Pear Wood vs Cherry wood

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Dematosdg

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Hi all

I am looking to buy a model. In Cherry wood the price is $100 LESS than in Pear wood.

It is a POF HMS DRUID and you can see many internal details.

The higher cost of the Pear wood version is because is better than Cherry wood ?

If the answer is YES.... then Why is better ?

I would like to learn the differences that justify an extra $100. Is it color, grain, etc ?

Thank you
Daniel
 
Hi Daniel... we have a couple modelers who are experts on wood that can answer better than I. But the short answer is, Pear has a tighter, finer grain than cherry and looks more "scale" in appearance. It can also be sanded to a sharper edge. Pear also has a more consistent coloring than Cherry. I hope my over simplified answer helps for now. I am sure others will weigh in.
 
Thank you Brian. After reading these 2 answers. I have decided that the Pear Version deserves the extra money.

I am talking about the HMS DRUID 1/50 That ZHL sells. He has a Cherry version cheaper then the Pear Version. All the pictures at the site are the same and I was no able to understand the difference.

So I called " the SOS experts " and in a blink of an eye got answers.

Great guys at this forum.

Thank you !!
Daniel
 
Hi Daniel
I can't comment on Cherry as I have never used it.Pear is easier to obtain than Cherry in the UK from my experience.The price of timber comes down to availability.The harder to get species command higher prices.
Whilst you don't have some of the stripes in the grain,you can get some colour variation between boards.Some like this and use it to illustrate different timbers like I have tried to do,others don't care for it.
I buy mine mail order so am going blind but I buy a few boards at a time so I can mix the parts between the boards,at the same time mixing up the difference in shade.
The pink hue comes from steaming,this is generally known as Swiss Pear for whatever reason.Wild Pear is unsteamed

Kind Regards

Nigel
 
Dematosdg said:
Hi all

I am looking to buy a model. In Cherry wood the price is $100 LESS than in Pear wood.

It is a POF HMS DRUID and you can see many internal details.

The higher cost of the Pear wood version is because is better than Cherry wood ?

If the answer is YES.... then Why is better ?

I would like to learn the differences that justify an extra $100. Is it color, grain, etc ?

Thank you
Daniel
Click to expand...
From a woodworker ‘s perspective I would like to add one comment. When applying a finish to cherry the results can sometimes be rather unpredictable. Splotchy for example. Pear does not seem to present this problem. There are whole articles written about how to deal with this situation.
 
whiskers said:
From a woodworker ‘s perspective I would like to add one comment. When applying a finish to cherry the results can sometimes be rather unpredictable. Splotchy for example. Pear does not seem to present this problem. There are whole articles written about how to deal with this situation.
Click to expand...

Thank you !!
Daniel
 
Hello Daniel,

This question opens a broad discussion as both of these species (timbers) have many regional subspecies, those vary in their hardness and density and overall strength. For many"American" species of wood, there are South Americans that are usually much harder and much denser.
American Cherry is generally one of the softer hardwood species here in the USA, and that American Pearwood is much softer than the Asian and South American varieties. For example, Jatoba (Brazilian Cherry)used for fingerboards, tailpieces, and bridges most times (guitar made).

European cherry is very different than American Cherry in terms of the texture of the wood and the effects of oxidation/time on the color. European Cherry and Swiss Pear may be a closer match with some qualities.

It’s been said that Pear is used in Europe much in the same way that Black Cherry is used in the United States: as a popular and high-quality domestic hardwood.
 
Jimsky said:
Hello Daniel,

This question opens a broad discussion as both of these species (timbers) have many regional subspecies, those vary in their hardness and density and overall strength. For many"American" species of wood, there are South Americans that are usually much harder and much denser.
American Cherry is generally one of the softer hardwood species here in the USA, and that American Pearwood is much softer than the Asian and South American varieties. For example, Jatoba (Brazilian Cherry)used for fingerboards, tailpieces, and bridges most times (guitar made).

European cherry is very different than American Cherry in terms of the texture of the wood and the effects of oxidation/time on the color. European Cherry and Swiss Pear may be a closer match with some qualities.

It’s been said that Pear is used in Europe much in the same way that Black Cherry is used in the United States: as a popular and high-quality domestic hardwood.
Click to expand...

Wow.... thank you for teaching me all those details !!

Daniel
 
you may want to read this topic

Wood it's characteristics and use in model building

I have been working with wood, trees and lumber for many years and I have been asked to start a topic on wood. so here is my first post Any wood can be sold under different trade names boxwood is a good one for that there are 70 different woods sold as boxwood most are not even close to...
shipsofscale.com
 
zoly99sask said:
you may want to read this topic

Wood it's characteristics and use in model building

I have been working with wood, trees and lumber for many years and I have been asked to start a topic on wood. so here is my first post Any wood can be sold under different trade names boxwood is a good one for that there are 70 different woods sold as boxwood most are not even close to...
shipsofscale.com
Click to expand...

Thank you so much !!!. I will read it. There is a lot of info.
 
Dematosdg said:
Hi all

I am looking to buy a model. In Cherry wood the price is $100 LESS than in Pear wood.

It is a POF HMS DRUID and you can see many internal details.

The higher cost of the Pear wood version is because is better than Cherry wood ?

If the answer is YES.... then Why is better ?

I would like to learn the differences that justify an extra $100. Is it color, grain, etc ?

Thank you
Daniel
Click to expand...

the cost of Cherry vs Steamed Pearwood is not because one is better than the other. The difference at least in my case here in Ohio the Steamed Pear is an import and is subject to import duties, dealer handling charges from saw mill to wholesales to retailer and shipping costs everyone along the supply chain makes a little profit. Now when it come to cherry it is an hour drive to the Amish saw mills so it is direct from the mill to me no middle men, no shipping cost just a tank of gas for the truck. That is the difference from $18.00 a board foot of the pearwood and $3.50 a board foot for the Cherry.
 
Appalachian hardwoods are sought after around the world and Black Cherry is an exotic wood if you happen to live in say Japan and it is very expensive even in California it demands a high price here in Ohio it is like a weed tree and grows everywhere and even used as firewood or ground up as mulch.
So it depends where you are and if the wood is native to your area. It is impossible for me to get lemonwood (citrus) here in Ohio because it does not grow here, in southern California it is used as firewood or dumped because of the cost to gather it, package it and shipping makes the wood extremely expensive to get.
 
Dave Stevens (Lumberyard) said:
I do not get Cherry here by the board foot I get it by the ton and I have cut Cherry that is so fine in grain it beats the best steamed perwood hands down. Then I get Cherry that is so poor it goes in the firewood pile.
Click to expand...
If you like to grill, cherry wood is wonderful for smoking foods,adding a delicious,sweet smoke. A great way to use up some of your scrap.
 
Cherry wood can continue to darken long after a project is finished. I've used it to make Irish penny whistles, but the same would hold true for wooden ship models. If you plan on planking with wood and not painting it, the age darkened cherry can be quite gorgeous. I know nothing about it's bending characteristics vs pear.
Note also that U.V. light can darken cherry quite quickly. Some cabinet makers have reported leaving a tool on an unfinished cherry table or cabinet top exposed to daylight, and found a light colored silhouette when they removed the tool! I'm not sure how quickly this happens after a finish is applied.
 
Jimsky said:
Hello Daniel,

This question opens a broad discussion as both of these species (timbers) have many regional subspecies, those vary in their hardness and density and overall strength. For many"American" species of wood, there are South Americans that are usually much harder and much denser.
American Cherry is generally one of the softer hardwood species here in the USA, and that American Pearwood is much softer than the Asian and South American varieties. For example, Jatoba (Brazilian Cherry)used for fingerboards, tailpieces, and bridges most times (guitar made).

European cherry is very different than American Cherry in terms of the texture of the wood and the effects of oxidation/time on the color. European Cherry and Swiss Pear may be a closer match with some qualities.

It’s been said that Pear is used in Europe much in the same way that Black Cherry is used in the United States: as a popular and high-quality domestic hardwood.
Click to expand...
I have ordered walnut from Australia (Artesania) and also from cornwallboats in UK, the colour is like chalk and cheese, so it's all about where the product comes from.
 
I hope that I do not bring confusion to this topic, but I have been wondering the same thing and this answers a lot of my questions too. I plan to use Pear on my next project. So, @Dave Stevens (Lumberyard) may I ask this question then. I have never heard of steamed pearwood. So, what is Swiss Pearwood, Pearwood, and Steamed Pearwood? (or is it all the same thing, but just called by different names?)
 
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