This is the best explanation of understanding grain in a board I have ever read or listened to. One of my favorite aspects of woodworking is the never ending amount of knowledge one can learn. I consider myself very capable of reading a board for furniture parts, okay enough for chair parts, and I still smacked myself on the forehead when you showed the end grain pieces with the radial lines drawn. So much of my personal experience clarified in one moment and I now have a much deeper understanding of what’s going with the wood I am working. Thank you for sharing!
After reading your article a few weeks ago I bought an ash plank and split it as you described. I learned a lot and got some good pieces for chair parts which I soaked in water for 4 days as described in a post from 3 years ago but have not yet shaved any yet.
Getting controlled splits was often a hit-and-miss procedure for me, and I felt quite stupid because something unpredictable was happening that was beyond my grasp. Splitting dry-ish ash logs from standing dead trees doesn't make this process any easier of course.
Now I can see more clearly where I was having difficulty: this video goes a long way to de-mystifying the concealed secrets of twist when splitting boards, especially dry ones.
And another thing I learned that I felt intuitively from trial and error (more error), but that went against all the usual dictums: quarter-sawn isn't always the best (for splitting anyway) because it depends on HOW you'll use the piece, as the radial plane offers a less pronounced twist towards the outside of the log, compared to closer to the pith. I hope I got that right.
A reader put it well: it takes several times watching the video to grasp the point.
Thank you. I will have to watch the video a couple more times to make sure I get the full benefit. What it says is that someone like me living in the west can still get good chair parts without green wood.
Dear lord I have been looking at the boards all wrong. It’s going to make selecting the boards myself a critical component. I have trialled this at home now with a small piece of oak. You are a great teacher Pierre!
This is the best explanation of understanding grain in a board I have ever read or listened to. One of my favorite aspects of woodworking is the never ending amount of knowledge one can learn. I consider myself very capable of reading a board for furniture parts, okay enough for chair parts, and I still smacked myself on the forehead when you showed the end grain pieces with the radial lines drawn. So much of my personal experience clarified in one moment and I now have a much deeper understanding of what’s going with the wood I am working. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks, it’s taken me too long to wrap my mind around
What a great companion piece to the article. Thanks for sharing this!
After reading your article a few weeks ago I bought an ash plank and split it as you described. I learned a lot and got some good pieces for chair parts which I soaked in water for 4 days as described in a post from 3 years ago but have not yet shaved any yet.
Thank you for all the great posts!
Let me know how it goes
Getting controlled splits was often a hit-and-miss procedure for me, and I felt quite stupid because something unpredictable was happening that was beyond my grasp. Splitting dry-ish ash logs from standing dead trees doesn't make this process any easier of course.
Now I can see more clearly where I was having difficulty: this video goes a long way to de-mystifying the concealed secrets of twist when splitting boards, especially dry ones.
And another thing I learned that I felt intuitively from trial and error (more error), but that went against all the usual dictums: quarter-sawn isn't always the best (for splitting anyway) because it depends on HOW you'll use the piece, as the radial plane offers a less pronounced twist towards the outside of the log, compared to closer to the pith. I hope I got that right.
A reader put it well: it takes several times watching the video to grasp the point.
Great explanation, thank you Pete.
Thank you. I will have to watch the video a couple more times to make sure I get the full benefit. What it says is that someone like me living in the west can still get good chair parts without green wood.
That’s the plan!
Dear lord I have been looking at the boards all wrong. It’s going to make selecting the boards myself a critical component. I have trialled this at home now with a small piece of oak. You are a great teacher Pierre!