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deck planking options

M

manning16

Joined
Oct 27, 2024
Messages
221
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Location
Malone, NY Naples, FL
Hello all-
Building Winchelsea..cherry version.. I would like to plank deck in one of the following, ..swiss pear, boxwood, spruce, basswood ,holly..cherry is supplied.. My other builds use Bass..would like something different, but not over the top. Bulwarks will be red. Tung or satin poly for deck.. any preferences? Thanks in advance.
 
rtwpsom2 said:
Have you considered Alaskan Cedar at all?
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Great suggestion. When holystoned the deck planks would have a pale, off-white or creamy color so holly is also a great choice. With the various species there is really no reason to stain the wood. The traditional wood for contemporary models is European boxwood and looking at many photos, the decks seem to be made of this wood but the price is dear. The actual ships had gun decks of oak, and sometimes elm. The outboard most strakes of the gun decks were often top and butt or anchor stock which also adds to the look if you want to go for this kind of detail. Regardless of what species you wind up choosing, once the deck is laid a scraper is a good tool to make sure all is even.
Allan
 
there are a few threads on the actual color of decks which is a tan-gray color you can explore them here on the forum.

this is just my opinion

Holly is stark white and looks unnatural.

Swiss Pearwood has a pinkish tint it would work if you get a very pale color but pinkish decks?

spruce has resin streaks way to big and out of scale

boxwood is a light yellow and no visible feature to it, kind of looks like plastic

Alaskan cedar is a pale lemon yellow to yellow for my taste.

Cherry sapwood is a creamy light tan to off white i have used it and i thought it looked good

Poplar is also a possibility its heartwood is a lime green but exposed to sunlight it turns to a light tan, the sapwood is off white and not as stark as Holly.

Willow is a nice color you can see it in planking the Matthew thread

Red Maple which is not red but a light cream color with some figure to it you can see it in the Sir Edward Hawke build.

Hard Maple is a honey color also a nice deck color

Applewood the sapwood is a light tan off white with slight variations in color tones

final scrapinga.jpg
 
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Wow! lots of info here..failed to mention that I have rock maple cut into planks..I'll run them thru the Byrnes sander and see how they look..I thought the holly would be too bright..I have a lot of pear , box and holly billets that I bought ..stored ten years.. Guess I'll experiment when I mentally digest all your great comments!
 
Forgot to mention..I have some cherry sapwood and eastern white cedar milled from the back yard.. any comments on the cedar.. I have inherited some red oak as well...maybe too much grain. been collecting ship wood for a few years..not like Dave though! As an aside, just returned from Mystic Seaport..great time..stayed next door at Delamar Hotel.
 
I haven't used white cedar before, but try it out, it might be a good substitute for Alaskan cedar (a.k.a. yellow cedar).
 
Yes..I plan to mill a few strips of each ..apply tung on some, poly on others....as an aside, I thought of planking with pear instead of cherry..I have some nice pear, not steamed, but have not worked with pear..any suggestions? Dave..jump in!
 
Eastern white cedar is a completely different wood from Yellow cedar. Back in my canoe restoration days I bought a load of it from a local sawmill. It’s a nice wood, mills nicely, but very soft.

I don’t know what the “basswood” is that is furnished in kits. It wouldn’t surprise me if it’s actually Aspen, aka Poplar, aka Popple. It’s a very fast growing wood that is clear cut for the paper industry here in Minnesota. Hence it’s cheap. I used some real basswood bought from a local sawmill when I lived in Ohio. It was good for decking.

Roger
 
A clarification: There are two very different woods named Poplar. The wood suggested by Dave is also known as a Tulip Poplar or back in Ohio just called a Tulip Tree. I defer to Dave on its suitability. The other Poplar that I described above is also called Aspen. I have found it in the Specialty Hardwood of our local Menards Home Improvement store. It’s poor stuff.
 
Hello Roger.. I literally have 100 board feet of of planed ,dried basswood..more than I'll ever use! Yes ..eastern cedar completely different ..very soft..poplar here is called popple.. Ive used a lot of bass over the years , but wanted to try maybe pear for the Winnie hull planking.. I had the good furtune to buy a sizable amount of box, holly and pear from a gentleman in FL.
 
rtwpsom2 said:
I haven't used white cedar before, but try it out, it might be a good substitute for Alaskan cedar (a.k.a. yellow cedar).
Click to expand...
Yes..much softer than bass..which I have used for years for decking..tung or wop.. fun to experiment.. I also have some malaluca (sic) ..a trash tree in FL..a lovely grey color..I use it for building slipway dioramas , sheds, etc...would be great if one built a working boat with grey deck/ weathered deck furniture. I actually have had good luck with mahogany..scratch built the OKESA Adm. style. Hurricane IAN took down my neighbor's tree..took me a week to cut it up..Two carloads from FL in billets..Wife wasn't happy,,had to ship some of her clothes home..priorities
 
manning16 said:
malaluca (sic) ..a trash tree in FL.
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Yep, it is an invasive species that is native to Australia and New Caledonia. On the plus side, working with the wood is good for the skin. Melaleuca, Inc. (Idaho Falls) has made at least a billion dollars nearly every year since it opened its doors in 1985 using melaleuca in their products (and they were a great client in a past life. :) )
Allan
 
Omg Dave! You just saved me a lot of work! You guys are the best!
That is what I really like about this forum, you have guys from around the world with all levels of experience helping us novice builder with simple questions that often have a complex answer!
Great team work all

building Ships of Scale to be the epic center of model ship building including all levels from master builders to beginners is the goal and we are well on the way of doing just that.
 
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