Ash is well known for its strength and flexibility: tent poles, tool handles, bell stays, sports equipment, bows etc.
As an experiment (and to play with my new Proxxon FET table saw!) I cut some thin strips of ash - about 1.5mm thick. Even though the wood was very dry the strips bend easily even without soaking. The picture below shows a 35mm radius bend. It seems that this would be a very useful material for planking bluff bowed ships. If the colour and grain are considered inappropriate it could still be used on a painted or deeply varnished hull. As far as I know it never seems to appear in any kits. Why not?
As an experiment (and to play with my new Proxxon FET table saw!) I cut some thin strips of ash - about 1.5mm thick. Even though the wood was very dry the strips bend easily even without soaking. The picture below shows a 35mm radius bend. It seems that this would be a very useful material for planking bluff bowed ships. If the colour and grain are considered inappropriate it could still be used on a painted or deeply varnished hull. As far as I know it never seems to appear in any kits. Why not?