what causes quilted maple?

[Charlie Knighton]

what causes quilting in maple??????

"in hardwood trees, reaction wood forms predominantly toward the upper side of the leaning stem. because gravity causes the upper side to be in tension, it is termed tension wood. tension wood ... sometimes looks silvery, other times dull and lifeless, and in some cases there is little if any visual difference. upon finishing, stain is absorbed irregularly and the surface appears blotchy."

that was taken from an articule by R. Bruce Hoadley

does quilting have anything to do with reaction wood??????????
i usually do not have any trouble finishing quilted wood

 

[Wilford Bickel]

Check out this information on figure in wood - quite extensive in it's explainations.

http://www.ag.auburn.edu/aaes/communications/bulletins/figureinwood/

 

[Charlie Knighton]

thanks

thanks for the url it definitely gives me something or somethings to ponder!!!!!!!!! :cool2:

 

[MichaelMouse]

I'm doubting reaction wood as the source. Our curly maple, which displays a pattern similar to the western bigleaf on face grain, grows straight up in the woods with minimum branching. I'm for genetics, something which blocks the normal tendency to symmetrical addition of new cells, rather than their deformation by gravity.

 

[dkulze]

Very cool article. I like how it basically says that no one knows why the figuring happens, although the biological component is relatively well known. I have to wonder myself if figuring occurs due to a genetic tendancy in the tree designed to help it resist lateral stresses. The same way a braided rope is stronger than straight fibers.

Anywho...

The way I look for figure in wood is, when at the local log yard, I look for exposed sapwood (or peel off some bark) and look for blistering or ridges. This won't tell me how good the figuring will be when cut but it's a clear indicator that there will be at least some figure and what type.

Dietrich