Making roads on a hill

Personally, I'd not consider ballast material unless I was making a gravel road. The stuff is too coarse for asphalt, and doesn't even come close to looking like concrete. The easiest way I've ever done it was to use drywall joint compound. The stuff cracks a bit , but you can add another thin layer.Let the whole thing dry, then lightly sand it to take off any high spots and roughness. It's a good idea to square up the edges a little bit. You can always skimcoat some of that woodland scenics plaster over the top. What that will do is make any painting easier to match up. Each material will take paint differently. One will most likely be darker than the other, and you want to minimize that so it doesn't look phony. I use built up washes of pigments & alcohol to color my roads and they come out pretty good. Whatever you do, make the roads wide enough for the traffic they will be carrying. Nothing looks worse unless the model is depicting a high mountain pass. Hope this helps some.

Jim

If you're worried that the plaster will flow, you are mixing it way too thin. Plasters, when they are properly mixed, will stand on their own and not really flow. If you're worried that you didn't put enough water in the plaster, put the plaster onto the layout and then mist water onto the plaster as it cures. I do my rocks with plaster and something like the Man on the Mountain rock outcropping is easily possible with thick sections of plaster when mixed properly, not that I have ever done anything like that but 70 degree slopes are not hard.

-- Why isn't there an Ozone Hole at the NORTH Pole?

And don't forget to camber the road! Regards, Bill.

Thanks for the help