What type of wood is this?

[dkuehn]

Any guesses what type of wood this strip is? All I've ever dealt with is bass and walnut from kits. Thanks.

 

 

[barkeater]

It looks really yellow in your picture. If this is true my guess would be yellow heart or dyed bass wood which I have seen (Modelers Central). The "Wood Database"  site may be of help.  https:/www.wood-database.com/wood-finder/?fwp_paged=24

Edited September 21, 2018 by barkeater

[dkuehn]

It does look really yellow in person as well. Thanks for the link, I'll look at that. 

[reklein]

I'm gonna guess Obechi. Specially if its a european kit wood.

[dkuehn]

I ordered Boxwood from Model Expo. This is what I got. It just doesn't look like what I was expecting. But I have no experience with woods other than what you'd get in a Caldercraft or Amati kit. 

[Jaager]

Either your camera is adding artifacts or that piece of wood is fuzzy.

It looks like it is soft.  Yelloeheart is not soft and probably could not be that fuzzy.

If your photo is accurate, the blade that cut edge had some set to it.

In a game show, I would go with dyed Basswood or  if the face is as flecky as

it looks at this angle, American Sycamore that has been dyed.

 

Came in after she last 3 posts.  Not Boxwood.  Genuine Boxwood is akin to the unicorn

Castelo is really expensive as far as I have been able to find on line.  Gilmer = $45 / BF

and a second site with not as clear stock $25/ BF.   In the $5 range, I am liking Hard Maple

even more.

Edited September 21, 2018 by Jaager

[dkuehn]

That is a 1mm x 4mm plank, so it's pretty zoomed in. But it certainly is a little fuzzy on the sides. I was expecting it to be really clean with sharp edges and more of a white/cream color. 

[grsjax]

Don't know what kind of wood it is but would be surprised if it was boxwood.  Anyway if you need boxwood get it from Chuck on this forum.  He has high quality stuff at reasonable prices.

[Chuck]

That is not boxwood at all.   They shouldnt sell it as such.  It is clearly a dyed wood to imitate (very poorly) boxwood.   They used a yellow dye and my guess is that in spots you will find that the yellow doesnt go all the way through the strip.  The wood texture being all stringy and fuzzy is indicative of submergence and cooking in a dye bath for long periods of time and the same thing would happen to any soft wood when submerged like that.  Good dyed veneers dont have that texture.  Take a sharp blade and slice a shaving off of the top of a strip and see what the color looks like deeper and if you even stand a chance of getting a smooth finish on that wood.  I doubt it.   Its basically a cheap dyed wood veneer which is common and that is why you will only find MS  offering it in 1mm thickness.   Cheap yellow wood veneer ripped into strips.  These veneers are usually dyed very bright primary colors like this example of yellow veneer sold for marquetry enthusiasts.  This is what the store writes about it but its a good quality dyed veneer and actually pretty expensive.

 

"All of the dyed veneers that we work with have been bleached first and then pressure cooked with dye to saturate completely through every wood fiber. This is done to reduce fading and any ability to sand through the color. This dying process is done in Italy. These dyed veneers could be any of the following: Maple, Birch, Poplar, Tay, Koto or any American white wood."

 

[dkuehn]

I'm going to send an email with a picture and question Model Expo as to it not being boxwood. We'll see how that goes. 

 

Thanks for all the replies, I appreciate it. 

Edited September 21, 2018 by dkuehn

[Chuck]

I would certainly be curious.   Let us all know.

[dkuehn]

I'll update the thread when I get a reply. 

[capnharv2]

I ordered the same stuff from ME years ago. It didn't look like any of the other boxwood I had, so I chalked it up to experience.

 

It's sitting around someplace. Maybe I'll need some expensive firewood . . .

 

Harvey

[Jaager]

Mark me down as being horrified by the concept of cooking wood 

in hot water to dye it.  That sounds like it should be the first step in

turning it into paper and probably seriously denatures it.  To brag

about the process instead of being ashamed is mind staggering.

And that color!  why would anyone want a hull with anything but

decorative elements showing that color?

[barkeater]

There is a good discussion on the Wood Database concerning exotic woods and their losing color. It seems that all but a few woods will lose or change color with aging. Yellowheart which was mentioned in this discussion only darkens slightly and I'm using it for the yellow ochre stripe along the gun ports of Unite. I'm also using Chatke to simulate the red paint on the gun deck. This however may be a bad choice as this wood turns brown with age. I decided not to go with dyed wood even though the color was very similar to Chatke because it was dyed. I will seal it very well hopefully with shellac and dulcote varnish but in a few years my red may turn brown. What I'm getting at is that this is a personal choice and there is a good discussion on the database on this. Is it more important to have the colors of you project last or can you accept that the vibrant color that looked so nice may not be permanent. Another coat of shellac for me but to each his own.

[dkuehn]

I got a reply saying my email would be forwarded to the parts department. I'll update when I hear more.

[Bob Cleek]

2 hours ago, barkeater said:

There is a good discussion on the Wood Database concerning exotic woods and their losing color. It seems that all but a few woods will lose or change color with aging. Yellowheart which was mentioned in this discussion only darkens slightly and I'm using it for the yellow ochre stripe along the gun ports of Unite. I'm also using Chatke to simulate the red paint on the gun deck. This however may be a bad choice as this wood turns brown with age. I decided not to go with dyed wood even though the color was very similar to Chatke because it was dyed. I will seal it very well hopefully with shellac and dulcote varnish but in a few years my red may turn brown. What I'm getting at is that this is a personal choice and there is a good discussion on the database on this. Is it more important to have the colors of you project last or can you accept that the vibrant color that looked so nice may not be permanent. Another coat of shellac for me but to each his own.

Indeed, the colors of "naturally colored" wood are rarely stable and most do lose their original color rather quickly and this is particularly so for "reds" and "purples.". I can't say this authoritatively, but I suspect that your chatke may hold its color longer if you apply a high quality marine spar varnish with a fair amount of UV inhibitors in it. (Which may require some thinning, and rubbing if you want to knock the high gloss off of it) A light coat should not impart too much of a brown cast from the varnish and the UV inhibitor will block the UV that is the primary cause of fading. (Epiphanes is a well-respected brand.)

[dkuehn]

John said he would forward the email to parts. I gave them the weekend and Monday and Tuesday with no reply, so I sent an email to parts just now. We'll see if they respond. They may be busy with the sales they've had going on, but it certainly doesn't seem like excellent customer service at the moment. 

[vaddoc]

Your wood is fuzzy and has this yellow tint, It looks a bit like lime wood. 

[dkuehn]

Here's the reply I got:

 

Quote

 

Our owner Marc advises that Boxwood is yellow. It is supplied to us by a very reputable 50 yr. old firm. Boxwood is a scarce wood and has a variety of colors from pale to dense yellow. All boxwood in our inventory has a similar appearance. There may be some confusion between boxwood and basswood, which is light in color.

 

If you believe the boxwood in your order is not suitable for your purposes, please contact John Garcia to inquire about a return.

 

Not worth putting any effort into a return, so maybe I'll find a use for it sometime. If I need to order wood in the future it will be from Chuck. 

[vaddoc]

Funny they mention basswood. Basswood and lime are pretty much the same wood, the former a bit softer. I ve found that lime when treated with Tung oil gets this yellow tint that remotely resembles boxwood. Generally not a good wood for modelling.

[RussR]

So the moral to this story is, don't buy boxwood from ModelExpo.

49 minutes ago, dkuehn said:

There may be some confusion between boxwood and basswood, which is light in color.

I don't think there is any confusion.

[Chuck]

That is extremely disappointing.  I have a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.  LOL

 

Chuck

[dkuehn]

I don't want to speak too harshly of Model Expo, I feel I got a great deal on my Dusek Golden Hind, $88 delivered to my door. But I sure won't order any wood from them ever again. 

[K9 Whisperer]

On 9/26/2018 at 10:40 PM, Chuck said:

That is extremely disappointing.  I have a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.  LOL

 

Chuck

A bit like the one the Brits sold you LOL

[Roger Pellett]

Here are two pieces of Boxwood, not Costello Boxwood.  The wood is yellowish in color, and quite heavy.  The grain is very tight, and when cut holds a clean, crisp edge.  When sanded with fine grit it takes on a nice polish.  I find it to be more brittle than either pear or holly.

 

Roger

[Jaager]

Roger,

Are you positive your supply is Buxus simpervirens?   There are other Buxus species.  The stuff from Turkey and the logs from the New England supplier are a different species.  Brittle is not something I would attribute to Buxus simperverins-  although  as far as bending,  no way it comes close to Holly - a champ  or Pear.  With it being so scarce,  I would not sacrifice it to a component that needed bending anyway.

I  have a supply from a supplier on the Baltimore harbor in 1972  and a couple of small pieces from an ornamental plant.  The latter has much tighter grain.  Way back when,  the free size was called Bermuda Box.  

As I said before, someone should plant a wood lot of the tree size variety/cultivar so that their great grandchildren would have a supply.

[Roger Pellett]

It looks like I got some of the same stuff that you did.  I bought mine from a supplier in Baltimore in the mid 70’s too.  I do not know the exact species but it is sure nice stuff to work with.  I should probably either tackle some large project to use it up or include it in my will, otherwise when I am gone it will end up in someone’s fireplace!

 

Roger

[Jaager]

I know your sentiment .   I am facing the same thing. 

At 1:60 - a two or three decker  absorbs a lot more wood than I had imagined for the framing.  At larger scales the superior characteristics of true Boxwood are not really necessary.  Less expensive and replaceable domestic species will suffice.  At 1:96 or smaller,  the Boxwood would really shine and your supply would go a long way -- ( but the amount lost to kerf and chips becomes a larger fraction ).   But miniature is a whole nuther thing.