Hard, stiff with high shock resistance. Significant shrinkage while drying. Season carefully to avoid checking and warping. Rift cut oak ranks moderate in decay resistance but can be treated. Rated above average on usage with hand or machine tools, although shaping can be difficult because of the coarse grain.
USAGE:
Rift cut oak's main uses in the United States include flooring, furniture, millwork, boxes and crates, caskets and coffins, agricultural implements, boats and woodenware. The lumber is also used for building and construction. Rift cut oak is used extensively for doors and panels, and home furnishings, especially home entertainment units/ television cabinets.
POPULARITY:
See Oak factsheet
RIFT CUT:
Rift-cut veneer is produced from the various species of oak. Oak has medullary ray cells which radiate from the center of the log like the curved spokes of a wheel. This straight grain cut is at a slight angle to the medullary rays in oak to minimize ray fleck (flake).
RECOMMENDATIONS:
We color sort and grain sort according to what we receive from our supplier. This can vary, depending on the time of year purchased and from what region our supplier has purchased and from what region our supplier has purchased the material. Make sure you get current color and grain patterns, within a month of your order being built.
The rift red oak normally runs a little pinker and harder to select for consistent color. This same problem occurs with the rift white oak, expect the white oak is grayish and usually even harder to select than the red. The quarter-sawn lumber is selected out as much as possible.