Le Saint Philippe 1693 after Jean-Claude Lemineur (Ancre) in scale 1:48

[RussF]

I wish I could take credit for inventing the "Old Timers' Finish" I told you about Paul, but it was handed down to me by one of my woodturning mentors. I'm so happy it worked out for you. She looks beautiful! I also happen to like the differences in wood coloration because it subtly highlights the intricate construction details of the individual frames and shows off your exquisite craftsmanship. You really have an eye for beauty. Ooh, too soon?

Seriously, eye surgery has advanced by leaps and bounds. For both my cataract surgeries, the prep time was longer than the surgery itself, which was only about 10 minutes. The Admiral has had all the vitreous humor (the fluid in your eyeball) sucked out and replaced with saline to get rid of floaters. She also had laser surgery to correct -15 (yes, -15!) vision to about -1.5. The surgeon said it was the largest correction he had done to date. These types of things could only be dreamed about when we were young men. Things may look bleak now (okay, another stupid dad pun), but I have faith that, in the hands of a competent ophthalmologist, your vision will be better soon, possibly even better than before. Keep your optimism my friend, Lord knows we all need a hefty dose of it in these trying times.

 

[dockattner]

I wish I could take credit for inventing the "Old Timers' Finish" I told you about Paul, but it was handed down to me by one of my woodturning mentors. I'm so happy it worked out for you. She looks beautiful! I also happen to like the differences in wood coloration because it subtly highlights the intricate construction details of the individual frames and shows off your exquisite craftsmanship. You really have an eye for beauty. Ooh, too soon?

Seriously, eye surgery has advanced by leaps and bounds. For both my cataract surgeries, the prep time was longer than the surgery itself, which was only about 10 minutes. The Admiral has had all the vitreous humor (the fluid in your eyeball) sucked out and replaced with saline to get rid of floaters. She also had laser surgery to correct -15 (yes, -15!) vision to about -1.5. The surgeon said it was the largest correction he had done to date. These types of things could only be dreamed about when we were young men. Things may look bleak now (okay, another stupid dad pun), but I have faith that, in the hands of a competent ophthalmologist, your vision will be better soon, possibly even better than before. Keep your optimism my friend, Lord knows we all need a hefty dose of it in these trying times.

Thanks, Russ. No worries about the eye-based dad jokes - my family has been stringing them together this entire holiday season (more will be coming today as we celebrate some birthdays).

You make a good point with the wood coloration distinctives. Either way - nothing is going to change at this point!

 

[BradNSW]

Love what you achieved with the finish! It's amazing how much oils enrich the tones and grain! Not a fan of varnish but by cutting it with the solvent, you can't tell it's there!!

I bet over time, it will really age richly.

 

[dockattner]

Love what you achieved with the finish! It's amazing how much oils enrich the tones and grain! Not a fan of varnish but by cutting it with the solvent, you can't tell it's there!!

I bet over time, it will really age richly.

Thanks, Brad. I wiped off anything that didn't soak in, so the varnish is really only there to help the tung oil set. There is nothing visible on the surface of the wood and you only feel wood grain. It will be interesting to see how it ages...

 

[CLB]

Hi Paul,

Looks great ! - basically you took the three ingredients (tung or linseed oil), vanish and solvent which is commonly canned as Danish Oil or Tung Oil Finish off the shelf - difference being you're able to create your own custom mix with the three elements to control the penetration, shine etc.

If you do want to use pure tung oil on its own - cut it 50 percent with solvent and it cures in a day or so.

 

[shota70]

Hello Friends,

Some time ago I began wondering what sort of finish I should put on this stern section model. I looked at a lot of other builds and did all kinds of trials with all manner of materials. I happen to have real Bitumen of Judea (banned in the US) from when I was tinting ropes for my version of the Vasa and noted how some of the models I am aesthetically drawn to incorporate that to create an aged look. Michele Padoan and several of the Russian/Ukranian/Polish masters use this. I believe Sergey (@serikoff) will be finishing his current project in that aged style. There is a lot to like in this approach, and it is always what I envisioned for the Saint Philippe.

Well, I didn't end up doing any of that. I ended up using a concoction 'invented' by fellow forum member Russ (@RussF). In equal proportions I mixed pure tung oil, a gloss marine varnish, and a solvent (I used turps, but others worked just as well).

Here is why I went with this mixture: pear wood reacts beautifully to oils. I used polymerized linseed oil on my Vasa (my avatar). Tung oil is even more impressive but takes FOREVER to set (does it ever really set?). By mixing tung oil with varnish the set time was dramatically reduced. But those two things alone create a mix that is sort of thick. The solvent corrects that problem. As mixed you can literally see the concoction soaking into the wood.

BUT!!! Unlike straight (well, cut with a solvent but nothing else) linseed or tung oil this mixture only penetrates a short way. I have samples with straight linseed oil that soaked through 8 mm of pear wood! I do not view this as an advantage. All finishes impede bond strength. You literally cannot scrape or sand away enough wood to get past straight linseed or tung oil. But this concoction only penetrates a short way. If I need to scrape it away in the future I can get down to relatively raw wood (I suppose there is still some oil in it, but it looks very much like untreated pear wood). I love this possibility.

Enough talking. The following images show where I am at today... I did tape off the deck clamps, larger gun ports, and some locations where light beams will be placed in the lower part of the hold. I also did not apply finish to the exterior planking or the stern post (and probably won't until I am much further along with that part of the build).

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One small downside to this concoction is that it cannot be reapplied (for example, 24 hours later). Unlike a pure oil finish reapplication just sits on top of the cured surface (it no longer soaks into the wood). Indeed, it ends up being shiny and I am not a fan of shiny of a ship model.

Oh, by the way, I have also done some recent trials by dissolving Bitumen of Judea into microcrystalline wax. That paste can then be applied to what you see above if I want to add some aging after all. We'll see...

Sorry about the lengthy narrative...

Looking wonderful Paul
Happy New Year my friend