Hi Brian,
Always fun to source the wood from your own garden or area. For me it is a new part of the hobby to build from tree to finished model.
I will leave it to rest for another few years. Still have some other boxwood in my stash which I can use for my upcoming project.
I guess you know the work from Stefan alias @George I working on a complete boxwood POF model in 1:48 of the HMS Royal George
Royal George 1714 1:48
Hallo geschätzte Modellbauergemeinde! Ich bin ein Modellbauer aus Österreich, und besuche öfters die Modellbaurunde um Willi Meischl in Wien. Mein großes Ziel ist es die Royal George 1714 (nach dem Hanover Modell) zu bauen. Bauart: Navy Board Model Maßstab: 1:48 Holz: Buchsbaum Mit freundlichen...
shipsofscale.com
But I think for such a model you have to collect boxwood over some more years
When you decide to produce your own lumber from trees, there are a lot of things to first consider. It is slow going!
Go to this URL/website and read a little.....
Go to this URL/website and read a little.....
Don t worry more is coming.I guess you know the work from Stefan alias @George I working on a complete boxwood POF model in 1:48 of the HMS Royal George
Royal George 1714 1:48
Hallo geschätzte Modellbauergemeinde! Ich bin ein Modellbauer aus Österreich, und besuche öfters die Modellbaurunde um Willi Meischl in Wien. Mein großes Ziel ist es die Royal George 1714 (nach dem Hanover Modell) zu bauen. Bauart: Navy Board Model Maßstab: 1:48 Holz: Buchsbaum Mit freundlichen...shipsofscale.com
But I think for such a model you have to collect boxwood over some more years
I dry my wood by air for several years before use.
My pear I have quarter sawn and removed the bark before drying. Quarter sawing avoids cracking while drying.
This stack of pear is now drying for nearly 2 years under my hobby desk.
On my sourced boxwood I write a date so I know how long it is drying before use.
there is also end-grain sealer available to keep drying wood from developing cracks along the grain.
seal is one.
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Thx, you also see people using parafin for this. Sofar the quarter sawing seems to do the trick.there is also end-grain sealer available to keep drying wood from developing cracks along the grain.
Today I ended up in boxwood heaven.
As mentioned some time ago one of my neighbors had a more then 150 years old boxwood tree which was also unfortunately attacked by boxwood caterpillar.
They already cut it down in February but fortunately the wood was still in there garden because they knew somebody was interested in it.
That somebody was me, as I had been discussing with them during a Newyears eve party.
Fortunately for me it did not end up in their fire place but today in my workshop.
To give an idea about the size of these logs I put my Alert next to it.
The wood has cracks in some of the logs as it had been drying under the trees in their garden. The cracks are single cracks on one side of the log so no problem.
A few of the pieces show some woodworm holes and this is something I am going to treat.
To kill the woodworm and eggs there are two solutions that don t need chemicals and these are heating or cooling.
The heating process means you have to heat the wood for minimum 55 deg C core temperature for at least 30 minutes. This is difficult to measure and my workshop oven is only 50 cm wide.
The second option is cooling or better said freezing. Freeze the logs for minimum 2 weeks at -18 deg C.
This is the option I choose, to be save 1 month at -20 deg C in a large freezer.
As the prices for electricity at the moment go through the roof a lot of people now get rid of their large freezers so I can pick one up for free. In these you can put in logs over 1 mtr. After I treated my wood I just post it again for free and problem solved.
After this I can build my scheduled SotS navy board build in full boxwood, but that is only after several years to come.
As mentioned some time ago one of my neighbors had a more then 150 years old boxwood tree which was also unfortunately attacked by boxwood caterpillar.
They already cut it down in February but fortunately the wood was still in there garden because they knew somebody was interested in it.
That somebody was me, as I had been discussing with them during a Newyears eve party.
Fortunately for me it did not end up in their fire place but today in my workshop.
To give an idea about the size of these logs I put my Alert next to it.
The wood has cracks in some of the logs as it had been drying under the trees in their garden. The cracks are single cracks on one side of the log so no problem.
A few of the pieces show some woodworm holes and this is something I am going to treat.
To kill the woodworm and eggs there are two solutions that don t need chemicals and these are heating or cooling.
The heating process means you have to heat the wood for minimum 55 deg C core temperature for at least 30 minutes. This is difficult to measure and my workshop oven is only 50 cm wide.
The second option is cooling or better said freezing. Freeze the logs for minimum 2 weeks at -18 deg C.
This is the option I choose, to be save 1 month at -20 deg C in a large freezer.
As the prices for electricity at the moment go through the roof a lot of people now get rid of their large freezers so I can pick one up for free
. In these you can put in logs over 1 mtr. After I treated my wood I just post it again for free and problem solved.After this I can build my scheduled SotS navy board build in full boxwood, but that is only after several years to come.
Score!!!
Have a moisture meter? Kiln? You may have to dry for awhile. Sealing the ends of the logs can help eliminate cracking. Also look at www.wood-database.com
Lucky you - it is a lot of boxwood
maybe not enough for building a complete ship model like the HMS Royal George from my friend @George I
- but maybe no three-decker, but a nice frigate should be possible
maybe not enough for building a complete ship model like the HMS Royal George from my friend @George I
- but maybe no three-decker, but a nice frigate should be possible
Royal George 1714 1:48
Hallo geschätzte Modellbauergemeinde! Ich bin ein Modellbauer aus Österreich, und besuche öfters die Modellbaurunde um Willi Meischl in Wien. Mein großes Ziel ist es die Royal George 1714 (nach dem Hanover Modell) zu bauen. Bauart: Navy Board Model Maßstab: 1:48 Holz: Buchsbaum Mit freundlichen...
shipsofscale.com
Planning is Sovereign of the Seas in navy board style 1:48, but that will come with a lot of study to get an acceptable framing. And I would like to build it in a traditional way as far as possible.Lucky you - it is a lot of boxwood
maybe not enough for building a complete ship model like the HMS Royal George from my friend @George I
- but maybe no three-decker, but a nice frigate should be possible
Royal George 1714 1:48
Hallo geschätzte Modellbauergemeinde! Ich bin ein Modellbauer aus Österreich, und besuche öfters die Modellbaurunde um Willi Meischl in Wien. Mein großes Ziel ist es die Royal George 1714 (nach dem Hanover Modell) zu bauen. Bauart: Navy Board Model Maßstab: 1:48 Holz: Buchsbaum Mit freundlichen...shipsofscale.com
It is +/- 150 kg boxwood in 10 to 15 cm trunks, so think I will be fine. Planking of SotS will be partly in ebony.
First I have to finish Royal Caroline and my upcomming fluyt project. So years to come before start.
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Hello Maarten, hello friends.
Great topic. Here is my experience with boxwood.
The cracks in the trunks are caused by the drying process. When wood dries over time it bunches up (shrinks) a bit. The drying process always goes from the outside in, which means that there is a lot of tension on the outside of the trunk compared to the core, which can even lead to tearing. In addition, boxwood naturally has a lot of tension in the wood, which then comes to light. How to help:
I do it as follows: I divide the trunks into pieces that are as straight as possible with as few branches as possible. Then I have this section cut lengthwise (quartering is also good, of course). This means that the tension in the wood that occurs when it is dry is greatly reduced, and there are hardly any cracks, if at all. in this state the wood is taken to the attic, where it can dry slowly and evenly for several years. Drying should be done slowly. When the wood has dried well and is well laid out, it can be trimmed for further processing. Caution: when drying, the wood will deform slightly at the interfaces due to the tension! For this reason, only cut open further when it is dry.
I myself used to remove the bark from the first pieces of boxwood, but then left it on the trunk and couldn't tell any difference. I did not seal the front sides of the round pieces with wax, varnish,... It is very important that the wood is stored in an airy place.
Don't underestimate the amount of wood you need for construction. In general, more is better. Until you get the wood to the size it will be used in, expect at least 50% or more to be wasted. These are my experiences with boxwood
Great topic. Here is my experience with boxwood.
The cracks in the trunks are caused by the drying process. When wood dries over time it bunches up (shrinks) a bit. The drying process always goes from the outside in, which means that there is a lot of tension on the outside of the trunk compared to the core, which can even lead to tearing. In addition, boxwood naturally has a lot of tension in the wood, which then comes to light. How to help:
I do it as follows: I divide the trunks into pieces that are as straight as possible with as few branches as possible. Then I have this section cut lengthwise (quartering is also good, of course). This means that the tension in the wood that occurs when it is dry is greatly reduced, and there are hardly any cracks, if at all. in this state the wood is taken to the attic, where it can dry slowly and evenly for several years. Drying should be done slowly. When the wood has dried well and is well laid out, it can be trimmed for further processing. Caution: when drying, the wood will deform slightly at the interfaces due to the tension! For this reason, only cut open further when it is dry.
I myself used to remove the bark from the first pieces of boxwood, but then left it on the trunk and couldn't tell any difference. I did not seal the front sides of the round pieces with wax, varnish,... It is very important that the wood is stored in an airy place.
Don't underestimate the amount of wood you need for construction. In general, more is better. Until you get the wood to the size it will be used in, expect at least 50% or more to be wasted. These are my experiences with boxwood
Here in Minnesota, freezing is definitely the easier option.Today I ended up in boxwood heaven.
As mentioned some time ago one of my neighbors had a more then 150 years old boxwood tree which was also unfortunately attacked by boxwood caterpillar.
They already cut it down in February but fortunately the wood was still in there garden because they knew somebody was interested in it.
That somebody was me, as I had been discussing with them during a Newyears eve party.
Fortunately for me it did not end up in their fire place but today in my workshop.
View attachment 327062View attachment 327065
View attachment 327066
To give an idea about the size of these logs I put my Alert next to it.
View attachment 327063
View attachment 327064
The wood has cracks in some of the logs as it had been drying under the trees in their garden. The cracks are single cracks on one side of the log so no problem.
View attachment 327067
A few of the pieces show some woodworm holes and this is something I am going to treat.
To kill the woodworm and eggs there are two solutions that don t need chemicals and these are heating or cooling.
View attachment 327068
The heating process means you have to heat the wood for minimum 55 deg C core temperature for at least 30 minutes. This is difficult to measure and my workshop oven is only 50 cm wide.
The second option is cooling or better said freezing. Freeze the logs for minimum 2 weeks at -18 deg C.
This is the option I choose, to be save 1 month at -20 deg C in a large freezer.
View attachment 327071
As the prices for electricity at the moment go through the roof a lot of people now get rid of their large freezers so I can pick one up for free
After this I can build my scheduled SotS navy board build in full boxwood, but that is only after several years to come.
Thx for sharing, I will do a similar approach allthough some of the trunks I got already show some cracks. I will cut them in straight pieces and saw them in lenght along the crack. I will freeze them below -18 for a month or more to kill every possible woodworm and or woodworm eggs. Then they will be stored in the garage for a few years to dry furthur.
My pear trunks are now drying already over 2 years and these are fine, no major cracks, no mold and no bugs.
My hands are itsching to start working with this wood.