Posted on 3rd Nov 2009 @ 11:30 AM

It’s comparatively rare for a totally new product concept to land on my desk for review, but Reddiprene38 is just such an innovative product. It’s all the more interesting for me because I’m always on the look-out for different materials to use in the “How to…” articles, that I write for the magazine.

So what exactly IS Reddiprene38 and why is it special?

Originally designed for use in the extrusion and sealing market by the Reddiplex Group plc, one of the company’s technicians discovered a unique property of the product. If you apply gentle heat, using a domestic hairdryer, Reddiprene38 becomes completely pliable, and you can bend it into curves, or even press patterns into its surface. BUT most importantly, as the material cools it retains that shape or texture!

It didn’t take long for its potential to be realised by modelmakers and so modelscenery.com was created to market Reddiprene38 to the hobby market.

Currently the material can be bought as 20cm x 12cm modelling sheets with a variety of textures and finishes including: - Yorkshire Stone Floor - FieldWall - Fortress StoneWall - Slate Roof - Medieval Detail (doors, windows and a portcullis!)

The modelling sheets are designed to be compatible with 25-28mm scale, and vary in thickness from 2mm for the Slate Roof to 4mm for the floors and walls. Prices for the modelling sheets are £8.60 for two sheets. The material is also available as plain sheets in packs of two in a choice of thickness from 0.6mm to 3mm with prices from £3.80 to £5.50.

Also available are a range of mouldings including round, square and hexagonal sections as well as ‘U’, ‘Z’ and ‘T’ section

As far as I’m concerned Reddiprene38 really is an innovative product for which I’m sure many modellers, myself included, will find countless uses. I do have a couple of reservations though.

Having spoken to the company, there are no plans currently to market any larger sheet sizes, and although the sheets glue together really well with ‘superglue’, larger sheets would offer improved creative possibilities, save me work, and might prove more economical!

The ‘curving and shape retaining’ property of the material is indeed a unique one, but I can only envisage very rare occasions when I personally would need to be able to bend some of the ‘sections’, or the Yorkshire Stone Flooring, but you never know! If any readers are in the Telford area, Modelscenery will be demonstrating Reddiprene38 at the IPMS Model Show in Telford, 7/8 November.

For more information on this fascinating material and to see examples of its use, take a look at Modelscenery’s website. Now where did I leave that hairdryer...?

Credit:Wargames Illustrated