Case Hardening 101 ........

[BuzSaw]

Started this post in response to thread on White Oak board cupping after resawing. This is what I have experienced and know avoid after some simple research.
This web site pretty well tells you all you need to know.


case hardening test and info

[Paul K. Murphy]

An interesting page.
Honeycombing is the worst of the defects shown. When that one strikes, there is no cure. Usually no salvageable material can be found. A plank can look perfectly sound and free of defect and be nothing but ruined wood on the inside.

[packerguy®]

Thats a cool article.

Ive had honeycomb red oak.

[ianab]

packerguy® said:

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Thats a cool article.

Ive had honeycomb red oak.

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I've got some some Eucalyptus boards that have ALL those defects, in the same board And that's after careful air drying.

I think it's called Eucalyptus firewoodus.

[MichaelMouse]

packerguy® said:

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Thats a cool article.

Ive had honeycomb red oak.

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Woods with distinct ray figure are most vulnerable, as they are a plane of weakness. Note the pattern indicated in number 9 is radial. Those of us who split firewood with a maul enjoy the ease of splitting oak and beech at the end of a session, while we leave that stinking elm and twisted birch for another day when we're fresh.

[Robert Adams]

Good article. Lots of good pics and drawings. I can't think of any wood I have bought in the last 10 years that wasn't full of all of those issues.

The most common I have seen is case hardening followed by honeycombing in oak. I have gotten some boards so bad the cracks were up to 1/4 or more covering nearly from edfe to edge and you could see the out the board.

The lumber drying is done so fast now to increase production that the quality is pretty bad now.

[brnhornt]

Thanks! I'll give the prong test a go on the remaining board and post my results....