10/13/2026
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🇺🇸 Three main methods of cutting logs (round logs), along with the wood grain patterns produced by each method.
Here is a complete explanation of the image:
1. Plain-Sawn (Flat-Sawn)
This method is the most common and fastest way of cutting, and it produces the least amount of wood waste.
• Cutting Patterns: The log is cut repeatedly in parallel from one side to the other in straight cuts.
• Grain Patterns:
• The growth rings intersect the surface of the wood board, forming irregular curved patterns (such as cathedral or wavy shapes).
• The growth rings on the end grain of the board tend to run uphill or downhill relative to the board surface.
2. Quartersawn
This method cuts the wood by first dividing it into four sections (quarters of the log) before slicing each section into boards.
• Cutting Patterns: The log is split into four sections, then each section is cut diagonally toward the center of the growth rings.
• Grain Patterns:
• The growth ring patterns appear parallel to the edge of the wood board.
• The growth rings intersect the edge surface of the board, leaving thin, irregular curved shapes.
• The growth rings on the end of the board form a nearly perpendicular angle, between 60° and 90°, relative to the board surface. This method produces wood that is highly stable and less prone to warping.
3. Rift-Sawn
This cutting method produces the most structurally stable wood boards, but the process is the most complex and generates the most wood waste.
• Cutting Patterns: The wood is cut radially from the center of the log, with each cut made at a specifically adjusted angle so that it remains perpendicular to the growth rings.
• Grain Patterns:
• The growth ring patterns run parallel to both the edge and the surface of the board, producing a very consistent straight-line appearance (linear grain).
• The growth rings on the end of the board form an angle between 30° and 60° relative to the board surface.
Understanding the orientation of the growth ring angles relative to the board surface—whether through the efficiency of plain-sawn, the dimensional stability of quartersawn, or the aesthetic linearity of radial rift-sawn—is an absolute key for a craftsman in controlling the hygroscopic movement of wood to ensure the structural strength and lasting beauty of a woodworking masterpiece.
