Thatch material

[Marcus Aurelius]

I just found some coco fibre in my local pet shop, sold in small bags for hamster bedding. It looks absolutely ideal for making a thatched roof. Here in the UK, I bought a bag for £1.99 at Jollye's.

[Timurilank]

Marcus,

From your description I believe you are using this for 25mm? I think, the breadth of the fibre is a bit too wide for 15mm, however, using paper covered roofs and run lines in pencil down the roof to simulate palm leaves works well for roofing of tropical houses. Good idea for medieval houses though.

cheers,

[Pthomas]

Ruth,

sounds interesting. Are you using this for 25 mm? Currently, for my 15's I use a water based wood putty which I smear on and then create irregular hatch mark designs with my exacto knife. Looks okay, but requires a bit of work.

[derek]

Hullo
I would recommend that you simply use:
Reptex 100ml Jars
RT6 Thatch Roof (cost £2.25)
over plastic card
Obtainable from
http://www.donnington-mins.co.uk/
Kind Regards
Derek

[David Kuijt]

Buy some amber or brown or grey fake fur at a fabric store, cut it to size, then paint it heavily with reduced white glue. Let dry completely (at least 24 hours) and then paint and drybrush normally.

Note that all thatching turns grey within a year or less of being laid down.

[Marcus Aurelius]

Originally posted by Pthomas:
Ruth,

sounds interesting. Are you using this for 25 mm? So far, I haven't used it at all. I wanted it for a (15 mm scale) Celtic wattle and daub hut with thatched conical roof and a website somewhere recommended bristle from coir floor brushes - I thought that looked much too coarse. The coco fibre from the petshop is really fine, like fine sewing thread - hard to believe it's coconut. I will try it out when I get time (busy with a real-life building project at home right now!) and post a picture or two.

[ October 22, 2005, 15:58: Message edited by: Marcus Aurelius ]