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View Full Version : Gray streaks in curly maple?



Jay Aubuchon
12-06-2022, 10:14 PM
What causes the gray streaks in this curly maple? They are confined to the rings close to the bark edge.

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Whatever the cause, what is your view of them? Do some woodworkers consider them as adding interesting character, or are they more or less universally rejected?

Jim Morgan
12-06-2022, 10:44 PM
That is likely a fungal stain, with few if any effects on the structural properties of the maple. Chacun à ses goûts - aesthetics are personal. Finish a sample and see what you think.

Christopher Charles
12-06-2022, 11:53 PM
Agreed, likely early stages of spalting. I love it when used carefully, but then I also like spicy food.

Steve Demuth
12-07-2022, 9:15 AM
The trick is to see them as silver, rather than grey. Makes it ever so much prettier.

George Yetka
12-07-2022, 9:25 AM
I got a bunch of equipment and the crates were wrapped with what I thought was pine but had these silver streaks, I had to take a bunch home.

Brian Tymchak
12-07-2022, 10:31 AM
That looks like the the effects of Ambrosia beetle infestation. If you look up and down the board, there's a small bore hole for each of the gray streaks. Some people pay extra for ambrosia maple. I personally don't like it. Ambrosia + curl is a bonus though for those who like it.

Jay Aubuchon
12-08-2022, 9:57 PM
The trick is to see them as silver, rather than grey.

Hey, I'm talking about streaks in the wood, not my hair!

Mike Henderson
12-08-2022, 11:03 PM
Depends on what you're going to use the curly maple for. Personally, I would not want those streaks in most things I'd use curly maple for.

I use a fair amount of ambrosia maple and I don't find it expensive around here. I think the commercial people who use maple don't want the streaks of ambrosia so there's not that much demand for it, which makes it cheaper. I like the streaks.

Mike