SteveM

If you plan to work on small parts on the bench then I suggest finding a way to cover or plug the dog holes so you're less likely to loose them.

I don't think I can add anything new except my own unique blend of what has already been said.
 
This hobby is more challenging than others for most people so "entry level" does not mean quick or easy, just quicker and easier than other ship models. What makes a plastic model easy is that you don't have to have a clue what the final product looks like and yet you can still build it quickly, easily, and accurately; but with wood ship modeling you start with blocks of wood and remove everything that doesn't look like part of a ship. That's really challenging when you don't know what the parts should look like so you must rely on good plans or secondary sources such as books and MSW. Therefore I feel that the #1 criteria for an entry level kit is that it have excellent plans and directions.
 
Everything else boils down to personal opinion and taste and only helps to narrow the selection of the right entry level kit for that person. For example, some people such as myself prefer models with weaponry and a rich history so a fishing boat would be a real challenge to motivation and quality control. On the other hand, a newcomer cannot say if they would find a solid hull or POB easier so either will answer for an entry level kit and they can form their own opinion from there.
 
The MS Phantom on its own is not an entry level model by my definition because the directions are very lacking at times and often is no more than "Build the X, Y, and Z and glue them into place." What makes it a good entry model is Chuck's practicum.

This area of the forum was a great resource for information on where to buy various types of wood. Let's rebuild that information using our collective knowledge and experience. I've given credit in parenthesis to those who have contributed the name of that source.

Sources of milled wood (Australia):
Modellers Shipyard (Shazmira) - A limited selection of sheet and strip stock. They also have kits, tools, and other supplies. Ships internationally.
 
Sources of milled wood (Germany):
Arkowood (TRJ) - A bit on the expensive side, but good for smaller quantities. All major wood varieties, including swiss pear, box, lime.
Massivholzwerkstätten Horschig (Redshirt) - Good assortment of wood, high accuracy and good price.
 
Sources of milled wood (UK):
Hobby's (AntonyUK)
JoTiKa (Marsares)
Cornwall Boat Models (Marsares)
The Model Dockyard (Marsares)
 
 
Sources of milled wood (USA):
Ocooch - Good source for milled sheetwood of all species but no Boxwood, swiss pear or holly.
Syren - sheets and strips of milled Boxwood, Alaskan Yellow Cedar and Swiss Pear.
Itasca - Mainly a source for basswood. Their "Half Price" wood is still of good quality and excellent value. $20 minimum order size. 20% military discount.
National Balsa - Another source for basswood, Maple, Cheerry. More expensive than Itasca, but they have a greater range of sizes and have lots of dowels.
tallships_model_builder (themadchemist) - An eBay store with several items targeted towards model ship builders (eg. Deck planking and sheet wood). May be willing to cut custom sizes for you.
http://www.northeasternscalelumber.com/shop/index.php?PHPSESSID=fbf4aea8bc5623641aa53ab405ec4c6a - Northeastern Scale Lumber
 
I'm adding my list of US suppliers of lumber.  Given the market they may or may not have the wood you want.  IF they do have it, order it, don't wait as they will run out.  
All Righteous Woods Bod Nosen Colonial Hardwoods, Inc. CookWoods Dyes Exotic Wood, Birdseye Maple, Curly Maple & Tiger Maple Bell Forest Products Gilmer Wood Company Griffin Exotic Wood--High Quality Exotic Woods Groffslumberr hearnehardwoods.com- Inlay Banding, Ebony and Holly Wood Products Kettle Moraine Hardwoods, Inc., Hartford, WI Midwest Products National Balsa Wood Co- Balsa wood, Basswood, Mahogany, Architectural Models, Model RC Aircraft, Savox Servos Ocooch Hardwoods - Supplier of Thin Wood for Scroll Sawing, Carving Blocks, Intarsia wood, Plywood for scroll sawing, and more. Rare and Exotic Lumber in Maine - Rare Woods USA Rare Woods USA Rockler.com S.H. Goode & Sons Workshop Specialty Wood Exotic Lumber Exotic Woods - Keim Lumber The Wood Database Tropical Exotic Hardwoods Welcome to the World of Hardwoods Wood Project Source - milled wood sheets and strips and wood carving blocks woodcraft.com- Woodfinder® Marketplace Woodworkers Source for Imported, Rare, Specialty, Exotic Woo    
Sources of rough lumber (Australia):
Trend Timbers (1492) - Local, imported and exotic timbers.
Anagote Timbers (Jim Lad) - Local and imported timbers. Named after a pet goat called Anna.
Australian Furniture Timbers (BANYAN) - A wide selection of timbers. Avilable in 1 meter lengths.
 
Sources of rough lumber (UK):
Workshop Heaven (AntonyUK) - Various sized chunks of exotic wood
Yandles (Kevin)
 
Sources of rough lumber (Spain)
Maderas Barber (ymperivm)

Sources of rough/billets lumber (USA):
Gilmer Wood Company - Mainly Exotic wood and much of it highly figured. The main species of interest for ship modelers will be boxwood, ebony, and holly. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases, no minimum for walk-in purchases. Ships internationally.
Cookwoods (mtaylor) - Exotic hardwoods. Ships internationally.
Righteous Woods (davec) - Domestic, imported and exotic timbers. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases. Ships internationally.
Tallgrass Custom Wood Productsfff382 (Thairinker) - Domestic hardwoods. Located in Kansas, does not appear to offer shipping.
Woodworkers Source (Sephirem) - Domestic and imported. Lumber is organized based on geographic region that it comes from.
Rare Woods USA (ChrisLBren) - Ships to Continental USA only for online orders, but is free for orders >$100 with conditions.

Sources of rough lumber (global):
A local hardwood store - Usually a great place to buy domestic wood and some exotics. I have seen ebony and purpleheart at Woodcraft.
A local hardwood flooring store (muzzleloader) - Mahogany, maple, cherry and other hard woods. Inquire about sales of remnants at bargain prices.


A note on Gilmer:
This is a local business for me so I am fortunate that I can visit. If you've purchased milled Castello Boxwood for your model then it probably came from here. They told me that they don't have a source for this wood anymore, but in addition to the large stack of wood towering over me they also had a bunch more in another warehouse. The Castello Boxwood starts out as rough 8/4 (2" thick) boards around 6" wide and 7' long. When the stock on their website gets low they pull down a board, clean it up in a planer, spray with shellac to bring out the color, then seal the ends with wax. They told me if I was to buy a board off the top of the stack it would be $30 a board foot (1"x12"x12") but that if I wanted to dig through the stack they'd up the price to $35 per board foot. Indeed, the chunks on their website were about $35 a board foot when I last ran the numbers. Ebony is tricky stuff as it all looks the same in pictures so ask them to select a board with straight grain, if you tell them it is for a ship model they will understand what you need. When I was there last they showed me how to hold the ebony to the light to check the grain for straightness. Also don't be too concerned if the description of Castello Boxwood on the website is "figured" as that is what they listed my piece of wood as and it was actually fairly straight. Not all wood can be sold to customers outside of the USA because of laws to protect endangered species.

Hi Mates
 
Here are some photos indicating how I mill wood. Used a band saw, JB table saw, and a JB thickness sander.
 
Shows progression of lumber sizes starting with a milling blank through finished planks. Wood is Sugar Maple (soft maple).
 
Photo 1

 
Photo 2
 
Step 1 was to run my maple blank through the thicness sander to make it perfectly flat on both sides. The blank is 1 3/4" thick and approximately 14" long.
 

 
Photo 3
 
Ran the material through  bandsaw to desired thichness. Note that blanks are cut from face grain, not edge grain.
 

 
Photo 4
 
Plank blank is rough on one side. Saw marks will be removed by running blank though the the thicknes sander.
 

 
Photo 5
 
Wodd splitter placed on table just behind blade. The splitter avoids chatter as the wood is passed away from the blade.
 

 
Photo 6
 
Feed the plank blank through the saw.
 

 
Photo 7
 
Finished plank.
 

 
 
Photo 8
 
Shows finished planks and the micrometer adjustment at the lower right edge of the photo. Microadjust helps to get all [lanks the same width each and every time.
 

 
In closing, Brynes tools deserve the high praise received from its owners. His tools are amazingly accurate, easy to use, and great fun. 
 
BFN
Hopeful aka David
 
 “there is wisdom in many voices”
 
Completed:      Sharpie Schooner (Midwest) Reposting the build log at present
On the bench:  Sultana (MSW)   Reposting the log and keeping on with the build
 
Next:  Lady Nelson (Amati Victory)

This area of the forum was a great resource for information on where to buy various types of wood. Let's rebuild that information using our collective knowledge and experience. I've given credit in parenthesis to those who have contributed the name of that source.

Sources of milled wood (Australia):
Modellers Shipyard (Shazmira) - A limited selection of sheet and strip stock. They also have kits, tools, and other supplies. Ships internationally.
 
Sources of milled wood (Germany):
Arkowood (TRJ) - A bit on the expensive side, but good for smaller quantities. All major wood varieties, including swiss pear, box, lime.
Massivholzwerkstätten Horschig (Redshirt) - Good assortment of wood, high accuracy and good price.
 
Sources of milled wood (UK):
Hobby's (AntonyUK)
JoTiKa (Marsares)
Cornwall Boat Models (Marsares)
The Model Dockyard (Marsares)
 
 
Sources of milled wood (USA):
Ocooch - Good source for milled sheetwood of all species but no Boxwood, swiss pear or holly.
Syren - sheets and strips of milled Boxwood, Alaskan Yellow Cedar and Swiss Pear.
Itasca - Mainly a source for basswood. Their "Half Price" wood is still of good quality and excellent value. $20 minimum order size. 20% military discount.
National Balsa - Another source for basswood, Maple, Cheerry. More expensive than Itasca, but they have a greater range of sizes and have lots of dowels.
tallships_model_builder (themadchemist) - An eBay store with several items targeted towards model ship builders (eg. Deck planking and sheet wood). May be willing to cut custom sizes for you.
http://www.northeasternscalelumber.com/shop/index.php?PHPSESSID=fbf4aea8bc5623641aa53ab405ec4c6a - Northeastern Scale Lumber
 
I'm adding my list of US suppliers of lumber.  Given the market they may or may not have the wood you want.  IF they do have it, order it, don't wait as they will run out.  
All Righteous Woods Bod Nosen Colonial Hardwoods, Inc. CookWoods Dyes Exotic Wood, Birdseye Maple, Curly Maple & Tiger Maple Bell Forest Products Gilmer Wood Company Griffin Exotic Wood--High Quality Exotic Woods Groffslumberr hearnehardwoods.com- Inlay Banding, Ebony and Holly Wood Products Kettle Moraine Hardwoods, Inc., Hartford, WI Midwest Products National Balsa Wood Co- Balsa wood, Basswood, Mahogany, Architectural Models, Model RC Aircraft, Savox Servos Ocooch Hardwoods - Supplier of Thin Wood for Scroll Sawing, Carving Blocks, Intarsia wood, Plywood for scroll sawing, and more. Rare and Exotic Lumber in Maine - Rare Woods USA Rare Woods USA Rockler.com S.H. Goode & Sons Workshop Specialty Wood Exotic Lumber Exotic Woods - Keim Lumber The Wood Database Tropical Exotic Hardwoods Welcome to the World of Hardwoods Wood Project Source - milled wood sheets and strips and wood carving blocks woodcraft.com- Woodfinder® Marketplace Woodworkers Source for Imported, Rare, Specialty, Exotic Woo    
Sources of rough lumber (Australia):
Trend Timbers (1492) - Local, imported and exotic timbers.
Anagote Timbers (Jim Lad) - Local and imported timbers. Named after a pet goat called Anna.
Australian Furniture Timbers (BANYAN) - A wide selection of timbers. Avilable in 1 meter lengths.
 
Sources of rough lumber (UK):
Workshop Heaven (AntonyUK) - Various sized chunks of exotic wood
Yandles (Kevin)
 
Sources of rough lumber (Spain)
Maderas Barber (ymperivm)

Sources of rough/billets lumber (USA):
Gilmer Wood Company - Mainly Exotic wood and much of it highly figured. The main species of interest for ship modelers will be boxwood, ebony, and holly. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases, no minimum for walk-in purchases. Ships internationally.
Cookwoods (mtaylor) - Exotic hardwoods. Ships internationally.
Righteous Woods (davec) - Domestic, imported and exotic timbers. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases. Ships internationally.
Tallgrass Custom Wood Productsfff382 (Thairinker) - Domestic hardwoods. Located in Kansas, does not appear to offer shipping.
Woodworkers Source (Sephirem) - Domestic and imported. Lumber is organized based on geographic region that it comes from.
Rare Woods USA (ChrisLBren) - Ships to Continental USA only for online orders, but is free for orders >$100 with conditions.

Sources of rough lumber (global):
A local hardwood store - Usually a great place to buy domestic wood and some exotics. I have seen ebony and purpleheart at Woodcraft.
A local hardwood flooring store (muzzleloader) - Mahogany, maple, cherry and other hard woods. Inquire about sales of remnants at bargain prices.


A note on Gilmer:
This is a local business for me so I am fortunate that I can visit. If you've purchased milled Castello Boxwood for your model then it probably came from here. They told me that they don't have a source for this wood anymore, but in addition to the large stack of wood towering over me they also had a bunch more in another warehouse. The Castello Boxwood starts out as rough 8/4 (2" thick) boards around 6" wide and 7' long. When the stock on their website gets low they pull down a board, clean it up in a planer, spray with shellac to bring out the color, then seal the ends with wax. They told me if I was to buy a board off the top of the stack it would be $30 a board foot (1"x12"x12") but that if I wanted to dig through the stack they'd up the price to $35 per board foot. Indeed, the chunks on their website were about $35 a board foot when I last ran the numbers. Ebony is tricky stuff as it all looks the same in pictures so ask them to select a board with straight grain, if you tell them it is for a ship model they will understand what you need. When I was there last they showed me how to hold the ebony to the light to check the grain for straightness. Also don't be too concerned if the description of Castello Boxwood on the website is "figured" as that is what they listed my piece of wood as and it was actually fairly straight. Not all wood can be sold to customers outside of the USA because of laws to protect endangered species.

Chad's initial posting on 30 April 2008 regarding woods he planned to purchase appears below. I know he later ordered some wood from Hobby Mill and changed some of his choices, but this is what he started with.
 
It's been a loooong month since I last posted. First I was derailed by a backyard project and then a sick two-year-old, but today I FINALLY ordered my wood.
 
After all the distractions, I got down to the business of deciding the What, Where, and What Size of the cross section. I started by figuring that I was going to buy most of my lumber pre-milled, since I have yet to buy a thickness sander and I'm still learning the ropes with my table saw and scroll saw. Next on the agenda was trying to decide what types of wood I'd use. Two things I figured into the equation were 1) I haven't worked with many types of wood outside of the ones that come with kits, so I would like to try diversifying a little, and 2) money wasn't going to be a hinderance. I remember a post somewhere a long time ago that if you divide the price of the supplies over the amount of time it take to finish a project, that the cost tends to be very small- so I'd rather pay a little more for the wood I want since in the end it's probably only pennies difference.
 
So trying to decide what I wanted to use was going to be tough since my wood knowledge is pretty shallow, so I hit up the gallery and came across Raul Guzman Jr.'s Oliver Cromwell*. I have seen this model before and absolutely love it, so I PM'ed him and he was nice enough to provide me a "who's who" of the types of wood used. I pretty much ended up using the same wood list since I liked it so much, and added a couple other types.
 
Once I knew what types I was going to use, I set out breaking everything down into sizes and types using the plans and came up with this list**. The only part (I think) that I missed was the gun carriages, but I'm going to wait and see how things play out and see what I would like to use. I've ordered everything from the Lumberyard and qty's in parenthesis are for 12 inch+ lengths- which will give me enough to screw up with and yet probably finish.
 
BOXWOOD
(2) 3/16 x 3" x 24" frames, lodging knees, sills, beam arms
(13) 1/8 x 1/8 ledges
(6) 3/16 x 3/16 carlings
(3) 1/4 x 1/4 gun deck beams
(3) 5/16 x 1/4 lower deck beams
(1) 5/32 x 2" x 24 hanging knees, lintels
 
APPLE
(1) 13/32 x 5/16 keel
(1) 5/16 x 5/16 keelson
(1) 13/32 x 1/16 garboard strake
(20) 3/16 x 1/16 planking
(3) 1/4 x 1/16 broad strake
(6) 7/32 x 3/32 lower deck spirk./gundeck clamps
(2) 1/16 x 5/32 skid beams
 
INDIAN LAUREL
(1) 1/4 x 1/16 gangway ladder
(1) 3/16 x 1/16 FWD ladder
(1) 1/16 x 3/8 sheer rail
(1) 3/8 x 3/32 gangway trim
(1) 5/32 x 5/32 gundeck stanchions
(2) 1/8 x 5/16 false keel
 
CHERRY
(6) 1/8 x 5/16 thick stuff
(4) 3/32 x 1/4 planking 1
(2) 1/16 x 1/4 planking 2
(2) 1/16 x 3/16 planking 3
(2) 5/32 x 5/32 hold pillars
 
WALNUT
(2) 1/4 x 5/32 hatches
 
EBONY
(4) 1/8 x 3/16 wales
(2) 1/16 x 1/8 trim
(1) 3/8 x 1/16 fenders
(2) 3/16 x 3/32 steps
 
BLOODWOOD
(2) 1/4 x 3/32 gundeck spirketting
(1) 3/32 x 3/16 gangway clamp
(3) 1/16 x 3/16 bulwarks
(1) 3/16 x 3/8 gallows
(1) 1/8 x 5/32 cross piece
(2) 1/4 x 1/4 bitts
 
MAPLE
(23) 1/16 x 3/16 deck planking
(3) 1/16 x 1/4 waterways
(10) 1/16 x 5/32 gangway
 
... so now I wait...
 
* If you haven't seen Mr. Guzman's models for some reason, you can find the Oliver Cromwell in the gallery, or you can visit his site here:
http://www.guzmanshipmodels.com/
**If anyone somewhere down the line would like a copy of this list, just let me know- I have it saved as a word doc.

Chad's initial posting on 30 April 2008 regarding woods he planned to purchase appears below. I know he later ordered some wood from Hobby Mill and changed some of his choices, but this is what he started with.
 
It's been a loooong month since I last posted. First I was derailed by a backyard project and then a sick two-year-old, but today I FINALLY ordered my wood.
 
After all the distractions, I got down to the business of deciding the What, Where, and What Size of the cross section. I started by figuring that I was going to buy most of my lumber pre-milled, since I have yet to buy a thickness sander and I'm still learning the ropes with my table saw and scroll saw. Next on the agenda was trying to decide what types of wood I'd use. Two things I figured into the equation were 1) I haven't worked with many types of wood outside of the ones that come with kits, so I would like to try diversifying a little, and 2) money wasn't going to be a hinderance. I remember a post somewhere a long time ago that if you divide the price of the supplies over the amount of time it take to finish a project, that the cost tends to be very small- so I'd rather pay a little more for the wood I want since in the end it's probably only pennies difference.
 
So trying to decide what I wanted to use was going to be tough since my wood knowledge is pretty shallow, so I hit up the gallery and came across Raul Guzman Jr.'s Oliver Cromwell*. I have seen this model before and absolutely love it, so I PM'ed him and he was nice enough to provide me a "who's who" of the types of wood used. I pretty much ended up using the same wood list since I liked it so much, and added a couple other types.
 
Once I knew what types I was going to use, I set out breaking everything down into sizes and types using the plans and came up with this list**. The only part (I think) that I missed was the gun carriages, but I'm going to wait and see how things play out and see what I would like to use. I've ordered everything from the Lumberyard and qty's in parenthesis are for 12 inch+ lengths- which will give me enough to screw up with and yet probably finish.
 
BOXWOOD
(2) 3/16 x 3" x 24" frames, lodging knees, sills, beam arms
(13) 1/8 x 1/8 ledges
(6) 3/16 x 3/16 carlings
(3) 1/4 x 1/4 gun deck beams
(3) 5/16 x 1/4 lower deck beams
(1) 5/32 x 2" x 24 hanging knees, lintels
 
APPLE
(1) 13/32 x 5/16 keel
(1) 5/16 x 5/16 keelson
(1) 13/32 x 1/16 garboard strake
(20) 3/16 x 1/16 planking
(3) 1/4 x 1/16 broad strake
(6) 7/32 x 3/32 lower deck spirk./gundeck clamps
(2) 1/16 x 5/32 skid beams
 
INDIAN LAUREL
(1) 1/4 x 1/16 gangway ladder
(1) 3/16 x 1/16 FWD ladder
(1) 1/16 x 3/8 sheer rail
(1) 3/8 x 3/32 gangway trim
(1) 5/32 x 5/32 gundeck stanchions
(2) 1/8 x 5/16 false keel
 
CHERRY
(6) 1/8 x 5/16 thick stuff
(4) 3/32 x 1/4 planking 1
(2) 1/16 x 1/4 planking 2
(2) 1/16 x 3/16 planking 3
(2) 5/32 x 5/32 hold pillars
 
WALNUT
(2) 1/4 x 5/32 hatches
 
EBONY
(4) 1/8 x 3/16 wales
(2) 1/16 x 1/8 trim
(1) 3/8 x 1/16 fenders
(2) 3/16 x 3/32 steps
 
BLOODWOOD
(2) 1/4 x 3/32 gundeck spirketting
(1) 3/32 x 3/16 gangway clamp
(3) 1/16 x 3/16 bulwarks
(1) 3/16 x 3/8 gallows
(1) 1/8 x 5/32 cross piece
(2) 1/4 x 1/4 bitts
 
MAPLE
(23) 1/16 x 3/16 deck planking
(3) 1/16 x 1/4 waterways
(10) 1/16 x 5/32 gangway
 
... so now I wait...
 
* If you haven't seen Mr. Guzman's models for some reason, you can find the Oliver Cromwell in the gallery, or you can visit his site here:
http://www.guzmanshipmodels.com/
**If anyone somewhere down the line would like a copy of this list, just let me know- I have it saved as a word doc.

Chad's initial posting on 30 April 2008 regarding woods he planned to purchase appears below. I know he later ordered some wood from Hobby Mill and changed some of his choices, but this is what he started with.
 
It's been a loooong month since I last posted. First I was derailed by a backyard project and then a sick two-year-old, but today I FINALLY ordered my wood.
 
After all the distractions, I got down to the business of deciding the What, Where, and What Size of the cross section. I started by figuring that I was going to buy most of my lumber pre-milled, since I have yet to buy a thickness sander and I'm still learning the ropes with my table saw and scroll saw. Next on the agenda was trying to decide what types of wood I'd use. Two things I figured into the equation were 1) I haven't worked with many types of wood outside of the ones that come with kits, so I would like to try diversifying a little, and 2) money wasn't going to be a hinderance. I remember a post somewhere a long time ago that if you divide the price of the supplies over the amount of time it take to finish a project, that the cost tends to be very small- so I'd rather pay a little more for the wood I want since in the end it's probably only pennies difference.
 
So trying to decide what I wanted to use was going to be tough since my wood knowledge is pretty shallow, so I hit up the gallery and came across Raul Guzman Jr.'s Oliver Cromwell*. I have seen this model before and absolutely love it, so I PM'ed him and he was nice enough to provide me a "who's who" of the types of wood used. I pretty much ended up using the same wood list since I liked it so much, and added a couple other types.
 
Once I knew what types I was going to use, I set out breaking everything down into sizes and types using the plans and came up with this list**. The only part (I think) that I missed was the gun carriages, but I'm going to wait and see how things play out and see what I would like to use. I've ordered everything from the Lumberyard and qty's in parenthesis are for 12 inch+ lengths- which will give me enough to screw up with and yet probably finish.
 
BOXWOOD
(2) 3/16 x 3" x 24" frames, lodging knees, sills, beam arms
(13) 1/8 x 1/8 ledges
(6) 3/16 x 3/16 carlings
(3) 1/4 x 1/4 gun deck beams
(3) 5/16 x 1/4 lower deck beams
(1) 5/32 x 2" x 24 hanging knees, lintels
 
APPLE
(1) 13/32 x 5/16 keel
(1) 5/16 x 5/16 keelson
(1) 13/32 x 1/16 garboard strake
(20) 3/16 x 1/16 planking
(3) 1/4 x 1/16 broad strake
(6) 7/32 x 3/32 lower deck spirk./gundeck clamps
(2) 1/16 x 5/32 skid beams
 
INDIAN LAUREL
(1) 1/4 x 1/16 gangway ladder
(1) 3/16 x 1/16 FWD ladder
(1) 1/16 x 3/8 sheer rail
(1) 3/8 x 3/32 gangway trim
(1) 5/32 x 5/32 gundeck stanchions
(2) 1/8 x 5/16 false keel
 
CHERRY
(6) 1/8 x 5/16 thick stuff
(4) 3/32 x 1/4 planking 1
(2) 1/16 x 1/4 planking 2
(2) 1/16 x 3/16 planking 3
(2) 5/32 x 5/32 hold pillars
 
WALNUT
(2) 1/4 x 5/32 hatches
 
EBONY
(4) 1/8 x 3/16 wales
(2) 1/16 x 1/8 trim
(1) 3/8 x 1/16 fenders
(2) 3/16 x 3/32 steps
 
BLOODWOOD
(2) 1/4 x 3/32 gundeck spirketting
(1) 3/32 x 3/16 gangway clamp
(3) 1/16 x 3/16 bulwarks
(1) 3/16 x 3/8 gallows
(1) 1/8 x 5/32 cross piece
(2) 1/4 x 1/4 bitts
 
MAPLE
(23) 1/16 x 3/16 deck planking
(3) 1/16 x 1/4 waterways
(10) 1/16 x 5/32 gangway
 
... so now I wait...
 
* If you haven't seen Mr. Guzman's models for some reason, you can find the Oliver Cromwell in the gallery, or you can visit his site here:
http://www.guzmanshipmodels.com/
**If anyone somewhere down the line would like a copy of this list, just let me know- I have it saved as a word doc.

Chad's initial posting on 30 April 2008 regarding woods he planned to purchase appears below. I know he later ordered some wood from Hobby Mill and changed some of his choices, but this is what he started with.
 
It's been a loooong month since I last posted. First I was derailed by a backyard project and then a sick two-year-old, but today I FINALLY ordered my wood.
 
After all the distractions, I got down to the business of deciding the What, Where, and What Size of the cross section. I started by figuring that I was going to buy most of my lumber pre-milled, since I have yet to buy a thickness sander and I'm still learning the ropes with my table saw and scroll saw. Next on the agenda was trying to decide what types of wood I'd use. Two things I figured into the equation were 1) I haven't worked with many types of wood outside of the ones that come with kits, so I would like to try diversifying a little, and 2) money wasn't going to be a hinderance. I remember a post somewhere a long time ago that if you divide the price of the supplies over the amount of time it take to finish a project, that the cost tends to be very small- so I'd rather pay a little more for the wood I want since in the end it's probably only pennies difference.
 
So trying to decide what I wanted to use was going to be tough since my wood knowledge is pretty shallow, so I hit up the gallery and came across Raul Guzman Jr.'s Oliver Cromwell*. I have seen this model before and absolutely love it, so I PM'ed him and he was nice enough to provide me a "who's who" of the types of wood used. I pretty much ended up using the same wood list since I liked it so much, and added a couple other types.
 
Once I knew what types I was going to use, I set out breaking everything down into sizes and types using the plans and came up with this list**. The only part (I think) that I missed was the gun carriages, but I'm going to wait and see how things play out and see what I would like to use. I've ordered everything from the Lumberyard and qty's in parenthesis are for 12 inch+ lengths- which will give me enough to screw up with and yet probably finish.
 
BOXWOOD
(2) 3/16 x 3" x 24" frames, lodging knees, sills, beam arms
(13) 1/8 x 1/8 ledges
(6) 3/16 x 3/16 carlings
(3) 1/4 x 1/4 gun deck beams
(3) 5/16 x 1/4 lower deck beams
(1) 5/32 x 2" x 24 hanging knees, lintels
 
APPLE
(1) 13/32 x 5/16 keel
(1) 5/16 x 5/16 keelson
(1) 13/32 x 1/16 garboard strake
(20) 3/16 x 1/16 planking
(3) 1/4 x 1/16 broad strake
(6) 7/32 x 3/32 lower deck spirk./gundeck clamps
(2) 1/16 x 5/32 skid beams
 
INDIAN LAUREL
(1) 1/4 x 1/16 gangway ladder
(1) 3/16 x 1/16 FWD ladder
(1) 1/16 x 3/8 sheer rail
(1) 3/8 x 3/32 gangway trim
(1) 5/32 x 5/32 gundeck stanchions
(2) 1/8 x 5/16 false keel
 
CHERRY
(6) 1/8 x 5/16 thick stuff
(4) 3/32 x 1/4 planking 1
(2) 1/16 x 1/4 planking 2
(2) 1/16 x 3/16 planking 3
(2) 5/32 x 5/32 hold pillars
 
WALNUT
(2) 1/4 x 5/32 hatches
 
EBONY
(4) 1/8 x 3/16 wales
(2) 1/16 x 1/8 trim
(1) 3/8 x 1/16 fenders
(2) 3/16 x 3/32 steps
 
BLOODWOOD
(2) 1/4 x 3/32 gundeck spirketting
(1) 3/32 x 3/16 gangway clamp
(3) 1/16 x 3/16 bulwarks
(1) 3/16 x 3/8 gallows
(1) 1/8 x 5/32 cross piece
(2) 1/4 x 1/4 bitts
 
MAPLE
(23) 1/16 x 3/16 deck planking
(3) 1/16 x 1/4 waterways
(10) 1/16 x 5/32 gangway
 
... so now I wait...
 
* If you haven't seen Mr. Guzman's models for some reason, you can find the Oliver Cromwell in the gallery, or you can visit his site here:
http://www.guzmanshipmodels.com/
**If anyone somewhere down the line would like a copy of this list, just let me know- I have it saved as a word doc.

Ed,
 
As much as I enjoyed following your log the first time, I am enjoying it more the second time around
 
Thanks for going to the trouble to repost.
 
Allan

This area of the forum was a great resource for information on where to buy various types of wood. Let's rebuild that information using our collective knowledge and experience. I've given credit in parenthesis to those who have contributed the name of that source.

Sources of milled wood (Australia):
Modellers Shipyard (Shazmira) - A limited selection of sheet and strip stock. They also have kits, tools, and other supplies. Ships internationally.
 
Sources of milled wood (Germany):
Arkowood (TRJ) - A bit on the expensive side, but good for smaller quantities. All major wood varieties, including swiss pear, box, lime.
Massivholzwerkstätten Horschig (Redshirt) - Good assortment of wood, high accuracy and good price.
 
Sources of milled wood (UK):
Hobby's (AntonyUK)
JoTiKa (Marsares)
Cornwall Boat Models (Marsares)
The Model Dockyard (Marsares)
 
 
Sources of milled wood (USA):
Ocooch - Good source for milled sheetwood of all species but no Boxwood, swiss pear or holly.
Syren - sheets and strips of milled Boxwood, Alaskan Yellow Cedar and Swiss Pear.
Itasca - Mainly a source for basswood. Their "Half Price" wood is still of good quality and excellent value. $20 minimum order size. 20% military discount.
National Balsa - Another source for basswood, Maple, Cheerry. More expensive than Itasca, but they have a greater range of sizes and have lots of dowels.
tallships_model_builder (themadchemist) - An eBay store with several items targeted towards model ship builders (eg. Deck planking and sheet wood). May be willing to cut custom sizes for you.
http://www.northeasternscalelumber.com/shop/index.php?PHPSESSID=fbf4aea8bc5623641aa53ab405ec4c6a - Northeastern Scale Lumber
 
I'm adding my list of US suppliers of lumber.  Given the market they may or may not have the wood you want.  IF they do have it, order it, don't wait as they will run out.  
All Righteous Woods Bod Nosen Colonial Hardwoods, Inc. CookWoods Dyes Exotic Wood, Birdseye Maple, Curly Maple & Tiger Maple Bell Forest Products Gilmer Wood Company Griffin Exotic Wood--High Quality Exotic Woods Groffslumberr hearnehardwoods.com- Inlay Banding, Ebony and Holly Wood Products Kettle Moraine Hardwoods, Inc., Hartford, WI Midwest Products National Balsa Wood Co- Balsa wood, Basswood, Mahogany, Architectural Models, Model RC Aircraft, Savox Servos Ocooch Hardwoods - Supplier of Thin Wood for Scroll Sawing, Carving Blocks, Intarsia wood, Plywood for scroll sawing, and more. Rare and Exotic Lumber in Maine - Rare Woods USA Rare Woods USA Rockler.com S.H. Goode & Sons Workshop Specialty Wood Exotic Lumber Exotic Woods - Keim Lumber The Wood Database Tropical Exotic Hardwoods Welcome to the World of Hardwoods Wood Project Source - milled wood sheets and strips and wood carving blocks woodcraft.com- Woodfinder® Marketplace Woodworkers Source for Imported, Rare, Specialty, Exotic Woo    
Sources of rough lumber (Australia):
Trend Timbers (1492) - Local, imported and exotic timbers.
Anagote Timbers (Jim Lad) - Local and imported timbers. Named after a pet goat called Anna.
Australian Furniture Timbers (BANYAN) - A wide selection of timbers. Avilable in 1 meter lengths.
 
Sources of rough lumber (UK):
Workshop Heaven (AntonyUK) - Various sized chunks of exotic wood
Yandles (Kevin)
 
Sources of rough lumber (Spain)
Maderas Barber (ymperivm)

Sources of rough/billets lumber (USA):
Gilmer Wood Company - Mainly Exotic wood and much of it highly figured. The main species of interest for ship modelers will be boxwood, ebony, and holly. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases, no minimum for walk-in purchases. Ships internationally.
Cookwoods (mtaylor) - Exotic hardwoods. Ships internationally.
Righteous Woods (davec) - Domestic, imported and exotic timbers. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases. Ships internationally.
Tallgrass Custom Wood Productsfff382 (Thairinker) - Domestic hardwoods. Located in Kansas, does not appear to offer shipping.
Woodworkers Source (Sephirem) - Domestic and imported. Lumber is organized based on geographic region that it comes from.
Rare Woods USA (ChrisLBren) - Ships to Continental USA only for online orders, but is free for orders >$100 with conditions.

Sources of rough lumber (global):
A local hardwood store - Usually a great place to buy domestic wood and some exotics. I have seen ebony and purpleheart at Woodcraft.
A local hardwood flooring store (muzzleloader) - Mahogany, maple, cherry and other hard woods. Inquire about sales of remnants at bargain prices.


A note on Gilmer:
This is a local business for me so I am fortunate that I can visit. If you've purchased milled Castello Boxwood for your model then it probably came from here. They told me that they don't have a source for this wood anymore, but in addition to the large stack of wood towering over me they also had a bunch more in another warehouse. The Castello Boxwood starts out as rough 8/4 (2" thick) boards around 6" wide and 7' long. When the stock on their website gets low they pull down a board, clean it up in a planer, spray with shellac to bring out the color, then seal the ends with wax. They told me if I was to buy a board off the top of the stack it would be $30 a board foot (1"x12"x12") but that if I wanted to dig through the stack they'd up the price to $35 per board foot. Indeed, the chunks on their website were about $35 a board foot when I last ran the numbers. Ebony is tricky stuff as it all looks the same in pictures so ask them to select a board with straight grain, if you tell them it is for a ship model they will understand what you need. When I was there last they showed me how to hold the ebony to the light to check the grain for straightness. Also don't be too concerned if the description of Castello Boxwood on the website is "figured" as that is what they listed my piece of wood as and it was actually fairly straight. Not all wood can be sold to customers outside of the USA because of laws to protect endangered species.

Another example of doing things a bit different was the transom. The cookbook said to install the planks one by one. I decided to make a copy of the drawing (which are close to the correct scale) and glue the planks and gun hatches to that. I was then able to trim and mount this pre-assembly to the hull.
 
One reason for doing it this way was that I wanted to make sure the planks would match those coming from the sides. I wanted the white trim pieces to lign up correctly.
 
I might add that the name Constitution was made by printing a black background on paper and then adding on top of that the letters in white. I had to juggle the font and size to match the name plate, but it came out ok.

This area of the forum was a great resource for information on where to buy various types of wood. Let's rebuild that information using our collective knowledge and experience. I've given credit in parenthesis to those who have contributed the name of that source.

Sources of milled wood (Australia):
Modellers Shipyard (Shazmira) - A limited selection of sheet and strip stock. They also have kits, tools, and other supplies. Ships internationally.
 
Sources of milled wood (Germany):
Arkowood (TRJ) - A bit on the expensive side, but good for smaller quantities. All major wood varieties, including swiss pear, box, lime.
Massivholzwerkstätten Horschig (Redshirt) - Good assortment of wood, high accuracy and good price.
 
Sources of milled wood (UK):
Hobby's (AntonyUK)
JoTiKa (Marsares)
Cornwall Boat Models (Marsares)
The Model Dockyard (Marsares)
 
 
Sources of milled wood (USA):
Ocooch - Good source for milled sheetwood of all species but no Boxwood, swiss pear or holly.
Syren - sheets and strips of milled Boxwood, Alaskan Yellow Cedar and Swiss Pear.
Itasca - Mainly a source for basswood. Their "Half Price" wood is still of good quality and excellent value. $20 minimum order size. 20% military discount.
National Balsa - Another source for basswood, Maple, Cheerry. More expensive than Itasca, but they have a greater range of sizes and have lots of dowels.
tallships_model_builder (themadchemist) - An eBay store with several items targeted towards model ship builders (eg. Deck planking and sheet wood). May be willing to cut custom sizes for you.
http://www.northeasternscalelumber.com/shop/index.php?PHPSESSID=fbf4aea8bc5623641aa53ab405ec4c6a - Northeastern Scale Lumber
 
I'm adding my list of US suppliers of lumber.  Given the market they may or may not have the wood you want.  IF they do have it, order it, don't wait as they will run out.  
All Righteous Woods Bod Nosen Colonial Hardwoods, Inc. CookWoods Dyes Exotic Wood, Birdseye Maple, Curly Maple & Tiger Maple Bell Forest Products Gilmer Wood Company Griffin Exotic Wood--High Quality Exotic Woods Groffslumberr hearnehardwoods.com- Inlay Banding, Ebony and Holly Wood Products Kettle Moraine Hardwoods, Inc., Hartford, WI Midwest Products National Balsa Wood Co- Balsa wood, Basswood, Mahogany, Architectural Models, Model RC Aircraft, Savox Servos Ocooch Hardwoods - Supplier of Thin Wood for Scroll Sawing, Carving Blocks, Intarsia wood, Plywood for scroll sawing, and more. Rare and Exotic Lumber in Maine - Rare Woods USA Rare Woods USA Rockler.com S.H. Goode & Sons Workshop Specialty Wood Exotic Lumber Exotic Woods - Keim Lumber The Wood Database Tropical Exotic Hardwoods Welcome to the World of Hardwoods Wood Project Source - milled wood sheets and strips and wood carving blocks woodcraft.com- Woodfinder® Marketplace Woodworkers Source for Imported, Rare, Specialty, Exotic Woo    
Sources of rough lumber (Australia):
Trend Timbers (1492) - Local, imported and exotic timbers.
Anagote Timbers (Jim Lad) - Local and imported timbers. Named after a pet goat called Anna.
Australian Furniture Timbers (BANYAN) - A wide selection of timbers. Avilable in 1 meter lengths.
 
Sources of rough lumber (UK):
Workshop Heaven (AntonyUK) - Various sized chunks of exotic wood
Yandles (Kevin)
 
Sources of rough lumber (Spain)
Maderas Barber (ymperivm)

Sources of rough/billets lumber (USA):
Gilmer Wood Company - Mainly Exotic wood and much of it highly figured. The main species of interest for ship modelers will be boxwood, ebony, and holly. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases, no minimum for walk-in purchases. Ships internationally.
Cookwoods (mtaylor) - Exotic hardwoods. Ships internationally.
Righteous Woods (davec) - Domestic, imported and exotic timbers. $100 USD minimum order for Internet purchases. Ships internationally.
Tallgrass Custom Wood Productsfff382 (Thairinker) - Domestic hardwoods. Located in Kansas, does not appear to offer shipping.
Woodworkers Source (Sephirem) - Domestic and imported. Lumber is organized based on geographic region that it comes from.
Rare Woods USA (ChrisLBren) - Ships to Continental USA only for online orders, but is free for orders >$100 with conditions.

Sources of rough lumber (global):
A local hardwood store - Usually a great place to buy domestic wood and some exotics. I have seen ebony and purpleheart at Woodcraft.
A local hardwood flooring store (muzzleloader) - Mahogany, maple, cherry and other hard woods. Inquire about sales of remnants at bargain prices.


A note on Gilmer:
This is a local business for me so I am fortunate that I can visit. If you've purchased milled Castello Boxwood for your model then it probably came from here. They told me that they don't have a source for this wood anymore, but in addition to the large stack of wood towering over me they also had a bunch more in another warehouse. The Castello Boxwood starts out as rough 8/4 (2" thick) boards around 6" wide and 7' long. When the stock on their website gets low they pull down a board, clean it up in a planer, spray with shellac to bring out the color, then seal the ends with wax. They told me if I was to buy a board off the top of the stack it would be $30 a board foot (1"x12"x12") but that if I wanted to dig through the stack they'd up the price to $35 per board foot. Indeed, the chunks on their website were about $35 a board foot when I last ran the numbers. Ebony is tricky stuff as it all looks the same in pictures so ask them to select a board with straight grain, if you tell them it is for a ship model they will understand what you need. When I was there last they showed me how to hold the ebony to the light to check the grain for straightness. Also don't be too concerned if the description of Castello Boxwood on the website is "figured" as that is what they listed my piece of wood as and it was actually fairly straight. Not all wood can be sold to customers outside of the USA because of laws to protect endangered species.