Material weight
Estimate how heavy a diorama base or wall will be in concrete, plaster, XPS foam, MDF, plywood, resin or 3D-printed PLA, and how much material to buy.
Volume
Estimated weight
Buy at least
Shelf check
Why weight matters
A diorama has to survive being moved, filmed, shipped to a show and put on a shelf. My Mad Max garage sits on a real poured concrete slab of 80 × 60 cm, and it is heavy. It looks great on camera, but plan for it.
Lighter ways to get the same look
- Pour a thin skin of concrete or plaster over an XPS foam core. You keep the texture and lose most of the weight.
- Use MDF or plywood only as a frame, not a solid slab.
- For 3D-printed floors, 10–15% infill is plenty. The surface does the work.
Need wall sizes for the same base? Run them through the brick generator.
More tools
- Scale converterReal-world size to any model scale, and back again.
- Tire & stanceScale wheel, tire and ride-height numbers for your build.
- Paint ratioHow much paint and thinner to mix for your airbrush.
- Brick generatorScale brick grids and a printable, weathered wall texture.
- LED resistorThe right resistor to light your diorama without frying LEDs.
- License platePrintable retro plates at exact scale size.
- Guitar & ampScale sizes for guitars, amps and stacks in your mancave scene.
- Rust & distressA weathering recipe based on years abandoned and climate.