FIGURED VENEERS
BIRD'S EYE
The name itself describes it best. Once
considered a defect, the best bird's-eye flitches are now expensive and in
demand. These veneers are most often rotary cut or half-round sliced to produce
the most uniform distribution of nice round eyes. Bird's-eye is most common in
maple, but does rarely occur in a few other species.
CURLY
Contortions in grain direction that reflect
light differently create an appearance of undulating waves known as curly grain.
many species develop this figure, but most commonly maple. Stump and butt
sections of trees often produce a diagonal, staircase-like curl referred to as
"angel steps", and a rolling curl figure that is called "cross-fire"
FIDDLEBACK
An estimable variation of curly figure, this
figure's name is taken from its customary use for violin backs. Logs for
fiddleback veneers are quarter sawn to produce very straight grain with nearly
perpendicular curls running uninterrupted from edge to edge. maple, makore,
anegre and English sycamore head a list of about 12 fiddleback-prone species
MOTTLED
Wavy grain combines with spiral, interlocked
grain to produce a wrinkled, botchy figure known as mottle. The mottled figure
may be scattered randomly (broken mottle), or appear as a regular checkerboard
pattern (block mottle). Members of the mahogany family, koa, sapele, bubinga and
African satinwood, most commonly exhibit mottled figure
BEE'S WING
Smaller, tighter and more intense than
mottled figure, although structurally similar, bee's wing figure is said to
resemble that insect's appendage when magnified. East Indian satinwood is
extremely well known for having this figure, and it also occurs occasionally in
narra, mahogany and eucalyptus.
POMMELE
This figure resembles a puddle surface during
a light rain: a dense pattern of small rings enveloping one another. Some say
this has a "suede" or "furry" look. It's usually found in extremely large trees
of African species like sapele, bubinga and makore. Some domestic species with a
sparser, larger figure are referred to as "blistered".
QUILTED
Although greatly resembling a larger and
exaggerated version of pommele or blister figure, quilted figure has bulges that
are elongated and closely crowded. Quilted grain looks veritably
three-dimensional when seen at its billowy best. It's most commonly found in
mahogany, moabi, maple, sapele and myrtle, and occurs only rarely in other
species.
PEANUT SHELL
When certain woods exhibit a quilted or blistered
figure, they are rotary cut to promote a random, wild grain pattern as well.
This peanut-shell grain creates a visual illusion similar to quilted figure: the
veneer appears bumpy and pitted, when in fact it's flat. Tamo and bubinga are
two most popular examples of this figure
CROTCH
Cut from the juncture of a tree's main
branches and trunk, crotch figures are often subcategorized as flame, plume,
roostertail, feather or burning bush. All of these descriptive terms serve to
convey the range of this figure's appearance. Seldom found in large sizes,
mahogany and walnut species dominate the field of crotch veneers.
BURLS
Growths on trees produce some of the most
prized veneers. Usually available in smallish, often defective sheets, burls
feature swirling grain around clusters of dormant buds, rings or eyes. Varieties
include "cluster burl" or "cat's paw burl". Redwood, oak, ash, madrone, elm and
walnut are common burl species, exotic burls include mappa, thoya and imboya.
SWIRL
This figure is a visually gentler version of
regular crotch figure. As the name implies, the grain meanders and swirls
around, often seeming to convolute and fold in upon itself. the densest portions
of the swirl show up darker or shaded compared to the lighter surrounding wood.
Swirl occurs in species including walnut, mahogany, cherry and maple
BUTTON
When woods with large medullary rays are
quarter sawn, the harder, shinier rays are more fully exhibited and show up as
"snowflakes" or buttons on a straight-grained background. Some veneer species,
such as white oak, lacewood and American sycamore, are more attractive when
sliced to reveal this button figure
Glossary for board products
Backs: The reverse side to the face of a plywood panel. Generally, the poorer side of any grade plywood panel calling for a face and a back.
Bark Pocket: A small area of bark around which normal wood has grown.
Burl: A swirl or twist in the grain of wood, usually occurring near a knot, but which itself does not contain a knot.
Core: The innermost portion of plywood usually composed of veneer. Also referred to as a "centre." A core may also be made of fibreboards, particleboard or lumber.
Crossbar: An imperfection or irregularity in the grain of wood running at right angles to the length of the board.
Crossbanding: Inner ply veneer placed at right angles to the core, face and back of a plywood panel.
Defects: Anything interrupting the smooth flow of a wood surface. This includes loose knots, splits, voids, wormholes, bark pockets and others.
Delamination: The separation of the inner plys in a panel due to the failure of the adhesive bond.
Face: The best side of a plywood panel in which the outer veneers are of different grades.
Grain: The pattern, size and direction of the fibres in wood or veneer.
Gum Spots: Accumulation of resinous material often found on panel surfaces. May be removed by sanding.
Half-Round Slicing: Off-centre slicing cut slightly across the annular grown rings resulting in half-round, plain sliced or rotary characteristics.
Hardwood: General term referring to the wood of many different deciduous trees as opposed to the softwood of evergreen or coniferous trees. Does not relate to the density of the wood.
Heartwood: The centre portion of a tree consisting of mature wood that has stopped growing. Generally distinguishable from sapwood or the growing outer portion by its darker colour.
Knot: circular portion of a board or veneer that was once the base of a branch or twig growing from the trunk of a tree.
Knot (Open): Opening produced when a portion of a knot has dropped out or separated due to seasoning.
Knot (Pin): Sound knots less than 1/4" in diameter.
Knot (Sound): Knots that are solidly fixed by growth and retain their place in lumber or veneer.
Knothole: Opening produced when knots drop from the wood in which they were once embedded.
Lap: The overlapping of one piece of veneer on another in the same layer of ply.
Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF): A panel or core material manufactured from pressure cooked wood fibre, resin and wax.
Mineral Streak: A discoloration of hardwood and hardwood veneer.
Particleboard: A panel or core material manufactured from pressed sawmill shavings, resin and wax.
Patches: Filler material inserted into defects of veneers or panels for repair.
Plain Sliced: Veneer sliced from a log tangent to the tree's annual rings.
Ply: A single sheet of veneer forming one layer in a multi-layered piece of plywood.
Plywood, Hardwood: A panel composed of layers of inner plys, or other core material joined with an adhesive to a face veneer of hardwood and a back veneer, usually also composed of hardwood.
Quarter Slicing: Quartered log sliced at right angles to the growth rings.
Rift Cut: Veneer cut from a quartered log on a 90 degree angle to the grain.
Rotary Cut: Veneer peeled from a whole log set in a lathe and turned against a special knife.
Sapwood: The light colured, living portion of a tree located between the heartwood and the bark.
Slip Matched: Veneer sheets that are laid side by side to form a whole sheet with a repetitive grain appearance.
Splits: Separations of the wood fibre running parallel to the grain.
Veneer: Peeled or sliced thin sheets of wood used as inner plys or as decorative faces.