Gluing stones to bases. (?)

[ukJames]

Hi all. Need some advice with regards to putting a diorama together. I've worked out where i want things to go, got all my props and figures sorted, worked out a colour scheme etc.. And now i'm ready to start. But i have a problem. I've never made a diorama before, and i'm wondering what the best method is for gluing largeish stones to a plastic base? I've got a very irregular shaped stone from the garden, (washed and dried), and a flat piece of slate. What adhesive should i be using to fix these down? I'm thinking super glue will be fine for the slate as it has a flat surface, but i've no idea what to use for the other stone. I thought about mixing up some green stuff and just sticking it down with that. Is that madness? ...any advice greatly appreciated.

 

[Rugne]

yeah, you could green stuff it on, or araldite will work

Marc

 

[BPI]

Superglue (medium or thick) combined with greenstuff will do the trick. You can always push the stone into the green, then remove it, let the green dry, soak in glue & then push whole lot together. Milliput is cheaper though & equally as useful! Once the initial lot is set you can always gap-fill with the superglue, just make sure it's dry before getting a brush anywhere near it! Cheers, B.

 

[ukJames]

You can always push the stone into the green, then remove it, let the green dry, soak in glue & then push whole lot together.

..that's a pretty good idea actually. Never thought of that. ...would that give a stronger bond do you think, rather than just leaving the stone to set in fresh green stuff?

 

[A Luna]

..that's a pretty good idea actually. Never thought of that. ...would that give a stronger bond do you think, rather than just leaving the stone to set in fresh green stuff?

The bond will be a lot stronger. The green stuff is only sticky and when its dried up it only needs a small bump to be knocked off. Glue can hold a large bump.
I sometimes do use the method to leave it in the soft green stuff, but that is just because I won't touch the rock afterwards.

 

[Donga]

All the above methods will work but by far the best and easiest way to attach odd shaped rocks and shale to a base is- a hot glue gun! Instant and gap filling, you can texture the resulting overspill with sand and smaller rocks.

PVA for smaller scatter materials, Hot Glue for the big stuff.

They are quite cheap, I use mine alot.

 

[Einion]

..that's a pretty good idea actually. Never thought of that. ...would that give a stronger bond do you think, rather than just leaving the stone to set in fresh green stuff?

The bond will be a lot stronger.

If there's enough texture the direct bond to GS would be stronger.

Superglue joints are notorious for being shock-sensitive because it's only really strong in tension, it's not good in compression (this is why you can twist apart cyano joins fairly easily, while the same joint would be difficult to pull directly apart).

Einion

 

[Beelzebrush]

Araldite or wood glue make really good bonds. Adhesives like No Nails, Pink Grip or Sticks like S**t are good too.

 

[Einion]

...Pink Grip...

New to me, thanks!

Einion

 

[Dragonsreach]

Pink Grip

New to me, thanks!

Einion

And me. Gonna have to google that.




And as for "Sticks like...." I originally read that as "Stinks like...."