Together with paper and cardboard, wood and its derivatives are the most used materials in the construction of the models. Wooden objects, from the base to the details of the thin rods, are resistant and relatively easy to work with.

The solid wood – It has its own colour and texture. The structure of the wood (growth rings, stripes, knots, etc.) influences the notion of the model. For our goals the most suitable wood is visually “dead” than “alive”. Wooden floors are often painted and therefore wood is preferred rather than closed. The facades and plastic details, such as the exits and entrances, stand out better on an open background; if it is closed, it is identified with umbrellas.

The most important aspects of wood processing are the hardness of the material and the meaning of the fibres. Cork can be cut with a cutter; it produces a porous effect and does not carry large loads. Thicker woods such as pear-tree, maple and alder must be cut but have a smooth and continuous surface. Meanwhile, the resin wood, such as lime, poplar and pine, are used as well. The colours cover a wide range, from yellow maple and poplar to yellow, reddish per-tree and alder and to the dark red of the mahogany. All types of wood lose their colour if exposed to sunlight; at the tree wood with a lighter colour, this loss of colour is more obvious than the darker-coloured wood.

We can find solid wood in warehouses, DIY stores and as extra parts in carpentry workshops. It would be best if bought ready cut pieces to simplify its final result.

Wood plywood – It is mainly used as a base for supporting models. It should be taken into account its weight, above resistance. The fireproof chipboard and the resins are denser than carpentry and plywood.

Plywood for carpentry– They have a thickness of 13 to 45 mm, a width of 183 cm and a length of 510 cm. The core is made of solid wood, covered on both sides with a layer of glued wood. This can be oak, mahogany, beech, etc.

Layered plywood – Multilayer sheets (0.2 mm to 6 mm thick) glued together. Thickness of the plates ranges from 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 1.0 to 15 mm; its length reaching up to 305 cm and the width may be 100, 122 or 152.5 cm.

Resin Plywood – These boards are made up of a mixture of wood and synthetic resin. On “soft” boards, the mixture is thinner and, therefore, is softer and has a half weight of “hard” boards (specific weight between 0.23 and 0.4 vs. 0.95 kg / dm3). There also exist even 600 x 200 cm plates. The thickness of the soft boards is usually from 8 to 20 mm, instead the thickness of the boards is 2.5 to 6 mm thick.

PAL fireproof Plywood – They are boards made of wood and sheets. They are quite “dense” and heavy. It’s easier to work with plates that have an “emptier” core. They are in different forms of manufacture, from 180 x 510 cm and thicknesses from 6 to 30 mm.