Finishing and weathering hull and deck.

[SiriusVoyager]

The next kit I plan on starting shortly is the Occre Palamos.  I would like to weather the the boat just enough to make it look like a working fishing boat.  Most tutorials I have seen online suggest staining the deck, then sanding it down were it is to look weathered.  I have also read a lot of posts here that seem to suggest that using would stain isn't great for modeling.  What would one use weather a deck to make it look walked on, particularly a deck made of darker wood?

[Bob Cleek]

If they aren't painted (most are painted,) the bare wooden deck of a working fishing boat will usually be covered with old fish oil and dirt, they end up very dark, being closer to black more than anything else. In any event, most have their decks painted over, rather than unfinished. The below photos give you some idea of what a working fishing boat's wooden decks really look like.

 

You should experiment with scrap pieces of the same species of wood before attempting anything on the model itself. I'd try mixing a bit of brown and grey oil paint and apply it in varying coats until you can devise a recipe that works best for you. Check out the YouTube posts on the weathering techniques. The model railroad hobbyists do a lot of this kind of weathering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 8, 2024 by Bob Cleek

[SiriusVoyager]

Thank you for the info and photos @Bob Cleek.  My original plan wasn’t to paint the deck, but I may have to consider that now. If I don’t, it seems like creating a wash a mixture of gray and brown paint to darken the wood sounds like the way to go.  I will definitely be testing it out on scrap wood first. 

[Capt. Kelso]

I recently used the sanding technique on a ship deck diorama base. First, I stained the wood, then light paint and some sanding. Whether you paint over the stain or not the process is the same. I also weathered the Dory using watercolor paints. Eventually I want to weather a Schooner, so thought this build would allow me to try different techniques.

 

Good luck.

 

 

[SiriusVoyager]

15 hours ago, Capt. Kelso said:

I recently used the sanding technique on a ship deck diorama base. First, I stained the wood, then light paint and some sanding. Whether you paint over the stain or not the process is the same. I also weathered the Dory using watercolor paints. Eventually I want to weather a Schooner, so thought this build would allow me to try different techniques.

 

Good luck.

 

 

Thanks you for post your log. That is very similar to what I was thinking about doing. I bought some pre etched decking to try different techniques prior to doing it on a boat. I’ll give this a try.