I love foam core when I’m roughing in a model, because it is so fast and easy to work with.  I don’t like it as much in the finished product because it damages easily and making the edges look finished is a pain.  If you are using hand tools, and don’t have a band saw at your disposal, this will be one of your main model building materials because it has thickness and can be easily cut with a matte or exact-o knife.

 Be careful when painting foam core.  It likes to warp when it gets too wet, so if you are using it as the deck/ floor structure of your model, I highly recommend getting ½” or ¾” for that part.  Most of the time for other scenery 1/4” will do. 

Foam core makes a terrible, high pitched sound when run through a band saw, and probably releases bad fumes too.  It also leaves fuzzies on the bottom edge that need to be sanded off.  I still do it when I’m cutting anything but a straight line.

Foam core comes in a variety of colors, but usually the color is the outside layer and it’s white in the middle.  You can get it black all they way through for a little extra money, and I often use the black foam core for theater housing and structural masking.

Foam core is styrofoam layered between two pieces of poster board.  If you spray paint the edges of foam core, the styrofoam will still melt.

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