Timber Veneer Overview

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.

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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.
 


The following diagram shows, where the different types of veneer cuts from the individual parts of the tree.




 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Methods of Assembling Veneer Leaves

Various visual effects can be achieved by different methods of joining. The most commonly used are the following:


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Book Matching

The most widely used method. The veneer leaves are alternatively folded out as if opening the centre spread of a book, so that one veneer leaf is a mirror image of the next.
                                   

 

Slip Matching

The veneer leaves are kept face up and laid side by side. This style results in the same grain pattern being repeated at the width of each leaf across the layon.



Mismatched or Random Matched

Individual leaves are random matched for effect. Knotty Radiata Pine is often laid this way. This is done to disperse characteristics such as clusters of knots more evenly across the sheet.
                                     

 

Reverse Slip Matching

Veneer leaves are slip matched, then every second leaf is turned end for end. The method is used to "balance" crowns in the leaves so that all the crowns do not appear at one end.


The veneer layon is then bonded to a wide range of substrates including:

  • Particle Board Std & HMR
  • Medium density Fibreboard STD, MR & E0 MR
  • Plywood
  • X-Board Plus (Lightweight board) see X-Board Plus overview page
  • Paperpack

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