Simulating Aged and Weathered Wood

Tom wrote: : Anybody know a good way to artificially age/weather wood?

: I have some reclaimed lumber (not sure what species) from an old barn : that I want to use for the frame of a painting of the barn that will : be a birthday gift for a friend. Machining the wood will expose : surfaces with different texture and color and I'd like to treat/finish : those surfaces to better match them to the look of old and weathered : wood.

I have no experience, but this idea just popped into my head. File it under "This is so crazy it just might work!"

Can you cut some veneers of of the weathered faces of the wood, and then veneer them back onto the finished product? Absolutely authentic naturally weathered apparence, with no chemicals or other fakery!

It won't work for fancy moldings, but I'm picturing a more "barn beam" look.

Good luck! It sounds like a great project.

--- Chip

That was my first thought too. Come to think of it, it was my only thought.

I wasn't thinking of veneer, exactly. I was more along the lines of using full pieces of barnboard that attach over the exposed ends you've machined. Done properly, a galloping horse...

Tanus

As a safety issue, consider using a 1,500W heat gun.

Lew

Several years ago, I built a bar for a friend and he wanted it to look like it was built out of aged barn board. I went to the lumber yard and picked up some rough cut pine. To age it, I'd go over it lightly with a blow torch and crisped some of the tips of the rough cuts on the boards. I then wiped away the burn ends with a rag and that left the wood looking truly old.

If you're using new wood, then you can go at it lightly with a hatched or a machete or something like that. Do the torch thing I described above and then stain or paint the wood. Practice a little bit on some scrap to get the look you want.

Here's another way:

That was interesting. My wife is the artist of the family and has an extensive collection of pigments. So far, it sounds like the way to go would be to use the torch/heat gun/wire brush approach to get the texture, and turn color matching over to her.

Tom Veatch Wichita, KS USA

You might also try a search on: model railroading weathering wood

The only difference is scale.

I would check at your local hobby shop. They have paint for making wod look weathered. It is used in building models and on railroad layouts. I have tried it and it looks pretty good.

Randy

The couple that ages together stays together? :)

I have seen, and made, picture frames from old boards so that only the aged surfaces are seen. The only one I have at hand is made with the full board thickness with the edge of the board to the front. The inside rear of the boards are rabbeted out to hold the glass and picture. A thin piece of board is inserted into the rabbet and showing two edges, both old. I can send pictures if you are interested.

Could be!

We've "aged together" for 42 years come July 1. That probably qualifies for "stays together".

Tom Veatch Wichita, KS USA

Personally - I find that using a torch makes wood that looks like a torch was used on it.

Micro-Mark sells oaints that simulate weathering

For instance,

Thanks, Maxwell, that's the sort of thing I was looking for when I started this fool's errand. And the small quantities may be a plus since this particular project is fairly small and not something I plan on starting as a new career.

Tom Veatch Wichita, KS USA