curled walnut

[alex grams]

Is this a function of the way they cut the veneer, or is it a function of the wood actually having the curl in it? If it were the later, i would not have expected to get this piece of wood in the same stock that they had the rest of the walnut veneered ply.

This is a desk project in progress for the wife. All wood is walnut, with the faces being veneered ply. We found one piece at the shop that had this nice curl to it so we decided to make the front panels of the desk out of it to help give some character to the desk. Even though this piece finishes darker since it has a different grain pattern that really helps compliment the piece in my opinion.

I will post more pictures when I get close to a finished project.

[Bill Wyko]

That's a beauty!!!!! I wish that was more common.:)

[Lee Schierer]

Is this a function of the way they cut the veneer, or is it a function of the wood actually having the curl in it?

The curl is a function of annual growth in a wavy pattern. There is no clear reason why it happens and to my knowledge foresters can't detect it accurately in unharvested wood. It may occur all the way through a tree or on just one side and maybe only part of the wood on that side.

It is still a treasure to see. Nice coice for your panels. The darker wood sure makes the uprights look light. It will tend to even out some with age as the walnut lightens with exposure to light.

[David DeCristoforo]

Typically, when a log is "opened" and curl that intense is discovered, the log goes straight to the veneer mill. You're lucky to have found those boards.....

[Jim Becker]

Oh, my...that's incredible stuff!

[alex grams]

I was certain that it was the wood being curled, but I've never seen veneer like that for walnut, and someone at the shop/yard made the comment it was a function of the way they cut the wood, but i was pretty certain it wasn't, but i really didn't want to argue with the guy either. I also wanted to make sure i wasn't crazy, so i posed the question here.

[Greg Cole]

Man... thats very very nice. I'd have dug to see if there was more for sure!
Looking forward to more pics.
Cheers Alex.
Greg

[alex grams]

The ironic part it was in the partially damaged pile at 50% off (it look like 1 side had been clipped by a fork lift, and got crushed like 1/2" an inch in, something i could easily work around.

I dug through about 15 sheets of their stack of walnut ply to find more, but they started giving me the evil eye because they would have to help restack it, so i stopped there.:(

[David DeCristoforo]

Oh, silly me.... You did say it was veneered.... I must have been on the moon yesterday! Had my head up... oh well, never mind that. Anyway, veneer of that quality is usually found in shops that do "architectural" work where only "the best" will do.