Techniques
The most important techniques in veneer production
Veneer is a thinly sliced or peeled, highly decorative layer of wood, which is glued onto various carrier boards, e.g. MDF, HDF, swell-protected carrier board. Veneer is produced in different thicknesses from 0.2 to 2.5 mm. The most common thickness is 0.6 mm. The available lengths and widths of individual veneer sheets vary according to the wood species. Our log buyers decide on the most suitable production technique during log measurement. The veneer look will be either figured (crown figure) or striped / straight-grained depending on the production technique chosen. We introduce the different techniques below.
For this peeling technique the log is cut into thirds or quartered. The block is clamped in the lathe with the heart side facing the blade and is peeled outwards from the inside (from the heart). In this way, wider veneer matches can be produced. The resulting veneer match is particularly distinctively figured.
With stay-log peeling a halved log is mounted in the lathe fixed with its heart side mounted on a "stay log" and is peeled from the outside. The rotating of the half-log clamped at the pith (medulla) causes eccentric rotational movement of the block, which is why this peeling technique is also called eccentric peeling.
The annual rings are cut at a very flat angle, so that the resulting veneer match is striped, straight-grained at the sides and figured (crown figure) in the middle.
The log is cut into quarters for false quarter-cut slicing. The cutting into quarters means that the veneer block has two sides that are perpendicular to each other, which occur in the radial cut. The block is clamped with one of these sides flat and is sliced parallel to it. Due to the slicing of a quarter log, veneer matches are produced semi-figured. As with flat-cut slicing, the annual rings are initially cut at a very flat angle. As the middle of the log (trunk) is approached, striped, straight-grained figures are produced. By symmetrically jointing several semi-figured veneer sheets, figured veneers (crown figure) can be produced.
With flat-cut slicing, a log cut in half lengthwise is fixed onto the slicing table with the heartwood side on the table and is sliced from the outside. The initially cut sheets of veneer have a vivid crown figure, as the annual rings are cut into with a very flat angle.
The nearer the cut approaches the middle of the log, the more the annual rings are cut at right-angles, so that an increasingly striped, straight-grained veneer match results.
The log is cut into quarters for rift peeling.The block is clamped with one of the two flat sides on the lathe and is peeled from the opposite side.
The rotary movement of the block is also eccentric. The resulting veneer match is striped. Striped veneers are preferably produced using this technique.
