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Balsa Thickness Confusion http://ww.one-ring.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=26134	Page 1 of 1

Author:	wiirgy [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 12:41 pm ]
Post subject:	Balsa Thickness Confusion
Hey! I'm going to order some Balsa wood and I'm unsure on how thick it should be, they are ranging all the way from 1mm(0.04 inch) to 1cm(0.4), anyone have any input on this?

Author:	Dorthonion [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 12:57 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
Two things - first one is that balsa is not the best wood for some aspects of terrain or modelling - you can get strips and sheets of other types of wood. Second one - what are you planning to do with it? There are situations where very thick balsa would be appropriate (carving something for instance, or making rectlinear columns like in the dwarf halls). Balsa and other wood is available in a range of sizes - examples here- http://www.modelshop.co.uk/Shop/Strip-S ... -Rod/Wood/ http://www.modelshop.co.uk/Shop/Raw-Mat ... ood-Sheet/ Tell us what you are planning so we can make useful suggestions. I am guessing you may be considering something to do with Goblin Town?

Author:	wiirgy [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 1:08 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
Dorthonion wrote: Two things - first one is that balsa is not the best wood for some aspects of terrain or modelling - you can get strips and sheets of other types of wood. Second one - what are you planning to do with it? There are situations where very thick balsa would be appropriate (carving something for instance, or making rectlinear columns like in the dwarf halls). Balsa and other wood is available in a range of sizes - examples here- http://www.modelshop.co.uk/Shop/Strip-S ... -Rod/Wood/ http://www.modelshop.co.uk/Shop/Raw-Mat ... ood-Sheet/ Tell us what you are planning so we can make useful suggestions. I am guessing you may be considering something to do with Goblin Town? Correct, mostly to expand upon the Goblin Town terrain but also for other things. So a wood which is easy to work with and is general-purpose.

Author:	Oldman Willow [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 1:13 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
wiirgy wrote: Hey! I'm going to order some Balsa wood and I'm unsure on how thick it should be, they are ranging all the way from 1mm(0.04 inch) to 1cm(0.4), anyone have any input on this? I only use balsa for flying kits. It is light and strong but fuzzy and soft. The thickness will depend on what you want to make. I see that while I was looking for a link Dorthonion posted some. I used bass wood and pine scrap for my Goblin town sections.

Author:	Oldman Willow [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 1:25 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
I used some craft sticks AKA Popsicle sticks and coffee stirrers. I also split some thin strips of pine scraps with a heavy knife blade.

Author:	wiirgy [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 1:56 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
Hmm, so balsa might not be the way to go then?

Author:	Oldman Willow [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 2:18 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
wiirgy wrote: Hmm, so balsa might not be the way to go then? It depends how hard the craft sticks are to get. I usually get them at the craft store. I have not tried to order them by mail. I like the large size. I use them for shutters and gates for doll houses too. http://www.discountofficeitems.com/prod ... ref=nextag

Author:	Dorthonion [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 6:27 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
I use basswood, spruce and similar for structural load-bearing components. I have used cocktail sticks and BBQ skewers for some logs. Balsa is handy for the non-loadbearing areas - it can be cut with fine-toothed saws and cuts/splits very easily along the grain so it could make the 'decking' planks for goblin town. I would use stronger wood for the supporting frames and use a mixture of thicknesses - it should be a bit ramshackle to be goblinesque. Best of luck!

Author:	wiirgy [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 7:13 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
Thanks for your input everyone, I will look into this more tommorow and then check back to see if what I found is a yay or nay.

Author:	DurinsBane [ Sun Jun 30, 2013 7:54 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
The only comment I would add to the above posts is that Balsa is very easy to deal with and can be an ideal medium choice for beginners, personally, I love Balsa. If you choose to buy some Balsa Wood wiirgy, a word of advice, Google Balsa Bundle and also on Ebay. This is a great way to get a selection of different thicknesses and an understanding of what to order in the future. There are some very cheap prices out there.

Author:	Dagorlad [ Mon Jul 01, 2013 12:06 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
I use balsa a lot. It forms the core of most of my buildings and a lot of the feature timber work I do is with balsa. I usually have a number of 100mm wide strips of various thicknesses on hand - 1mm for planking and building facades, 5mm for wall sections (which I then plaster with polyfilla), and 12mm for larger structural elements. I also use 3mm pieces to make staircases. But I also use basswood strips if I need something strong enough to take a few knocks during wargaming, like fences and palisades.

Author:	Dorthonion [ Mon Jul 01, 2013 11:37 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Balsa Thickness Confusion
I meant to post this earlier - her are a couple of images of balsa and other wood used on a Mordor Siege tower - the white stuff is cardboard. http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj26 ... 2WIP13.jpg http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj26 ... 2WIP12.jpg http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj26 ... k2WIP9.jpg I hope that helps - the basswood makes up the frame and balsa and cocktail sticks make up the wooden cladding while the card is used for the 'armour'.

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