A guide to using Polystyrene (Styrofoam) to make wargaming scenery 

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 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

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'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.

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.

This man was ready to throw it all away just to help out some nerds, what a hero

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.

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 !

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.

This is 7 years old and still golden

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

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

Love watching the old ones again...

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

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.

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.

Just brilliant, thank you for your time, enthusiasm and great advice

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.

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!

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

Glad you're finding them useful mate

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

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

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-)

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

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

Dear Terrain Tutor - I can't believe anyone would give you a "thumbsdown" on your awesome and humorous presentation!?! Your tutorial was quite excellent with some very clever and useful tips. I like the heatgun effect a lot. Very cool how you can even make a divit into the "styrofoam" as we casually call the material here, on the other side of the pond. Your techiques with the toothpicks is also very ingenious. Can't wait to order my hot wire tool and a heat gun! First class, mate! I have a lot of terrain building in the months ahead. Thank you. Currently working on a very authentic WW2 wargame - hopefully will publish by Autumn 2015. The real name is still secret, but the codename for it now is "Schwerpunkt" - the intitials for the real name is "PP" and and is based on a reworking of the old TSR game, Tractics, as the core model. The technical background and my 25 years of military experience (with the help of my co-designer/consultant) are going into this game which is intensely researched, but wholly transparent to the user! The goal is for very authentic results and properly applied tactics and reconnaissance, and is operationally correct for those who care about such things as historical honesty. I'm doing a lot to streamline the original game by reorganizing, rewriting and adding some unique, but highly evolved rules, and most of all, the gaming aids, that will speed up play enormously - the bane of the original game. I'm also looking at a possible smartphone App that will speed up some of the laborious die roll modifiers and limit referencing charts and tables. This promises to be a very exciting product without all the "gaminess" of recent popular skirmish games on the market, which shall remain nameless. Lots of new surprises and enhancement are integrated. Don't know if you're into WW2 gaming but I can be contacted if you're interested at . . . specforc12@aol.com - Tibor

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!

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!

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.

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.

I was really shocked you didn't have more views but then I realized this video is new. I have been back into wargames now for a few months, used to do it when I was teen, and I was all over youtube just for some quick tips...long story short(er) I'd have saved some time if I found this. Cheers mate, a worthy watch. Before I watched this I tried the paper mache seal just before I watched this. Q1: how to seal the paint? Q2: Advice on painting over PVA? Legend mate. Cheers!

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

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!

I love the stuff, the only downside is the drying time. Hope you find the rest of my vids useful mate.

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

My parents used this stuff when I was a kid to make tombstone decorations for Halloween. We discovered that there was a kind of automobile paint in aerosol that would eat away at it to give it a worn look. The more paint, the more it ate away to make deep grooves. I'm not sure if it's a specific brand or color, though. It's been about 20 years...

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.

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

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 :)

This was an absolutely excellent video! Thanks!

Brilliant tutorial and summary dude

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

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

Still cant get enough of your tutorials dude :D

Thanks man great tutorial even after 7 years

So cool for craters!

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

I've bookmarked this page for a drinking game I have in mind.

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

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.

I was here mostly for the differences between EXP and EPS foam, yeh? In particular how the hot wire tool carves through each one, yeh? Thanks though, your vid was pretty informative, yeh? I've Upvoted and Subscribed, yeh? Keep up the good work man.

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?

great job Mel!

You Easily Access Help with terrain tutor videos. They certainly keep me enthused for more projects than I can possibly get around to.

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?

Brilliant tutorial, thanks it answered all my questions

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

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

thanks for the detailed information. I am glad i needn't wreck my material before finding out what does not work. ... and i like your accent :)

Could you build various terrains and hills etc on to a wood base? Would polystyrene stick to the would well?

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 👍

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

Excellent info YEA ❤

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

Can I use Mod Podge in the same way as PVA glue?

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

Hi great video..where do you get the pink xps foam from please

Awesome video! Great job, bro!

When he brought out the Hot Wire Cutter, I was like Tim Taylor would be proud. More Power argh argh argh

Thank you for the tutorial. Very informative👍👍

im looking for this diorama old guy i watched as a kid . cant find anything but his work was amazing and all i can remember is his signature australian like "yeah" he looks abit like u. anyone know where i can find him?

Excellent, thanks mate

Excellent tutorial! Thank you!

The number of times you say Yeah is hard to get used to. Just trying to make you aware.

With sandpaper as a viable choice, how about an anlge grinder to shape a XPS sheet into nice gentle hills? With a finer grain sandpaper to smooth afterwards?

4:30 You don't really need a dustmask just wear a scarf around your face, and make sure you vacuum really meticulously afterwards.

Was just curious Mel, how would the mess from the Styrofoam do for basing miniatures?

Fantastic overview. Thank you very much.

Thanks for the helpful video ! Great stuff!

Brilliant video covering so many areas that had never occurred to me and as I have just started Dark Vengence (Warhammer 40,000), this video will be absolutely gold dust. Just one question, with the ball type polystyrene material, how do you manage to clear it all up easily, taking into account the static issue. Millions of thanks and really appreciate your time. Kind regards, Terry

I find using a bread knife works well because it is a thicker blade

Is the PVA glue used to seal the foam watered down or brushed straight on?

Hoping to make a big prop and was wondering can I buy insulation foam from b&q, sculpt it and cover it with Eva foam?

What's the best Avenue to get better at sculpting it ? I mean I know working alone is a big help but im trying to find all the tutorials on the sculpting part !

Which one is waterproof ??? and that you can use in a boat and not get water logged ??

So helpful. Thanks!

That was very helpful. Thanks

If I put 2 pieces of the white foam side by side... can I use a heat gun to close the seam between the 2 pieces?.. best video I've watched tutorial wise with dealing with this type of foam.. only took me 50 videos to find it tho lol..

Where do you get the dense stuff in the UK? Is there a brand name for it? Great video.

Love your videos my dude.

Loved the video. I really want a heat gun now for making hills for my tanks. To put on display

Will either of these be able to be super glued? Would coating it with pva or filler allow for it?

Soooo helpful! I subscribed. YEAH!

Nice video my friend, where do you pick up your foam?

I coat my terrain with a mix of pva and acrylic paint( 75% pva 25% paint) in the base colour of what my terrain will be . if you mix in play sand this will be as hard as concrete I love to make terrain and have done so for 25+ years like your work

That was super useful, thanks so much!

Is the Yelofoam X2i insulation from Jewsons suitable for terrain building?

Just wondering, what sort of thickness of foam do you find most useful for terrain pieces? By which I mean, hills, cliffs, building up bases etc, general purpose sort of stuff, rather than say, buildings.