Having just completed 4 out of 5 builds, the others being a scratch built Charles W. Morgan, the J. S. Elcano, a cross section of the USS Constitution and now the HMS Bounty, the first 3 were all painted as close to how the real ship appeared where as the Bounty was the first build that I decided to leave in the natural walnut and mahogany colors. I did not want to use actual colored stains so I experimented with MinWax PolyShades which is color and Polyurethane in one. The one that I settled on was Classic Oak Satin. I found that the classic oak brought out the deep richness of the walnut and the reddish hue of the mahogany while adding a warmth to the lighter woods on the decks and wales. That worked for me, what did you use, inquiring minds would like to know 
