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What wood looks like White Oak - in scale?


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I am planning a 1/2" = 1' cross section model of a boat that had White Oak planking and frames.  What would like more like White Oak at 1/2" scale Beech or Maple?  I have misplaced my reference for which woods look like others at scale.

Thanks,

Kurt

Kurt Van Dahm

Director

NAUTICAL RESEARCH GUILD

www.thenrg.org

SAY NO TO PIRACY. SUPPORT ORIGINAL IDEAS AND MANUFACTURERS

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Butch O'Hare - IPMS

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Kurt:

My money is on Beech. I recall Dr. Feldman had good things to say about its scale resemblance to oak. 

 

Russ

 

 

 

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Kurt,

 

The attached photo is of a Great Lakes Batteau, c1763. Scale 1:48.

 

The POF hull was made from American Sycamore that at your large scale might work well.  It has a distinctive but fine grain that resembles oak.  I might have a piece left over.  Tomorrow i’ll Look through my stash.

image.jpg

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Thanks Roger.  I looked through my stash and found a piece of Sycamore.  I think the figuring may be too much.  The photo is of a 13/16 inch piece marked as "S".  The other piece "B" in the photo is Beech.  Between the two I am leaning to the Beech.

88236116_Beech-Sycamorestrips-smallfile.jpg.099895d00aefd11fda7c1f9d642b8db4.jpg

 

I cut a piece off a billet of Black Birch that I like.  I am going to the hardwood store tomorrow or Wednesday and check out some White Birch as I am told it has less figure than the Black Birch.

272801851_BlackBirch-smallfile.jpg.055900be1f86999b3c55eff5d4f63274.jpg

 

I have Red Oak galore in my full size shop but not a stick of White Oak, so I am going to compare the pieces I cut against the White Oak as well as comparing the White Birch to the White Oak.

 

I plan to use Chuck's Alaskan Yellow Cedar in place of the Yellow Pine that was used for ceiling planks, cabin framing and planking and a few other places.  White Pine was the primary wood used as it's the hardest and best wood for boats that is native to IL.

 

Kurt

Kurt Van Dahm

Director

NAUTICAL RESEARCH GUILD

www.thenrg.org

SAY NO TO PIRACY. SUPPORT ORIGINAL IDEAS AND MANUFACTURERS

CLUBS

Nautical Research & Model Ship Society of Chicago

Midwest Model Shipwrights

North Shore Deadeyes

The Society of Model Shipwrights

Butch O'Hare - IPMS

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Giving your question some thought, I don't think any species will

scale the grain,  going down usually at a minimum of a factor of 50.

The species with no obvious grain would work best even with White Oak.

I am thinking that it is the color that you are focusing on.  I am no artist and

I do not know their rules, but I bet there is a scale effect on col;or - I just do not

know what it is.

I scored some Beech from Yukon Lumber last week, and it is a shade darker than

Hard Maple-  My Maple tends to vary a bit in color but Beech is a fudge darker.

I find American Sycamore to be generally awful.  What I have has a busy grain, is brittle, can get fuzzy, and

splits easily.  The only really satisfactory use I have had with it is using it to duplicate a 1 x 1 x 6 inch

Xacto sanding block - round at one end, wedge at the other. 

If the rule on scaling is things get lighter, Hard Maple may work for you,  If you want even lighter,

Soft Maple.  I found Silver Maple to be too soft, too fuzzy for my taste.

If you want aged and weather beaten,  Poplar - 

NRG member 45 years

 

Current:  

HMS Centurion 1732 - 60-gun 4th rate - Navall Timber framing

HMS Beagle 1831 refiit  10-gun brig with a small mizzen - Navall (ish) Timber framing

The U.S. Ex. Ex. 1838-1842
Flying Fish 1838  pilot schooner -  framed - ready for stern timbers
Porpose II  1836  brigantine/brig - framed - ready for hawse and stern timbers
Vincennes  1825  Sloop-of-War  -  timbers assembled, need shaping
Peacock  1828  Sloop-of -War  -  timbers ready for assembly
Sea Gull  1838  pilot schooner -  timbers ready for assembly
Relief  1835  ship - timbers ready for assembly

Other

Portsmouth  1843  Sloop-of-War  -  timbers ready for assembly
Le Commerce de Marseilles  1788   118 cannons - framed

La Renommee 1744 Frigate - framed - ready for hawse and stern timbers

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Went to the hardwood store and took various woods over to hold next to some White Oak planks.  After a bunch of back and forth I decided on Birch.  Looks perfect.  Steve Wheeler had suggested using Birch and he was right.  A piece of 1 x 4 and a piece of 1 x 2 each about 5' long will be a lot more than I need for this project but these were the shortest lengths w/o any streaks of darker wood.  Less than $20 and I am all set. 

Have already ripped a bunch and cut all the frame pieces I need.

Thanks for the input guys.

Kurt

Kurt Van Dahm

Director

NAUTICAL RESEARCH GUILD

www.thenrg.org

SAY NO TO PIRACY. SUPPORT ORIGINAL IDEAS AND MANUFACTURERS

CLUBS

Nautical Research & Model Ship Society of Chicago

Midwest Model Shipwrights

North Shore Deadeyes

The Society of Model Shipwrights

Butch O'Hare - IPMS

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  • 3 weeks later...

Blimey, all this talk of different woods at your local timber store. I did the circuit of all the local stores near me in the UK for a piece of oak to use in the house. All I found was, pine, badly seasoned pine, knotty pine and a bit of teak.

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