Should I varnish it?

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Ajmitch51

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This is my first experience at building wooden model ships. I am progressing slowly with my 1/100 scale Halcon 1840.
My question is, should I varnish the completed woodwork? Personally, I think her deck looks good just stained, whilst the hull and bulwarks are painted. What do you more experienced builders think?
 
Personally I would lacquer (not varnish) it, stained but uncoated wood will attract dust which will be difficult to remove. Note that staining raises the wood grain which traps the dust. Hope that helps.
 
Ajmitch51 said:
This is where I am at right now. About to start bowsprit rigging.View attachment 369713
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Hi AjMitch,

I can see you have an interest in RC helis by the empty align boxes, probably for servos or other parts.

I am certainly no expert, but my advice would be to seal the wood after staining or painting for a more even looking and durable finish. To some extent it also depends on how and where you display the finished ship.

I have used Vallejo Matt polyurethane with good results from airbrush application.
 
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Thanks for the replies. I have spray matt polyurethane. Only the deck, which I stained should need the covering then. The masts and bowsprit are clear lacquered and hull and deck fittings painted with Tamiya paints.
However an overall spray might look better. I will need to test the polyurethane spray for any reaction with the Tamiya paint first.
Yes, the Align boxes used to contain my heli parts. It just got too expensive after retirement, repairing after crashes. I stick to fixed wing now.
 
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One thing you might try - Danish Oil(natural). It'll bring out the grain and slightly darken the appearance. Then, after allowing it to fully cure, you can apply a gloss, semi-gloss or matte finish such as a brushing lacquer or a urethane. Try it on scrap first to see what you prefer.
 
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Hm
Philski said:
One thing you might try - Danish Oil(natural). It'll bring out the grain and slightly darken the appearance. Then, after allowing it to fully cure, you can apply a gloss, semi-gloss or matte finish such as a brushing lacquer or a urethane. Try it on scrap first to what you prefer.
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Hmm, I might try that. I've just been looking at the pros and cons of Danish vs Linseed oil. Danish seems the best option, although I used boiled linseed oil on a custom rifle stock that I made. That gave an amazing glossy finish after weeks of rubbing it in and finally buffing it up. Obviously not the process for the little ship though. The Danish oil apparently takes a long time to polymerise before any further (matt varnish) can be applied - a few days to weeks was quoted.
I'll have a practice on the cheap and nasty one that I scrapped and see what comes out best.
 
I use matte sheen polyurethane (MinWax) either the rub on or the brush version (I prefer the water based) as a sealer and finish on all of my ship models. I try to seal finish the parts as I assemble them and finish coat over wood, stain, or paint.
 
There is a fundamental choice you have to make. Are you building a historical accurate replica, or a work of art? If the later, then a stained and glossy finish is called for. If a scale history, then ships since the middle ages have had some preservative coating, like fish oil, lard or such. By the late 15th century, paint technology had improved to provide good weathering protection at low cost. A lot of red oxide paint was used, not to cover up blood, but red oxide paint provided good protection at low cost (hence barn red). As the art of chemistry improved, many more colors became available. Guilding of course was used at about this time, but yellow paints improved too, and cost issues caused people to used an appropriate shade of yellow to approximate gold in the areas that were previously gilded.

I have built stained ships for relatives, but the ones I will keep for my collection are painted as close to the prototype as possibe.
 
Ajmitch51 said:
This is my first experience at building wooden model ships. I am progressing slowly with my 1/100 scale Halcon 1840.
My question is, should I varnish the completed woodwork? Personally, I think her deck looks good just stained, whilst the hull and bulwarks are painted. What do you more experienced builders think?
Click to expand...
Categorically NO! Gloss doesn't scale. If you want protection one coat from a clear matt rattle can will do. You can substitute with oil, a thin layer on a tack rag, on the outer hull if you like. Always do a test piece first. Varnish is about the worst thing anybody can do to a build. No builder worth his salt would touch it. Same with paint, never more than a satin finish.
 
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I use MinWax stain touch up pens (Early American or Golden Oak) for deck planking. I haven’t had a raised grain issues. I like the looks of natural unfinished, working decks, particularly when painting model’s topsides. I try to depict a vessel in working service and not an art piece. It’s up to each model builder’s preference naturally.
 
Ajmitch51 said:
Thanks for the replies. I have spray matt polyurethane. Only the deck, which I stained should need the covering then. The masts and bowsprit are clear lacquered and hull and deck fittings painted with Tamiya paints.
However an overall spray might look better. I will need to test the polyurethane spray for any reaction with the Tamiya paint first.
Yes, the Align boxes used to contain my heli parts. It just got too expensive after retirement, repairing after crashes. I stick to fixed wing now.
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Boats are much better. They seldom crash.
 
No varnish. This is not furniture. Not trying to be sarcastic. Either linseed oil or a Matt or satin polyurethane.
 
donStauffer said:
There is a fundamental choice you have to make. Are you building a historical accurate replica, or a work of art? If the later, then a stained and glossy finish is called for. If a scale history, then ships since the middle ages have had some preservative coating, like fish oil, lard or such. By the late 15th century, paint technology had improved to provide good weathering protection at low cost. A lot of red oxide paint was used, not to cover up blood, but red oxide paint provided good protection at low cost (hence barn red). As the art of chemistry improved, many more colors became available. Guilding of course was used at about this time, but yellow paints improved too, and cost issues caused people to used an appropriate shade of yellow to approximate gold in the areas that were previously gilded.

I have built stained ships for relatives, but the ones I will keep for my collection are painted as close to the prototype as possibe.
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Well said, that's how I see it too. As close to the original as possible is always the biggest problem.
 
No varnish it is then. The deck is done with wood stain. Hull and deck fittings in semi matt Tamiya paint.
I get the thing about scale here, Bob. On this small model, so much is way out of scale anyway.
This one is a learning curve for me, so loads of research into how things were done in that era.
I may be going over the top with everything that I'm putting into this to get it as close to real as possible, but it's all about learning before I start on my 1/98 scale HMS Victory.
This is where I am at, at the moment. Just finished bowsprit rigging and about to mount the spars on the foremast.20230421_181345.jpg
 
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