need to help us.........and a face mask safety reminder too, some materials are more dangerous than people often think.........keep up the good work that man !

Very informative !!😊

Thanks for the tutorial. I now know more about foams than I ever needed but helps with my Star Wars model diorama I am building! Thanks. What grit was that sand paper?

Great tutorial! Thanks for this! Drinking game for the self-hating: take a drink every time he says "yeah". :)

Hi. Tx for the tutorials. Very informative. I have just started out. Did a styrofoam mountain but did not seal before i painted. Can i use the pva after painting or what would you suggest.

Thanks, very helpful

That was very helpful. Thanks

I almost only use an exato knife to cut this type of stuff, really sharp and cheap. Now of to look at your other stuff, as I just found this one searching for terrain stuff on youtube :)

Hey just wondering if you have an update on where we can source some of the thick pink foam here in the uk now? No luck with any of the diy stores. I have checked panel systems they have the thinner blue and green stuff - but really want some very thick stuff for a Christmas terrain. Btw loving your channel have learnt so much so huge thank you for your videos 👍

Great info. Thanks!! ❤️✌️👍

A really great tutorial indeed! I am looking forward to using styrofoam in modding my Mechwarrior paper models.

Great help! Thank you :)

We need basics vids like this. Constructive feedback: You say "yeah" a lot, which you probably know by now. But this tutorial was great, thank you!

I can't concentrate on watching every time this guy says "yeah", I LAUGH T_T

Was looking for a way to seal some terrain pieces I am making, I just brushed petrol onto the blocks of packing styrofoam and it gives a really nice organic varied shape. Think I will go for water, pva and a little bit of matt emulsion paint.

Great stuff! Unfortunately, it is difficult here in Sweden to get anything but white bubble s-foam. In your view, can the techniques you use work just as well with the white version?

A very interesting video from which I've learned quite a lot about polystyrene and how to shape it. I would like to ask the tutor does he ever use polystyrene to create figures?

very useful - thanks