A friend suggested wisteria.....but I don't have any and it kind of likes to grow twisted around other things at times......but I am still looking and going to put a request out on Craigslist. Wisteria is said to have the best natural small detail pattern to pass for an entire tree trunk, plus the bark stays on the dead sections.
I have yet to see a synthetic modeled tree trunk that looks real.
Are there any other good natural wood types for realistic logs?
I have had excellent results using maple, birch and privet. I noticed that when harvesting deciduous cuttings it seems better to cut them before the sap starts to run. Ones that were cut spring/ summer for some reason tend to loose the bark or it is easily removed after the twig dried out. Hemlock, spruce and other conifers can be used anytime. Cuttings off even dried Christmas trees mainly Balsum fir work well and have that scale texture that many want.
Don't have any pics, but have made a few "glued" together removable loads from the maple and privit and these have lasted ( Goo and Pliobond) for over 15 years.
If you're looking for debarked logs for the load or scene, fallen or old standing deadwood will allow the bark to rub off the twig cuttings.
Modeling B&O- Chessie Bob K. www.ssmrc.org
Cisco KID,
Years ago there was an article in MR about doing what you want, for logs and trees.. It was very long ago, I believe it may have been by the late John Allen, but don't quote me on that.. I recall he used tapered wood dowels,very impressive out come. Maybe a search would help,or someone that recalls the article,and who did it..
Cheers,
Frank
Any natural wood is better than any synthetic modeled logs, those look terrible. (those Kadee logs for example)
I have used twigs of my Crape Mrytle trees, the bark is grayish, so it would need to be colored or use a brown wash, based on the type of tree you are wanting to represent.
"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/
In addition to the above Boxwood is a hardwood and shows a lot of grain.
Bob
Don't Ever Give Up
Thanks for the feedback so far, fellows. I'll keep my eye out for a variety of things and try some research.
(Wow...home of Patsy Cline...a fav. of mine.!)
Southern white pine. These are commonly sold as Christmas trees across the South. For a number of years I would always get one and stake it out over the garden after Christmas so that the needles could fall off as mulch or fertilizer. I'd then trim out the proper diameter twigs and allow them to dry a little more before putting them into a big zip-lock. Good bark grain and they stay unchanged for years.
Bill
Beach Bill Southern white pine. These are commonly sold as Christmas trees across the South.
Southern white pine. These are commonly sold as Christmas trees across the South.
Thanks for the tip, Bill. Here in British Columbia I'm surrounded by extensive forest.....mostly west coast Douglas fir, hemlock, cedar and spruce...some tamarak etc. Not much pine, but I can travel a little to find a fair bit of Western White PIne....and that might do.
Or, on the other hand, Christmas at a lodge in Arizona high country sounds good.......get away from drenching rain. Maybe I'll just book my Christmas vacation now......a little quail hunting......a fireplace....