White wood for ship models

Species: American Holly, White Hornbeam, Aspen and European Maple.

One thing worth mentioning immediately is that these photographs were taken under several different lighting conditions. White woods are surprisingly difficult to photograph accurately. Depending on sunlight, shade and camera white balance, the same board can appear warm cream, ivory or almost pure white.

Holly

For me, Holly remains the benchmark.

It is extremely fine textured, naturally white and suitable for virtually every modelling application.

Its quite easy to process and bends well, holds edge nicely.

If availability wasn't an issue, this would probably be my first recommendation for almost every ship model.

Unfortunately, consistently good Holly is difficult to source in Europe, which is why we don't currently offer it. Hopefully that changes in the future.

European Maple

European Maple is probably the best practical choice today.

It machines beautifully, bends well for deck planking and hull planking, finishes cleanly and is readily available in larger clear boards.

The only thing worth paying attention to is grain orientation. Depending on how the board is sawn, the appearance can vary slightly.

For most builders this would be my recommendation.

White Hornbeam

It is considerably harder than Maple while still remaining very pale. Tools must be sharp when working with this one as its sometimes called hardbeam also.

The only visual difference is that some boards occasionally contain subtle grey streaks, which are completely natural.

For deck planking and precision parts it performs extremely well.

Aspen

Aspen was the only wood that I personally would not choose.

Although it machines easily, it feels noticeably less dense and more porous than the other three species.

For machining you need sharp blades and even after that you might need to run plank over with sandpaper for nice edges.

For high-end ship modelling I don't think it offers enough advantages over Maple or White Hornbeam.

Because of that, we don't plan to add Aspen to our range.

My conclusion

If Holly were easy to obtain, it would probably be the best overall white modelling wood.

Among woods that are realistically available today:

1. Holly (overall best)
2. European Maple (best practical choice)
3. White Hornbeam (excellent hard alternative)
4. Aspen (not recommended for premium ship models)

Holly is something we hope to offer in the future when suitable material becomes available.

Aspen is currently not planned because we don't believe it provides enough benefits compared to the other available white hardwoods.