Wood Graining for Town Sedan

[StewartWade]

Well Folks, I am starting to think about wood training my dash and window parts for my town sedan. What is the best, most economical kits to get? Does anyone have a nearly new used kit to sale?
Thanks, Stew

[1crosscut]

I am in the process of wood graining the dash and various moldings on my 1948
Chrysler Traveler. I am using the kit from Grain-It Technologies. Kit is not terribly cheap by any means and you may be money ahead by having someone else do it for you. On my car there is a lot that is wood grained so it makes sense for me to buy the kit. Plus I will be able to do other stuff in the future for myself and possibly others to make a little extra cash to support my hobby. I just grained the first "real" piece a couple of days ago and it turned out quite nice. I did do a considerable amount of practice on scrap pieces prior to working on the real thing.

[Mike V. Florida]

You can check here as well;

http://www.goldcoastmodela.com/techtip.html

[TinCup]

I too used the Grain-IT process. No not cheap but for me it was the pleasure of learning the process and I have done a few others for some of my friends. He sells a water based and oil based ink. I liked using the oil base as it was more forgiving. Also get the bigger rollers.

[JohnB15632]

I too would recommend Grain-it Technologies. I have been in contact with them and found them to be extremely customer friendly. When I get to that point in my restoration, I will be wood graining parts on my Model A SW 4Dr Town Sedan.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

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After applying your wood graining, you may be disappointed, BUT, it takes on a realistic look, when you clear coat it!
Bill W.

[Russ B]

I did mine with Grain-it and am very happy with the results.

[H. L. Chauvin]

Hi Stew,

1. Many articles on Internet listed under Faux-Bois; but expensive paints, books, and tools are not necessary.

2. Only need:

a. Two (2) different paint colors chosen from inexpensive mixed paint "Sample Jars" from Home Depot; first application light color, second application dark color; and,

b. One (1) regular inexpensive paint brush for applying paint; and,

c. One (1) regular inexpensive paint brush with about 2/3 end bristles cut off for stiffness, cut with scissors, (cleaned often with rag), for removing parts of second coat for creating wood grain effects; and,

d. Several parts of inexpensive discarded Wal-Mart type cardboard boxes for practicing different techniques.

3. Usually like painting with water colors. Many times if paint looks bad wet; it could look good dry; looks bad wet .....could look better dry.

4. First few tries are like trying to make an impression on your new girlfriend while making biscuits without a written recipe.

5. Then, with a little practice, the fun begins ..... one can be amazed how Faux Bois techniques progress rapidly.

6. Never judge colors under fluorescent lights ..... bring out in natural sunlight to see what it will look like out-of-doors.

Hope this helps ......... if you enjoy inexpensive testing of what a few may think is impossible.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Woodgraining is sort of like Bob Ross painting CLOUDS, "SOMEWHERE IN THE WORLD, THERE'S A CLOUD THAT LOOKS LIKE THAT"!!---Same with wood grains.
I can even do 1/4 sawn Oak Grains. I get ideas by studying fake grains on wood stuff here in the house.
Once, I bought a second hand Oak chest, with a factory Greyish/Brown finish. I painted it White with Pink handles for Cindy. Later I painted it White with Blue handles or Gregg. MUCH later, I stripped it & found it was built from BEAUTIFUL Solid 1/4 sawn OAK!!!!!
Bill Stripper

[H. L. Chauvin]

Bill is correct ..... no end to wood looks .... even plastic laminate, (aka Formica), a Faux Finish produced in many species of wood ... and many different wood grain types ...... can render food for thought as to different color combinations and grain effects.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Save ALL kinds of "funny" brushes, even make up brushes & experiment with them. You'll AMAZE yourself with what you can CREATE. Guys with SHAKEY hands often do the best work. ------"What kind of wood is that"?----"Drunken Mahogany"!! I saw a shakey Pin Striper that did lines as straight as an ARROW !
Bill Nervous

[Terry, NJ]

Bill and HL.! I always enjoy reading your posts! "Drunken Mahogany"! I like that! Can you explain what is meant by "Quarter Sawn". I've heard the term and I know it has something to do with the positioning of the wood in the milling process, but I don't know what. Incidentally, natural wood is always better than paint.
Terry

[H. L. Chauvin]

Hi Terry,

After a lifetime of searching for knowledge and learning about different wood, even if one studies wood structural engineering in any university, one will never learn as much about wood until one reads books about either making fine musical instruments or building boats with wood planks.

Quarter sawn lumber is lumber taken from round logs that was sawn in pie shaped quarters, and after cutting into planks, on the wide side of the plank, one can actually count the tree's dark annular rings in a piece of wood.

In laymen's terms, vintage musical instrument makers years ago described wood as having strong, dark annular rings, (very slow growing winter wood) which provides the wood's "strength" ....... and lighter colored annular rings, (larger and faster growing summer wood rings), on each side of the winter wood, to support the thin "stronger" darker winter wood.

Tops of very fine vintage guitars, mandolins, violins etc., made by quality vintage luthiers were always "quarter sawn", where the dark grain annular rings are perpendicular to the very "thin" tops of these instruments to render maximum strength to support the weight or forces coming from the multiple tight strings through the vertically positioned bridge.

For increased strength, and less warping and cupping, select wood flooring is quarter sawn, again to allow the dark grain annular rings to be as near to perpendicular as possible to tops of flooring surfaces.

Flat sawn wood, opposite from quarter sawn wood, can be identified where the dark annular rings, (winter wood), is not very near to perpendicular to the wide surface of the planks.

Just a very short laymen's version trying to simplify quarter sawn wood ... hope this helps.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

When Oak logs are sawn straight, the grain lines are STRAIGHT. When it is sawn a few degrees off of straight, it creates a BEAUTIFUL grain pattern. Kinda' like an ARROWHEAD pattern.
Bill Wood

[Terry, NJ]

HL, Thanks, but I don't understand how that is different from the slabs off the log then ripped in half (The slabs off the log) Guess I'll just have to see it. In both cases, you're cutting out the heartwood. So the artists of Cremona,(Stradivari, etc) not only perfected exotic varnishes for their products, but exotic sawing techniques as well. As I understand it, "Quarter sawn"wood would have good deflection strength in one direction but relatively poor in the other direction and be prone to splitting.
Terry

Originally Posted by H. L. Chauvin

Hi Terry,

After a lifetime of searching for knowledge and learning about different wood, even if one studies wood structural engineering in any university, one will never learn as much about wood until one reads books about either making fine musical instruments or building boats with wood planks.

Quarter sawn lumber is lumber taken from round logs that was sawn in pie shaped quarters, and after cutting into planks, on the wide side of the plank, one can actually count the tree's dark annular rings in a piece of wood.

In laymen's terms, vintage musical instrument makers years ago described wood as having strong, dark annular rings, (very slow growing winter wood) which provides the wood's "strength" ....... and lighter colored annular rings, (larger and faster growing summer wood rings), on each side of the winter wood, to support the thin "stronger" darker winter wood.

Tops of very fine vintage guitars, mandolins, violins etc., made by quality vintage luthiers were always "quarter sawn", where the dark grain annular rings are perpendicular to the very "thin" tops of these instruments to render maximum strength to support the weight or forces coming from the multiple tight strings through the vertically positioned bridge.

For increased strength, and less warping and cupping, select wood flooring is quarter sawn, again to allow the dark grain annular rings to be as near to perpendicular as possible to tops of flooring surfaces.

Flat sawn wood, opposite from quarter sawn wood, can be identified where the dark annular rings, (winter wood), is not very near to perpendicular to the wide surface of the planks.

Just a very short laymen's version trying to simplify quarter sawn wood ... hope this helps.

[Terry, NJ]

Like American Chestnut?

Originally Posted by BILL WILLIAMSON

When Oak logs are sawn straight, the grain lines are STRAIGHT. When it is sawn a few degrees off of straight, it creates a BEAUTIFUL grain pattern. Kinda' like an ARROWHEAD pattern.
Bill Wood

[H. L. Chauvin]

This explanation and image from the internet should help ...... Bill's Arrow Heads are on the bottom left:


See all images
Quarter sawing

Quarter sawing is a type of cut in the rip-sawing of logs into lumber. The resulting lumber is called quartersawn (quarter-sawn), quartered, and radially-sawn. There is widespread confusion between the terms quartersawn and riftsawn with both words defined with opposite meanings and as synonyms.

[1crosscut]

I emailed a few questions on clear coating a couple of days ago to Evan at Grain-It. He was quick to answer them with good advice. Plus I let him know about a defect in one of the rollers I received from them in my kit. He go right after it and has a replacement in the mail already. Good company with good service.