Welcome to the G section of the Model Scenery Glossary, where we explore modelling materials, tools, techniques and scenic features beginning with the letter G. This page includes useful terms such as gravel, grass fibres, glue, ground cover, gates, goods sheds, garden details, gutters and greenery.
Whether you’re building a model railway layout, diorama, wargaming board or scale model scene, these G terms will help you understand the materials, methods and scenic details that can add texture, structure and everyday realism to your miniature world.
Modelling Materials
- Garden scatter — mixed scenic scatter used for flower beds, borders, allotments, parks, gardens and general planted areas.
- Gel medium — acrylic medium used for texture, water effects, paint thickening, scenic bonding and surface effects.
- General-purpose filler — versatile filler used for gaps, ground shaping, road surfaces, embankments, walls and scenic repairs.
- Gesso — primer and surface preparation medium used on wood, card, canvas, foam, plaster and mixed modelling surfaces.
- Glass fibre matting — fibrous material used with resin for strong shells, terrain forms, water features or durable scenic bases.
- Glass beads — tiny beads sometimes used for lamps, lenses, reflective details, bubbles, texture or specialist scenic effects.
- Glazing sheet — clear plastic sheet used for windows, shopfronts, windscreens, greenhouses and display cases.
- Glitter — reflective material sometimes used sparingly for snow sparkle, festive scenes, water glints or decorative effects.
- Gloss varnish — clear shiny varnish used for wet surfaces, windows, water, polished floors, signs and protective finishing.
- Glue — general term for adhesives used to bond scenery, buildings, figures, ballast, scatter and detail parts.
- Glue dots — small pre-formed adhesive dots used for temporary positioning, light assembly, paper parts and quick scenic fixes.
- Glue stick — solid adhesive used for paper, card, printed textures, signs, posters, templates and lightweight scenic work.
- Granite chippings — small stone pieces used for ballast variation, gravel, rocky ground, hardstanding, riverbeds and quarry scenes.
- Grass fibres — short synthetic fibres used with static applicators or glue to create grass, verges, meadows and rough ground.
- Grass mats — pre-made sheets of grass texture used for quick fields, embankments, diorama bases and simple scenic coverage.
- Gravel — small stones or grit used for paths, roads, yards, driveways, riverbanks, drainage areas and rough ground.
- Green scatter — general green scenic scatter used for grass, moss, weeds, low vegetation and blended ground cover.
- Ground cover — broad term for scenic materials used to cover the base of a layout, including grass, dirt, scatter, ballast and foliage.
- Grout — cement-like powder sometimes used for paving, stone joints, concrete texture, walls, hardstanding and weathering effects.
- Gypsum plaster — plaster used for casting rocks, walls, tunnel mouths, terrain shells, embankments and scenic landforms.
Tools
- Glass cutter — tool used for cutting thin glass or mirror, sometimes useful for display cases and specialist modelling work.
- Glue applicator — tool, bottle, syringe or fine nozzle used to apply glue accurately to ballast, scatter, small parts and scenic details.
- Glue brush — cheap brush used for spreading PVA, scenic glue, wallpaper paste, varnish or texture medium.
- Glue gun — heated tool used with hot-melt glue for quick scenic construction, terrain support, wiring, temporary fixing and larger assemblies.
- Graining comb — tool used to create woodgrain effects in paint, filler, clay or soft modelling compounds.
- Grout spreader — small spreader or scraper used to apply grout, filler, paste, road texture or scenic compounds.
- Guide ruler — straight edge used for cutting, measuring, scoring and setting out roads, buildings, platforms and scenic parts.
- Gundam marker — fine paint marker often used in plastic modelling for panel lines, details, quick touch-ups and small colour accents.
Infrastructure
- Gable ends — the triangular end walls of buildings, useful for terraces, cottages, warehouses, shops and industrial structures.
- Gantries — overhead support structures used for signals, signs, pipework, lighting, cranes or industrial equipment.
- Garages — small buildings used for cars, workshops, storage, petrol stations, houses and industrial yards.
- Garden centres — scenic commercial areas with greenhouses, sheds, plants, car parks, signs and outdoor displays.
- Garden sheds — small domestic or allotment buildings used for tools, storage and garden detail.
- Garden walls — low or medium-height walls used around houses, parks, allotments, yards and village scenes.
- Gatehouses — small buildings at entrances to estates, factories, railways, docks, military sites or private roads.
- Gates — hinged barriers used for farms, gardens, level crossings, yards, depots, alleys and industrial entrances.
- Gas holders — large storage structures for town gas, common in older industrial and urban scenes.
- Gasworks — industrial sites connected with gas production and storage, often modelled with gas holders, pipes, tanks and brick buildings.
- Goods sheds — railway buildings used for loading, unloading and storing goods traffic.
- Goods yards — railway areas used for freight handling, usually featuring sidings, loading docks, cranes, sheds and yard surfaces.
- Grain silos — tall storage structures used in agricultural, industrial and rail-served loading scenes.
- Gravel pits — extraction sites featuring exposed ground, loading areas, machinery, conveyors, water-filled pits and rough tracks.
- Greenhouses — glass or plastic structures used in gardens, allotments, nurseries, farms and garden centre scenes.
- Grocers’ shops — small retail buildings useful for high streets, villages, parades and period street scenes.
- Gullies — drainage channels or roadside inlets used to collect water on roads, yards, platforms and hardstanding areas.
- Gutters — roof-edge drainage channels fitted to buildings, stations, factories, sheds and houses.
Details & Accessories
- Garden benches — small seating details used in gardens, parks, stations, villages and public spaces.
- Garden furniture — chairs, tables, parasols and ornaments used to add life and scale to domestic gardens and patios.
- Garden tools — small details such as spades, forks, rakes, watering cans and wheelbarrows for gardens, allotments and sheds.
- Gas bottles — small cylinders used around caravans, workshops, farms, industrial yards, cafés and domestic outbuildings.
- Gate posts — vertical posts used to support gates at fields, gardens, yards, driveways and railway entrances.
- Gates and railings — decorative or protective details used around houses, parks, stations, factories and public buildings.
- Grave stones — memorial stones used in churchyards, cemeteries and historic scenes.
- Graveyard details — crosses, plaques, railings, paths, flowers and benches used to bring cemetery scenes to life.
- Grime streaks — painted or powdered vertical stains on walls, roofs, vehicles, bridges and industrial structures.
- Grit bins — small roadside or yard bins used for winter salt or grit, often seen in streets, car parks, depots and public areas.
- Guard rails — protective rails used beside roads, platforms, bridges, footpaths, rivers and industrial hazards.
- Guttering brackets — small fittings used to support gutters on buildings, adding extra realism to rooflines.