Egypt diorama building tools

These are the tools I used to build this diorama. The small screwdriver was used to carve the spacing into the pink foam walls. The Roll-A-Tex is a fine sand compound that mixes with paint to create a great desert look. Every DIY store with a paint department will mix you up sample paints from any of their paint lines. Usually only a couple of bucks, they are a great way to get cheap multiple colors that will last you for several dioramas.

Laying out the structure for the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Mocking up the hanger for perspective-a lot of trial and error goes into building a large structure like this.

Laying out the structure for the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Creating small temple for Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Using pink foam board to make small temple.

Creating the temple

Simple temple structure using different thicknesses of pink foam board.

Creating main Egyptian temple

I used the King and Country temple facade and pink foam board to crate the main temple.The stairs are made with Depron foam board bought on Amazon which I use extensively.

constructing the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

I started to use Elmer’s to glue foam parts together, but switched to foam adhesive which gives a much tighter bond and can be found usually next to the pink foam insulation racks at local DIY stores like Home Depot.

Using foam insulation to make rocks

I use foam insulation used by plumbers to create easy rocks. After spraying on, you can shape with a plastic spoon while still wet, or wait for it to dry and carve with a knife, Remember to use judiciously , as it expands a lot after its sprayed on. I suggest you try on a old piece of foam board before using it on your diorama to test its properties.

Costructing the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

I used DryDex spackle to fill in the cracks. It goes from pink to white when dry for sanding ease-a great product with a lot os uses in diorama building.

Constructing Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Used spray on insulation foam to make the rock formations and carved the stairs out of the foam underlay I used to rough out this whole part of the diorama

Constructing Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Constantly fitting all the pieces together for visual perspective.

Temple structure

I used a T-square and sharpened ice cream stick to carve the stone spacing into the foam board exterior facing, then covered in Spackle for a stone texture prior to painting.

Temple structure for the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Built this temple as a simple 4 square wall design. The stairs are also carved out of 1″foam and the hieroglyphics are from a broken temple facade. The sphinx is from King and Country.

Building a Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

I’m constantly moving pieces around to ensure the best visual perspective.

Laying out the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

I’m constantly tacking together the pieces as I build them to make sure it all ties together as a unified whole

Planning the structure for the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Half the project is planning and laying out how the structures will all fit together in the final diorama. A lot of trial and error is involved, and mistakes are part of the process.

Creating the structure for the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Using Depron and pink insulation board to build the diorama structures. I use foam board paste to glue everything together. Always keep a figure handy for visual perspective.

Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

another view of prepping for painting

Detailing the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

DryDex spackle is used to give texture to the face, that I created using overlapping strips of Depron foam board to give that quarried effect. It also covers any spaces that may occur

Pre-shading the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

I used drywall spackle to add texture to the structure exteriors before priming. The smaller temple is already painted separately before attaching it to the hanger structure.

Pre-prepping prior to painting the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

I used black spray can auto primer to prep the structures prior to painting. The black covers the pink foam well, and covers up any mistakes or missed paint parts, and acts as a great subtle pre-shading

Deailing the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

After letting the sprayed on insulation harden, I used a knife to carve the rock formations into the structure, which I also glued on sprinkled sand for the desert like surface.

Detailing the Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

To make the rock formations, I used Das air dried clay, sprayed on foam insulation and kitty litter to detail this structure made from foam insulation board

Making the base for Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

I used Pink insulation foam glued onto a hollow core door for the base of the diorama.

Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Further perspective on Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Further work on the temples and structures-I always keep the planes, figures and vehicles around for scale purposes and visual perspective.

Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Made the temple buildings out of pink foam insulation board. The Hieroglyphics are from a broken temple facade a friend gave me.

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Laying out Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Another view from my workshop. The statues and Temple facade are from King and Country, as is the control tower, planes and figures, My favorite toy soldier company.

Laying out prepainted Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Layed out the structures continually for scale and fit prior to tying everything together with paint.

Creating Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Used black auto primer as undercoating for each structure before painting in desert toned colors with desert colored paint samples from Home Depot paint department. The temple dogs were from trip to Viennas wonderful history museum store.

Painting Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Using various sand color acrylic’s, painted the structures in various shades of ocher and gray to match the desert environment

Secret German airfield-Egypt 1941

Finished Diorama on my work bench-3 months work for “Indiana Jones meets Irwin Rommel…..”