Paper sails

[EvanAndBoats]

I was working on a ship and I already rigged it but I still need sails, I want the sails to be made of paper although I have no basis of what type of paper I need. To get the color I want I would need to brush the paper with yellowish died water and regular printer paper wouldn’t look good as a result. I think a thicker paper wouldn’t curl or wrinkle too much but suggestions would me most helpful.

Edited August 22, 2022 by EvanAndBoats

[Kevin Kenny]

Not sure if it can be done now that you have rigged the ship. But the material of choice is Silk span. Here is my video on it 

 

there is another excellent video by Tom Lauria 

 

 

[Cathead]

A few years ago I wrote up my method for making paper sails using bond paper and pastels. I think it works quite nicely and the thread generated some useful discussion of different techniques. See here: 

Here's what these sails look like the way I made them:

 

 

Hope this helps!

 

[allanyed]

Evan

Welcome to MSW.  Please post a little about yourself in the new member forum.

 

For $5 you can get an excellent booklet from SeaWatch books on how to make paper sails written by noted author and ship modeler David Antscherl.  It will teach you all the "how to" tricks you need to make realistic sails.  https://seawatchbooks.com/products/swan-iv-sail-making-supplement-from-the-revised-and-expanded-edition-by-david-antscherl

 

Allan

[wefalck]

Also, this is discussion that has resurfaced several times over the past few years. I gather, in these discussions we quite exhaustively covered the different options and materials. So, it will be worthwhile to plough through theses threads.

[rwiederrich]

On 8/22/2022 at 10:16 AM, EvanAndBoats said:

I was working on a ship and I already rigged it but I still need sails, I want the sails to be made of paper although I have no basis of what type of paper I need. To get the color I want I would need to brush the paper with yellowish died water and regular printer paper wouldn’t look good as a result. I think a thicker paper wouldn’t curl or wrinkle too much but suggestions would me most helpful.

There are plenty of methods and ideas...paper and silk.

To sail up my Clipper Great Republic....I chose plain copy paper, cut, ribbed/banded, then , formed and  lightly painted an off white, tan.

 

Check out my Great Republic build log to see what I did.  They turned out extremely convincing. 

 

Rob

[brunelrussell]

Brunel Russell here: I found some really nice archival tissue at an art supply store that has the perfect texture for the small scale I'm working at; not sure how I'm going to tint it tan to simulate linen.  Suggestions?

[allanyed]

1 hour ago, brunelrussell said:

Suggestions?

BR

I am not too sure that you can tint paper consistently.   Have you studied David Antscherl's booklet from Seawatch books and the You tube videos by Tom Lauria on making paper sails as suggested above?

Allan

Edited September 26, 2022 by allanyed

[wefalck]

Russel, would you have a picture of the material? Also what scale are you working in.

 

I gather there are various fabric dyes on the market, I suppose (I do not know the US American market). Keep in mind, however, that tanned sails, where not just coloured, but they were smeared with concotions of tallow and yellow/red ochre, so the sails would appear rather smooth. One can simulate this by soaking the material with acrylic paint, so that it covers most of the weave.