Wood used for decks

[hooite]

i have been building Caldercraft Granado for several years, due to personal circumstances it is taking a long time. I was unhappy with the original deck which I laid, and replaced it but then I splashed some brass blackener on the deck, although only small I have managed to repair it as the build is too far gone to start again. Unfortunately the replaced planks stick out like a sore thumb, I thought if I applied a light stain to all of the decks it may not be so noticeable. Could anyone please advise what type of wood would have been used on ships in this period.

[Landlubber Mike]

I used the kit tanganyika on my Caldercraft Badger, which I thought was ok, but switched to maple for my Pegasus.  Maple is a really great wood to work with, but you do have some color waves in the grain.  You can take a look at my Pegasus build (linked below) to see what it looks like.

 

If you want a wood that is uniform in color, some people use holly, which I find a bit too white.  Others use boxwood, which can be nice.  

[hooite]

Thanks for your help Mike but I have posted my enquiry in the wrong forum

[jbshan]

For warships oak originally for strength and durability.  The grain of oak unfortunately doesn't scale down and maple (hard, rock or sugar, all the same tree) would indeed be a good choice for a quality model.  The decks of warships were washed and scraped/sanded every day so the color would be almost white.

[druxey]

Although holly is white when freshly cut it will tone down and, after a few years, is almost indistinguishable in color from Castello boxwood.

[Richard Griffith]

I also use and like maple, either soft or hard.  After scraping the deck I use a light oil stain.  

 

American birch (Betula papyrifera) is also one of my favorite modeling woods.  The heartwood is creamy white; it polishes well and takes dyes and clear stains better than pigmented finishes.  For full disclosure, I have not used it for a deck yet, but have used it on scale model model trains with excellent results.   

 

Duff

[Dwaing]

I used Birds' eye maple veneer which I cut into planks. The results with the appearance of knots if the wood is fully figured is pleasing to me.  I placed it on a sub decking of 1/23 inch birch plywood.

[TMAN]

i have been building Caldercraft Granado for several years, due to personal circumstances it is taking a long time. I was unhappy with the original deck which I laid, and replaced it but then I splashed some brass blackener on the deck, although only small I have managed to repair it as the build is too far gone to start again. Unfortunately the replaced planks stick out like a sore thumb, I thought if I applied a light stain to all of the decks it may not be so noticeable. Could anyone please advise what type of wood would have been used on ships in this period.

 

A good friend and fellow model builder built a model of Model Shipways "EAGLE." In the process, he dropped a paint brush on the deck. The bristles were full of red paint. Strangely enough, though the spot left on the deck was rather small, instead of trying to clean it up, he made a figure of a deckhand carrying a paint bucket of red paint and a brush. The brush was dropped, by the figure, on the deck. It too was full of red paint; guess where the deckhand's brush was dropped...right where my friend foiled the deck when he dropped his brush. It was one of the most ingenious repairs I ever saw on a model! And it looked planned. Fret not my friend.......all mistakes are repairable.........

Edited December 12, 2015 by TMAN

[vossy]

yep. just like the figurine mentioned by TMAN well placed buckets, barrels etc. can be very effective.

 

chris

[mischief]

I have a pile of Holly that was purchased 30+ years ago by my uncle and to this day it is as white as fresh snow,  He bought a pickup load of cutoffs from a NC sawmill for the price of firewood. I will purchase Holly anytime when I can find a bargain price for holly. and it is great for decking and carving. yes some holly will degrade in color, was I lucky ,yes. We have a member who sells Holly,his name escapes me now, in PA I believe,  who sells QUALITY white holly.

[Mark P]

Hi Hooite;

 

In the Royal Navy,  initially decks of warships were planked with oak all over.  However,  as the 17th century progressed,  the supply of timber from English forests became severely reduced,  at the same time that supplies from America became cut off due to loss of the colonies.  This meant that shipyards were forced to start buying timber from Northern Europe,  which was shipped from the Baltic.  This was known as 'Crown Plank',  or 'East Country Plank' and was pine,  or deal.  In the later part of the 17th century,  this was used for most of the decks,  only the outer 3 or 4 planks,  and the first ones at the bow and stern being made of oak. 

 

How this was applied to Granado I am not sure.  I believe that there is an AOS volume dealing with her,  and more information might be found here if there is.

 

Happy modelling!

 

Mark P

[Nirvana]

So I looked up Silver Ash,

Looking at the color of the wood I certainly like it too.

 

Janos,

Why did you buy the material from the US, seems like it is common wood species in Australia.... at least the little I read.

[TMAN]

yep. just like the figurine mentioned by TMAN well placed buckets, barrels etc. can be very effective.

 

chris

Ahoy Vossy, I'm currently building a 1/8 scale of GERTRUDE THEBAUD (1929). I've already prepared about 20 barrels of different sizes for placement on the deck when the rigging is complete. Reviewing several publications about 1920's fishing schooners, photos of real boats showed numerous bucket & barrels to be filled with the "catch" on the decks; so many, in fact, that it seemed as if the crew had no place to move around freely. these details, in my opinion make the model "real!"

TMAN