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I've had the four main types of Vallejo Pumice sitting in my cupboard for ages, so thought I would finally get around to doing a quick comparison/review of them.

For starters here is what they look like:


You basically spread them onto a base with a spatchula and leave to dry. Drying time is 3-6+ hours depending on the temperature.

They go on wet:


But dry out and change shape:


To provide a more equal comparison, I've sprayed them black, then drybrushed with adeptus battlegrey, codex grey and fortress grey:


And for clarity here are close ups:
Sandy paste - very slick, could pass easily for ice or dust. So slick it is hard to drybrush if you have any moisture on your brush at all:


Black lava - goes on very smoothly and without drybrushing has the exact appearance of asphalt at 28mm scale. Very easy to control:


White pumice - very goopy and textured. A fair bit harder to control. Good texture though.

I use white pumice on my flames of war bases:


And finally, grey pumice - easy to control but dries very differently to how it goes on. Looks the most like actual pumice stone.


Hopefully if you are considering a lazy basing option that is much faster to apply than sand, this comparison will help you choose a suitable pumice.

How well does it stick? I make alot of my own resin bases anf if theres an easier way to make the 'master' copy Im all for it

It sticks perfectly and instantly. You just slap it on and it dries in place. It dries kind of like PVA in that you can pry it off with a knife, but it stretches rather than snaps so is quite flexible.

So, this stuff is a quick and easy way of basing a model, and it wont flake or peel off due to its compound?
I may have to invest in some, looks like i can find a use for this stuff.

Also, any chance of a link please or a price?
If its cheap enough i may buy some to speed up making my board.

Correct jack.

You can get it from most major online hobby suppliers - a quick google will turn it up, as well as maelstrom, ancelotti's workshop, etc.

It costs about £5 per 200ml tub.

It's also worth noting that this stuff is amazingly messy if you're just starting to work with it.

However, if you ever want to pretend to be Aqua Man it's awesome.

Not that I've done such a thing of course.

Thanks! I was wondering about this series.

£5 per 200ml? that i can live with.
Any idea how much ill roughly need for a 2x2 tile? want a 6x4 table, but want to make sure im not going to be using tons of the stuff.

Not a terrain builder myself, so no idea on things like this lol.

I reckon you might get about 3 foot squared out of 200ml with acceptable thickness.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Though obviously the type you use has an affect - sandy paste will go further than grey pumice due to relative thickness.

I usually do my bases by first gluing sand mixed with crushed plaster on the base and then covering the majority of base with thin patches of Vallejo White Pumice. Add in some bits and the result looks something like this. Adding pumice results in uneven surface, ie. one that looks more realistic. Plain sand glued on flat surface looks often like, well, sand glued on flat surface.

For my Tomb Kings army, I decided to cover the bases using nothing but White Pumice. And I think the result is very much worth it, even if it takes a lot more time than regular sand bases. Carrions, Skeleton Horse and Skeleton Warriors will act as examples, with Carrion pre-dip picture showing a close up of end result.

I would personally make a mixture of two or three of the textures so the basing isn't even unless it's a desert.

Thanks lego
Might pick up a bottle of each and test them out.
If i find one i prefer to the rest then ill stock up on it, rest can be used if and when needed.

thanks again

This is cool. I had never heard of it before I read this, than you for sharing this with me.

Any chance of seeing these painted up to get a clearer image of the texture?

Also, which would be closer to a desert sand consistency? Thanks for the time and the review!

I think I may have just found the way to re-base my 40K orks.

That white pumice looks like it could make AMAZING mud!

Marrak, desert sand depends on how fine you want the sand. Actual sand effect, the sandy paste is best, but if you want at least some more significant texture then the white pumice is probably the best option.