Building A Willys Woody

[Deuces-wild]

How about using "Teak" wood for the door and rear panels??

[hot ford coupe]

I've never seen one of those. That would be a perfect subject because of its rarity. Does teak have a small enough grain to look realistic?

[Don Garrett]

How high is up Rick? Help us out here. You going for the Retro Rod, Custom, Boydster.....what does it want to be? Wood....you could go with maple, oak and do all the butt, lap and pinned joints or you could keep it simple and grab some LHS stuff. Depending on where you are headed, If you are doing the retro fabric top I have some polyester (tight knit) material in black, green or burgundy...Also if you are going the show car route...I have some tan suede that's thin enough to brass pin (rivet) to the top. The edge that contacts the windshield depends on the look you are after.

[mouppe]

Oak has a very large grain and would be unsuitable for close-up details.

Maple, walnut and boxwood would be better choices, and come up very nicely when stained as well. These are the woods that ship modellers most commonly use. You will find them easy to get hold of, and easy to shape as well.

Here is a photo of a door trim I made held in place with brass tacks. The wood is red coral wood, similar to bloodwood. Very easy to work with, and because the grain is very small, it does not split when you drill holes etc.

Mouppe.

[BigTallDad]

OK, I'm a newbie but I've done some experimentation on a '48 Ford Sportsman convertible.

Go to a cigar store; boxes of cigars have separators between the layers; these separators are about 1/32" thick and are made of cedar. They can be stained, bleached, bent (after soaking in water) and you can get a beautiful finish by using clear lacquer .

The grain tightness varies, but in some cases you can achieve a book-end look.

Best thing of all is the stores typically throw them away (translation: free).

[harrypri]

Another alternative is basswood. Easy to cut and shape, takes stain well, cheap, available at hobby shops and craft stores in many sizes and shapes, including sheets and strips.

My local Hobby Lobby has a whole display of various sizes and shapes.

Then there's the old standby, balsa. Same as basswood but softer and a more obvious grain pattern. Can be stained to simulate just about any other species. The interior "woodwork" here is balsa, stained and satin Polyurethaned.

[Rick]

Thanks everybody! Don, this won't be a radical build. As the photo of the real car shows, the roof will be stock hieght and it will be a two door. The back will be leaned forward slightly just to clean up the look. I might also pancake the hood. I'll IM you re the fabrick, thanks.

[BigTallDad]

Another alternative is basswood. Easy to cut and shape, takes stain well, cheap, available at hobby shops and craft stores in many sizes and shapes, including sheets and strips.

My local Hobby Lobby has a whole display of various sizes and shapes.

Then there's the old standby, balsa. Same as basswood but softer and a more obvious grain pattern. Can be stained to simulate just about any other species. The interior "woodwork" here is balsa, stained and satin Polyurethaned.

Hey, Harry do you have a base for that one?

[harrypri]

You know it!!!

[hot ford coupe]

Balsa it is then. The grain on Harry's work looks pretty darn good and extremely realistic even way up close. The only reason to use basswood then would be if more stiffness of the wood is needed.

[Don Garrett]

There are some "nice" veneers available as well if you just want to apply the wood trim to a solid side piece...the grain and color would match from panel to panel too.