1:35 Protisněhové zátarasy

Slatted barriers against drifts

A winter road was not defended against snow with a plow, but in advance. Rows of slatted walls were built in the open country a few tens of meters from the roadway to slow the ground wind; the snow settled in front of them and the road stayed passable. On a diorama these barriers explain why there is a drift elsewhere and only a packed layer on the road. At the same time they lead the viewer's eye along the road and give a flat scene depth.

The set is laser cut from wood, so the slats have a real thickness and a gap is left between them for the light to come through.

Anchoring into the terrain, not standing on the terrain

The most common mistake is to glue a finished wall onto the surface of the base. A real barrier stands on stakes driven into the ground, so its foot has to disappear below the level of the terrain. Drill shallow dimples in the base therefore, slide the legs into them and only then fill in the terrain material. Apply a somewhat thicker layer around the foot, so that the typical drifted tongue is created. Add the snow only at the end, so that it falls into the gaps between the slats and not onto them.

The wood can be grayed before painting with a very thin gray paint; the method leaves the grain of the material readable and removes the yellow tinge.

Keep the spacing of the individual walls irregular and tilt or break one of them. A row aligned at right angles looks like an exhibition sample, whereas a crooked assembly matches what the barriers looked like after a few weeks of wind, snow and passing tracks. Choose a grayish color, not a brown one.