Jawbone

Hah, the sunscreen might be a good idea. Power's no prob, with the newfangled ultra-efficient bulbs they have now, and no heat. Gotta say, at night it does annoy the hell out of the dog tho....

Oh, and just to show how far I like to go when I get an idea in my head. This is what happened when I thought that there was not enough light in my building area. The copper pipe rig hanging from the ceiling alone provides close to 8000 lumens of "warm" LED light, and can be raised and lowered by a series of pullys. "If something is worth doing, it is worth overdoing"

yup, and Uv light can play havoc with wood colors, especially cherry, my favorite. Was thinking of using a Uv blocking film on any sides of the case exposed to natural light, have seen them in use, inexpensive and almost invisible when applied properly. Humidity and the wood moving and cracking over time are a great concern to me. Just in the last few days, the outside temp has fluctuated from between -17 with very very low humidity to today's reading of +6 and 98% humidity. I see now I would probably have to include a humidity meter and thermometer in a sealed display case, with something to keep the moisture content of the wood at about 6%. 35-65% humidity is best for antique furniture, so I would really have to keep on eye on this for the first few months. Imagine coming home from work and seeing your display case covered with condensation, on the inside!

Actually, a ship in a bottle is what inspired me for this idea in the first place. I found over a dozen of these at a yard sale last summer, some quite large, and got the whole lot for ten bucks. Apparently they were made by the lady's late husband in the 50's and 60's and sealed with a cork and some wax. The amazing thing to me was that they looked as if they were done yesterday, no dust, no crackling of finish or fading of paints, the rigging is still tight, the flags taut and bright, and the metalwork untarnished. In comparison, I bought a second hand lot of several partially completed wooden model kits from the 80's, and even though they were packed in boxes in someone's closet they all showed definite signs of age, including a dulled finish and a fading of the original colors of the wood. I've had a caldercraft Victory on order at my local shop for about 6 months, and it should arrive any day. When this beast is completed, I want to be able to keep the copper and paint bright, as well as the rigging unfuzzy for as long as possible. I admit to being a total gearhead and love tools and gadgets (that actually work), a working "preservation" display case would be a great piece of kit.

Have any of you used an inert gas to preserve a wood ship model in a display case? I am a cabinetmaker by trade, and we often use a squirt of an inert gas such as argon to preserve varnishes, stains, laquers etc. A little bit of an inert gas that is heavier than air squirted inside of a can of finish before sealing the lid prevents oxidization, keeping a skin from forming on the finish and preventing wastage. This is my question: If I construct a display case for a ship, either out of glass or plexi, and make it airtight, and replace the air with an inert gas, will it harm the model in any way? Has this been done before? I do appreciate the "patina" older wood gets, I deal with its preservation whenever we do a restoration at work. I would just hate to see the yellowing and fading of colors changing a model I have spent hundreds of hours on making look "just so". I figure a packet of silica would help trap any moisture or humidity, and maybe some activated carbon to deal with any offgassing, or varnish fumes, that might build up from the wooden model over time. My largest concern really is pressure. If barometric pressure changes due to weather or the season, and the display case is sealed, would the pressure difference inside and outside the case make a perfect seal impossible? I can make a glass or plexi aquarium that holds water no problem, but will it prevent the transfer of oxygen? A sort of bellows constructed into the base of the display case *might* work, some flexible but impermeable material stretched and sealed over an opening that would bulge in and out in response to changes in air pressure. Not sure how reasonable that might be, but it sure would look neat! Was planning on trying this out on one of my smaller ships first, but would hate to have something unfortunate happen. Definitely one of those projects that raise more and more questions the further you get into it. Thanks for your time.