General Characteristics: Quartersawn
Oak, a material little used today, is one of the hallmarks
of the Arts & Crafts and Prairie styles. At the sawmill,
the log will get split into four quarters, hence the name
'quartersawn', then cut on the diagonal from the center of
the tree out toward the edges. The unique thing about oak
is that it has very strong, well defined ‘Medullary
Rays’ running from the center of the tree outward.
If you look closely at the end of a sawn oak board you can
easily pick out the rays. They look like fine, straight lines
spreading out from the center of the tree, perpendicular
to the grain of the wood.
Quartersawing places these rays on the face of the board, revealing
the distinctive stripe or 'ray fleck' running across the grain
that is the signature of quartersawn oak. According to Gustav
Stickley "The quartersawing method of cutting...renders
quartersawn oak structurally stronger, also finer in grain,
and, as shown before, less liable to warp and check than when
sawn in any other way."
Quartersawing fell out of favor
in the first half of this century because it yields less
lumber per tree and takes more labor
than plainsawing. Because almost all oak furniture today
is plainsawn, we associate the quartersawn figure with prized
period pieces. Therefore, this unique figure is an important
ingredient in accurately recreating the look of turn-of-the-century
furniture.
Red Oak and White Oak can be both quartersawn. Each specie
has it’s own unique ray flecking due to the slight difference
in the medullary rays.
For the specific properties of the lumber, please refer
to the Red Oak lumber page or the
White Oak lumber page.
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