UBB.threads Forums General Interest Other Hobbies and Collections, like sports cars, movies, music,etc Weathering wood

Is there a quick way to give wood a weathered look without using paints or leaving it outside for 3 years?

I'm hoping there is a brush on that will instantly weather wood.

Bernie:
Find the nearest horse or cow dungpile. Bury the wood in the pile and retrieve it in about 3 months. Weathered your wood will be!!
Jim

Ya gotta be funnin me Jim.

Surely I can go to Wal-Mart and buy me something that will do the trick.

Bernie:
This is the truth and many old time antique dealers used to do just that when a piece of furniture had been reworked.* A dung pile contains a lot of ammonia and other "chemicals" that will certainly speed up the aging process.
Jim
BTW: WallyWorld sells a lot of crap but to the best of my knowledge not this type!!
*Some of these guys make 3rd Reich fakers look like amateurs by comparison.

Hmmm..... I guess I believe you Jim but I ain't a gonna go around lookin for no dung heap.

In case you're wondering, this is the weathered finish I'm looking for.

Ok Bernie if you've got to be hygenic about it!! My recommendation would be one of the semi-transparent stains that will produce a barnwood grey look. However the actual distressed "weathered" look won't be there. If i think of anything else I'll let you know.
Jim

Bernie, I have used a round wire brush in a drill to good effect. This takes out the soft part of the wood and leaves the high ridges. Sometimes a little flaming with a plumbers torch adds a nice effect. There are some nice stains available for color after you have distressed the wood some. Look them over at your local hardware store if Wallmart has not put them out of business...Jerry Burney

Thanks Jerry.

In case you're wondering what I want to do, I need to weather my newest Tiger bridge.

.

Bernie..Really nice! Yes I was wondering..My expertise is in leather and I always appreciate another craftsman.
On this particular project, since it is already put together and delicate I would take a sandblster to it. Lightly done you could customise tread wear patterns even.
The an airbrush with some interesting colors of grey and brown. Maybe a little green for moss growth!
Really a neat project. I have always wanted to do some modeling but German Luger Holster repair keeps me busy 10-12 hours a day...What kind of wood did you use?
Jerry Burney

Hey Bernie,As a child I remember my Father building a replica of his Great Grandfathers cabin.The wood he used was Cedar.Not boards but smaller pieces because they had a very tight grain.Also when he made the shingles for the roof he explained cedar did not decay easily and was easy to strike off thin plates to use for shingles.I observed this process on a miniature scale as he easily made tiny shingles from small pieces of wood using only sugar cube sized pieces and a pocket knife.The same process was used for boards etc.Some pieces he sanded and others he scrubbed against the edges of a table"To knock the sharp edges off." Afterwards,he would dip them in bleach,and lay them on the stairs in the sun.after they dried he would either rub some oil ir coal dust from the furnace into them.It looked very real to me!!Just another perspective.Keep us posted.Geoff

Thanks Geoff.

Jerry, I tend to use wood that I have laying around. It just so happended that I had about a dozen pieces of 2x2 about a foot long left over from making spindles for the new pool deck. Not wanting to see anything go to waste, I ripped the pieces of 2x2 into 3/8" square timber. I used that for the floor and used 3 foot long pieces of 3/8" poplar for the railings.

Hey Bernie!Beautiful bridge!When I lived in Europe most of the bridges I saw were made of stone or steel.I know the engineers built bridges of wood.I would like to know what methods they used to attach the wood together.Bolts,nails,or wooden pegs??Perhaps all of the above.If the bridges were in place for awhile,Especially if armored vehicles were crossing,it seems like they would take quite a beating!can any of you "Tankers" give some insight?

I borrowed this design from a bridge built by Vince Abbot and his friends over in England. They run 1/6th AFVs and their setting is amazing.

This is Vince's photo page. At the bottom, you will find video of his Tiger.
http://vincesgallery.smugmug.com/Hobbies