Timber Veneer

Timber veneer is from a natural and renewable resource competing with non-renewable commodities like steel,

aluminium and plastics. Its surface coverage is approximately forty times more than 25mm timber and

consequently is the most economical way of utilising precious wood.

Veneer is:

Produced by slicing or peeling selected logs. Sliced at approximately 0.6mm (this is normal thickness for the Australian market) or peeled at various thicknesses. Several methods are used to create various grain patterns. The most commonly produced patterns are as below. 

Crown or Flat Cut

 

Sliced veneer cut tangentially to the grain (i.e. parallel to the growth rings) is known as "crown cut" or "flat cut". It displays an attractive figure of bold sweeping ("cathedral") curves and ovals along the  centre of the leaf, with striped grain nearer the edges

 Quarter Cut

The timber is sliced at right angles to the growth rings and the result is a fairly straight line grain pattern.

Rotary Cut

Rotary veneer is normally produced in thickness from 0.9mm up to 3mm. The timber is peeled from the log in a continuous ribbon, against a blade in a lathe usually at high speed. The result is a bold, variegated or non-descript swirl grain pattern. Rotary veneer is predominantly used in plywood.