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Plank on bulkhead vs POF

  • Thread starter Thread starter Chello
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Hello Chello, myself and my good friend @DocBlake are big fans of what we call "Paint with Wood". That is combining different types of wood to create the colors needed without actually painting. Ebony for black, rosewood for red, purple heart for purple, cherry for brown, holley or maple for white, etc... We believe this gives a very nice appearance and also makes it easier for model builders who do not have the skills for painting. The disadvantage is that most kits do not include the proper woods to do this and it can be quite expensive.

It is a very good idea if you can afford to do it and makes a very beautiful model!!

@DocBlake please comment here!!!
 
Chello said:
I would like to raise an other issue that has been on my mind. With the plank on bulkhead models you usually end up with all the aspects of the ship included, masts rigging sails and paint. Although I do appreciate most historical ships were painted to an extent I feel reluctant to use paint on the pof model of the le coureur I will start. I will use the admiralty approach and I was thinking how to use the properties of various types of wood to reflect the colour authenticity. I have very little knowledge about the various woods but I was inspired by a build log of HMS Alert where various kinds of wood were used to represent the reds (some one referred to it as Purple Heart I think) the yellows for the upper hull planking and almost black Wood for the whales.. in short I want the wood to speak, not paint
What are people’s views on this?
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As Mike has said, we’re big fans of not using conventional paints. Mike is a master painter. He’s brilliant with an airbrush. For him this is a choice. I, on the other hand, suck at painting, so “painting with wood“ is a necessity!
 
mrshanks said:
Hello Chello, myself and my good friend @DocBlake are big fans of what we call "Paint with Wood". That is combining different types of wood to create the colors needed without actually painting. Ebony for black, rosewood for red, purple heart for purple, cherry for brown, holley or maple for white, etc... We believe this gives a very nice appearance and also makes it easier for model builders who do not have the skills for painting. The disadvantage is that most kits do not include the proper woods to do this and it can be quite expensive.

It is a very good idea if you can afford to do it and makes a very beautiful model!!

@DocBlake please comment here!!!
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I would ultimately be in the position to have the skills, experience and equipment to do this but I think for now and to keep it within what I feel I will be able to develop in terms of skills, I should explore what can be achieved with varnish,wax oils and other means.
 
mrshanks said:
I hope I did not confuse you.... We use these types of finishes on natural woods when we "paint with wood"... we just don't use PAINT per se. All our woods are coated with a protective coating of some type... usually a poly.
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Hi mike, no it was clear and good to know that “painting “ with wood is a school of thought rather than One of my silly ideas :p
 
Let me add a few things... As @SAHaskell mentioned, woods WILL change color/tone with age and exposure. There ARE some ‘water clear’ finishes that definitely help, but they too have limitations. Exposure to air, light (doesn’t have to be sunlight..) and contaminants in the air WILL cause surface layers to change. Over time, colors get muted. A good polycrylic (water clear..) will definitely help.

As far as colors go...various woods are frequently used for color effect. I studied marquetry while deployed in Europe. I’ll try to get a photo posted to show the effect.

IF I was looking for a specific color or combination of colors, I would do some testing with different woods and stains and dyes. Currently my favorite combinations are all combinations of dyes with different woods. Dyes are not stains, although the difference is really just academic...except for the final outcome. Aniline dyes are powdered (typically..) and mixed with water or alcohol. You can get some deep and bright colors using dyes that are just not possible with stains. TRUTH...

You would shape and fit the planks, strips, pieces (whatever..) then dye them before installing/gluing. Pretty straight-forward after you have developed and tested your color technique. Will probably take a little experimenting on the wood being used to get color where you want it. But it works. It’s easy (relatively..). No mess, no fuss. Just a little trial and error. The main advantage of dyes is the ease of mixing colors, the vibrancy of color, and the fact that dyes DO NOT seal up the wood surface. Which means you can go back over multiple times to deepen or enhance color. You could also go back over after you’re finished with that color to even out if necessary (As long as you are careful...dyes will ‘take’ almost immediately if you get them on adjoining pieces...).

So, that’s all I have. Dyes are the answer (IMHO..) for deep and bright colors when top-coated with a water-clear polycrylic.....IF you don’t want to use paints.

I’ll try to get a good marquetry picture up here soon.
 
So...OK. Here are two photos I just took of a rather high-end table which currently resides in my foyer. I purchased this table while in Germany at a local vendor's shop in the Black Forest. I THINK it was in Baden-Baden although I really wouldn't swear to it. This table is over thirty (30..) years old.

What you are seeing is representative of high-end wood inlays known as Marquetry. It is used for design purposes and for color rendition that would be otherwise very difficult. As you look at the table, keep in mind that every variation in color is done with wood. Each piece, cut from various types of wood is selected to "fit" the theme of the image on the workpiece. All of the different parts of the image are cut individually from their respective pieces of wood then placed into their proper location after a 'hole' has been cut to receive them. Each piece must 'mate up' with the surrounding pieces and the overall background as closely as possible to insure that no fault is visible, or at least obvious. Each color represents a different type of wood (or a generic light colored wood that has been dyed so that all pieces that are supposed to be the same color, truly are the same)....and are cut from the same piece/type of wood.

There is no paint or staining done on this quality of Marquetry. Everything is done by inspecting and choosing appropriate woods for color and effect. ..............ENJOY.............

IMG_0737.JPG


Here is a close-up of the center of the table.
IMG_0740.JPG
 
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Hi hobbit
Hobbit99 said:
So...OK. Here are two photos I just took of a rather high-end table which currently resides in my foyer. I purchased this table while in Germany at a local vendor's shop in the Black Forest. I THINK it was in Baden-Baden although I really wouldn't swear to it. This table is over thirty (30..) years old.

What you are seeing is representative of high-end wood inlays known as Marquetry. It is used for design purposes and for color rendition that would be otherwise very difficult. As you look at the table, keep in mind that every variation in color is done with wood. Each piece, cut from various types of wood is selected to "fit" the theme of the image on the workpiece. All of the different parts of the image are cut individually from their respective pieces of wood then placed into their proper location after a 'hole' has been cut to receive them. Each piece must 'mate up' with the surrounding pieces and the overall background as closely as possible to insure that no fault is visible, or at least obvious. Each color represents a different type of wood (or a generic light colored wood that has been dyed so that all pieces that are supposed to be the same color, truly are the same....cut from the same piece/type of wood.

There is no paint or staining done on this quality of Marquetry. Everything is done by inspecting and choosing appropriate woods for color and effect. ..............ENJOY.............

View attachment 171910


Here is a close-up of the center of the table.
View attachment 171911
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hi Hobbit

that is absolutely fantastic. That so captures the feel of what was referred to as “painting with wood”. The warmth and properties of the wood shine and almost guide you gently rather than the confrontation of hard colours hiding the wood.
 
Chello said:
Hi hobbit

hi Hobbit

that is absolutely fantastic. That so captures the feel of what was referred to as “painting with wood”. The warmth and properties of the wood shine and almost guide you gently rather than the confrontation of hard colours hiding the wood.
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Mondriaans "Composition with Red, Blue and Yellow" originated from a pear tree in blossom so te almost the reversed way of discovering the essence of colour in the wood itself.
 
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