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How the layers are made
From elevation to layers
The ground is read from open elevation data and cut at evenly spaced heights. Each layer is the area above one height, so stacking them in order rebuilds the hills step by step. Thin material and many layers give fine steps; fewer, thicker layers give the bold terraced look.
Vertical exaggeration
A real mountain is wide and low. At true scale most models look almost flat, so the layers usually stand for more height than the sheet is thick. The panel shows the exaggeration as you change the layers; 1.5× to 3× suits most mountains, and gentle hills need more.
Gluing it up
Each layer is marked with the outline of the layer that goes on top of it and engraved with its number, both in the area the next layer covers, so nothing shows once it is glued. Start from layer 1 at the bottom. Pins through the holes keep the layers lined up while the glue sets.
Water and islands
Lakes are flattened to their shore level so each one sits on a single layer, and the sea becomes the bottom sheet, engraved or cut as its own pieces in another material. Without a bottom sheet, an island comes out as just the land.
Elevation: Mapzen Terrain Tiles on AWS (SRTM, GMTED2010, ETOPO1 and others). Water: map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Want the terrain as one smooth 3D model instead? Open the TerraPrinter app or see 3D map gift ideas.