Figured wood

Figured wood use is highly desirable, not well understood, and difficult to describe in words. Figure by definition is a variation from what is normally expected to be seen in an average piece of timber from the species. The variation seen is typically in a pattern that occurs in many trees of the same species. Trees that exhibit “figure” have multiple factors that contribute to their overall appearance. Stress, genetics, location, nutrients, insects, and growth pattern all effect the amount and type of figure found in a tree.

By using figured wood in combination with a woodworkers design a more creative and spectacular piece of woodworking can be produced. When either design or figure alone is meant to set a piece apart the result is not nearly as nice when both aspects work together. (Pictures for example)

(Box on side of page)Figure is divided and sold by value, so use the chart below to understand what you are asking for and what you should expect to pay.

Normal Figure (NHLA (national hardwood lumber association) gives ratings on different species to determine the grade and lowers the value of lumber if it exhibits a different appearance than is normal for the species. The NHLA does not have ratings on intensity of figure, nor does it cover most exotic species.

Some Figure (none too heavy)

Many in the industry who sell figured wood group all of a species that exhibits some figure into the same bundle and sell it as figured (an example might be ordering 100 board feet of curly maple) 10% of these boards typically will exhibit a higher grade of figure and 10% will exhibit little or none of the desired figure. The remaining 80% will show patches of heavy and light figure on different portions of the same boards. This is frequently termed medium figure. (expect a large variation of quality unless the dealer has told you they hand sorted the wood for figure…and expect to pay more for hand selected stock)

Highest Figure the seller has (expect a 400% jump in price from the same wood with some figure)

Terms used by different dealers for their highest figure

Exhibition Grade

Museum Quality

5A Figure

Musical Grade

Three methods are commonly understood for producing figure. Genetically modified, inherent to growth, and environmentally based. A fourth can be added as sawing to expose the natural variation of grain pattern. The most exciting figure is when more than one method of producing figure occurs in the same board. For example a crotch piece of quartersawn curly spalted maple is very exciting to see!

Intrinsic figures that can be found naturally due to genetics of the plant. Examples be quilted, curly, and burl. Extrinsic figures or environmentally modified figured examples would be spalted, ambrosia, some curly and some birdseye. Created figures would be examples of sawing to expose medullary ray flake know as quartersawn figure, sawing across a crotch to produce feather pattern, or making the tree spalt. See Sidebar for a more complete description of how these occur.

Quartersawing will reveal growth layers as relatively vertical lines that run the length of a board. Medullary rays exposed by quarter sawing are prominent in many species and are know as ray-fleck figure. Not all species produce a prominent medullary flake appearance when quartersawn, but Oak and Sycamore are two examples of species specifically cut quartersawn to reveal this ray-fleck pattern. (Photo of each)

There are many other figure types: such as stripe, blister, curl, flame, quilt, feather, crotch, burl, fiddleback, birdseye, raisin, mottled,block mottle, bee’s wing, pommelle, peanut shell, swirl, button, and angel step. In addition to the names listed and discussed here, there are some very rare and unusual figure names, such as pippy (looks like measles), drape' (looks like draping vines) and plum pudding (looks like elongated dark plums). Other figures include roe, rippling, bark eye, wormy, and buff. Most of these types will only appear in veneer or an exotic piece of lumber and are not commercially.

SPALTED- (decay from fungal attack) which occur in almost all species to some degree if left unchecked. It is the result from infiltration of coloring materials in irregular patterns that are layed down by different species of fungi in the wood competing for territory. The lines represent a zone line where two different species of fungi have met with each species leaving their own distinct color. To achieve the type of spalting that most woodworkers like white-rot fungi must be present (they are airborne), the wood must contain 40% or greater moisture, and the temperature must be 50F or warmer. Spalting if left unchecked will weaken the wood until it is too soft or crumbly for use in furniture. Furniture in a house does not rot due to the sufficiently low moisture content. Insects also create color variations.

AMBROSIA- comes from an infestation of the ambrosia beetle which leaves and entrance and exit hole within a black streak (photo). Ambrosia beetles or pinworms are a group of beetles with over 1000 species worldwide. They measure 1/8 to 1/5^th inch in length and fly early in the spring looking for host material. Fungus specific to the beetle attacks in the sapwood leave a dark stain near the entrance and exit holes.

BIRD'S-EYE - The name derives from the small “eyes” that are spread throughout the wood. Birdseye occurs as a reaction to stress within a tree. For example if the tree is bent in one direction more than another the eyes will be heavier on the bent side. Birdseye trees are extremely slow growing and are found in heavily forested areas where they must compete with neighboring trees for nutrients. The eyes within the tree will not extend up past the bottom log which is typically 8-12’ long. Birdseye trees due not grow larger that 26” diameter, which makes finding large material extremely difficult. Characteristically there will be a slight widening in the butt log about knee height to give the appearance of a coke bottle. When the log is layed on it’s side it will exhibit a star pattern from the base with the density of eyes highest at the center heartwood extending out to the white sapwood with less density. (Artist drawing)

FIDDLEBACK – A variation of curly figure, this figure's name is taken from its customary use for violin backs. Fiddleback figure is produced by quartersawing to produce very straight grain with perpendicular curls running uninterrupted from edge to edge. There are many other names associated with this figure with slight variations that set them apart. Curly, flame, wavy, ropey, and tigerstripe can all refer to the same figure depending on the intensity of the figure and the vernacular of the location. I differentiate fiddleback from all other synonyms by stressing that the figure must run from edge to edge and cover the board from one end to the other to attain the high honor and grade of being termed fiddleback. Maple, makore, anegre, English sycamore, ash, walnut, mahogany, cherry along with many more are fiddleback-prone species.

CURLY - Contortions in grain direction that reflect light differently create an appearance of undulating waves known as curly grain. All species develop this figure, but is most commonly seen in maple. This figure can be found due to compression in all trees beneath heavy limbs, and in stumps of larger trees where the weight of the tree has compressed the wood at the base. The curl seen in maple and other trees that do not occur in these compressed areas are produced by genetic variancy within the species. Stump and butt sections of trees often produce a swirly compressed grain configuration that contains small clusters of curl figure called angel steps.

QUILTED - Although greatly resembling a larger and exaggerated version of pommele or blister figure, quilted figure has bulges that are elongated and closely crowded. Quilted grain looks three-dimensional when seen at its best. Quilted maple occurs only in bigleaf maple found in the Northwest United States. Genetics and environment play important roles in the appearance. Higher elevations tend to produce a wider pattern, and high amounts of rainfall are necessary to have the rapid growth required for the figure to dominate. Variations in the intensity of quilt are commonly called popcorn, sausage, and other names that can describe the intensity and shape of the figure. It’s most commonly found in maple but can be found in mahogany, moabi, sapele, myrtle, and only rarely in other species.

CROTCH - Cut across the grain where two or more sections of tree separate the figure has many names depending upon the region such as flame, plume, roostertail, feather or burning bush. All of these descriptive terms serve to convey the range of this figure’s appearance but have no direct indication on what it will actually look like. This figure can be found in any tree where branching occurs, but is sought after when large areas show this distinctive figure. Frequently pockets of bark entend into the junction where each limb meets making the wood unusable. Mahogany, walnut, and cherry are the most popular species produced.

BURL- Burl figure varies from species to species but always consists of swirling grain intermixed with dormand growth buds. Varieties include "cluster burl" where larger sections of burl are separated from each other around the log or in the wood, and “cat’s paw burl" where there are multiple small clusters of dormant buds looking like the pads of a cat who has walked across the wood. Redwood, oak, ash, madrone, elm and walnut are common burl species with many more highly sought after in other species. Burl occurs in all species, but may not be in large enough sections to be represented as such. Burl with the dormant buds facing the outside of the wood surface is termed eye burl and is sought after whereas knobs or bumps on trees may have swirling grain and dormant buds but will reveal an onion like cluster of wood inside when cut off which is unuseable to produce commercially into a veneer.

SWIRL - This figure is a visually gentler version of regular crotch figure. As the name implies, the grain meanders and swirls around, often seeming to convolute and fold in upon itself. This is also known as marbling found very often in claro walnut on the western coast of the United States. The densest portions of the swirl show up darker or shaded compared to the lighter surrounding wood. Swirl occurs in species including walnut, mahogany, cherry and maple.

BUTTON - When woods with large medullary rays are quartersawn, the harder, shinier rays are more fully exhibited and show up as "snowflakes" or buttons on a straight-grained background. Some veneer species, such as white oak, lacewood and American sycamore, are more attractive when sliced to reveal this button figure.

Finding figure in living tree is a difficult process and is considered by many to be an art developed only after many years of experience.

Ecological factors, such as site, and morphological features of form, bark characteristics, foliage, or position in the stand often suggest the presence or absence of figure in trees; these indicators generally are used with caution even by experienced producers of figured wood.

Figured wood occasionally may be found in almost any tree species near roots or branches but is usually so limited in quantity and generally of such poor quality that it is considered a defect. In general, trees with figure concentrated in the butt or throughout lower portions appear no different from other trees in surrounding areas. Figured wood frequently may be present in poorly formed, damaged, or diseased trees but seldom in commercial quality and quantity.

Although larger tree size sometimes is associated with figure, small trees can exhibit intense figure as well. These figures often occur in leaning trees. Although bark abnormalities are used by trained observers as indicators of figure, attempted use of bark characteristics to detect figured trees is most times only partially successful.