What do you think about surface treatment (some kind of dried oil) when it comes to plank on frame hull. Do you paint when the hull is finished or continuously during the building process? If you paint when the hull is finished, you may not get to paint in all places, and if you paint as the parts are completed, you may have problems with them not being able to be glued well because of the surface treatment (dried oil)? How do you?
Personally, I prefer first a coating of Natural Watco Danish Oil. Then after allowing it to fully cure (>3 days) then follow up with a thinned coat of clear spar varnish. But with any method you choose, try it first on scrap wood before commiting it to your model....
My go to finish is 100% Tung oil for either POF or POB. I apply the oil when my hull is complete. I’ve been known to thin the Tung oil with mineral spirits to help it flow into little spaces.
I learned from a professional model ship builder to coat parts as one builds with matte finish polyurethane. I use MinWax water based matte sheen polyurethane. I apply a protective coating as I finish parts or sections of the build. I have not had any problems gluing said parts onto other parts etc due to the poly coating. No problem using Both PVA and ca glues. I have not had any problems painting over poly coated parts. Stain is another issue. You can stain over a poly coated part but the stain will be light and not penetrate into the wood. The poly does act as a sanding sealer for the part however. So if you want to stain parts do the stain first…then coat with poly. All my models are coated throughout with poly.
Danish oil does contain linseed oil and it also has driers. And it may come with dyes for different finishes.
All natural RAW oils require significant time to dry, from 26 to 48 hours.
However if you use 'boiled' Linseed oil, it will dry much faster. When you add to the oil some additives it will dry faster.
Raw Linseed Oil is the purest form of oil, extracted from the flax seed and sold without any chemicals, solutions, or additives to preserve it. This is perfect for oil-based paints as it allows them to completely level and set properly, giving a smoother finish. However, slow drying times often limit the use of Raw Linseed Oil to items where drying time is not a consideration.
Boiled Linseed Oil is regular Linseed Oil that is treated with hot air and additives so that it dries quickly. Unlike the name suggests, it isn't actually boiled!
Danish Oil is a blend, and most likely has additives, so it will dry faster.
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At the moment I’m experimenting with various finishes on scrap pear for my Blandford build, from stains, oils and varnishes, I think that soon I’ll have my own definitive favourite, at the moment my best results for staining are with a spirit penetrating type, it doesn’t seem to lift the wood fibres.
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Hello Ornholt, I am new to this forum and am still trying to figure out how to navigate the site. Do you have some pictures of your Oseberg Viking ship posted here, and if so how can I access them to view ? Thanks, Pellican Bill
I am about to begin my first wood kit. I have the “Pinas” cross section. I know i want to use stain on certain pieces prior to assembly. After reading your post would the proper order be Sand, stain, polyurethane, glue ?
If this is the correct order what product is used as the final finish or “top coat”
I look forward to your knowledgable reply
Jay
If you want to stain a part then you are correct…sand, stain, poly, glue. For the final finish or top coat I continue to use the flat or matte sheen poly. My go to poly is MinWax water based poly…goes on smooth and dries clear. Staining is an art in itself. You need to control the stain to get the depth of color you want. I sometimes use a sanding sealer (true sanding sealer not the poly) prior to staining so the stain is not too dark. MinWax does have a sanding sealer product. The sanding sealer fills in the wood to control the depth of the stain…the stain still penetrates the wood. Poly actually seals the wood preventing penetration of the stain. Hope this helps…
Thank you. I need to start my build,and learn as I go.
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I had never used any oils to finish my ship hull. I use so called acrylic varnish. This is same as acrylic paint but dries transparent. I use it when I want just to show the natural wood beauty. Can someone please show here the results of applying the oils?