Thread: How curly is this wood?

counting curl is a little OTT don't you think.

I've never come across it before. probably owing to the vast variance in type, direction, species etc etc.

Steve

I see what your problem is... its the metric tape measure

I am a (retired) PhD dendrologist (indulge my old mind).
Why do you care one whit about an unsubstantiated parameter of wood called "curl?"
While I can think of other curly bits which hold my interest, this is a new one.

Whoops. I made a mistake... Its curly jarrah, not curly tuart. It has sanding sealer on it, but has not yet been varnished, so its a bit darker than it will end up.

So...

At 2.5cm to the inch, can anyone tell me how much "curl" there in is this piece? Once I have an amount, I will better be able to count it up myself.

Cheers for your help.

Hi Splinter

your piece of "curly" Jarrah looks nothing like the piece I have -- I'll get a photo of mine tomorrow

Originally Posted by ian

Hi Splinter

your piece of "curly" Jarrah looks nothing like the piece I have -- I'll get a photo of mine tomorrow

here's a photo of a piece of Jarrah with what I think of as "curl" or wavey grain

I wouldn't call that "curl", instead I call that "fiddleback." To me, curl is a different thing. But all pedantry aside, no, it's not 11 waves. It's only 6 1/2.

The skinnier dark lines are where the tops of the waves are starting to curl back down and are temporarily running parallel to the surface, ie. the peaks of the waves. It's the wider dark lines that are the troughs. So each wave consists of one "shiny," one thin dark, one "shiny" and one wide dark line. (Although the thin dark can appear almost non-existent.)

I hope that makes sense?

Originally Posted by Skew ChiDAMN!!

I wouldn't call that "curl", instead I call that "fiddleback." To me, curl is a different thing. But all pedantry aside, no, it's not 11 waves. It's only 6 1/2.

I agree - I get about 6.

In terms of the description, even though it is more widely known as fiddleback, in WA that feature has been widely known as "Curl Jarrah" for at least the last 50 years. Even though it is not easy to work it has been prized as a furniture timber for many years. I remember 50 years ago when my dad fell a curly Jarrah the mill owner quarantined the whole log and sent premium packs of the timber off to have complete suites of bedroom and dining room furniture made up for wedding presents for his 3 daughters.

Here is another example

Do you realise what this thread is doing for my OCD? Next I think we need a way to categorize spotty bits in burl.

BTW, I agree with Skew, measure the high or low bits, not both. There is a case to be made for the straightness of the curl or its angle across the slab but that is another matter.

So thats why my count is double what it should be... I was counting both the highs and the lows. Doh!

I wonder how it got to be called Curly Jarrah in WA, but Fiddleback in the rest of OZ? Either which way, I have learnt some new things with these posts.

I very much appreciate all of the feedback and advice given. Top stuff! Cant wait to sand it down and give it a good lick of varnish!