Analyzing wood species grain and sawing methods here s a long and complex but very informative thread that starts off with a wood identification problem moves into a discussion of wood pore structure and then takes off on an interesting tangent about quartersawing flatsawing and other methods for piecing out a log.
Tight grain hardwood.
That s why white oak works so well for whiskey barrels and outdoor furniture.
Contemporary minimalist or modern.
White oak plywood has a tight grain and is a different species than red oak.
Minimal grain extremely tight color range in highest grades.
Its tight grain and hardness makes it a popular wood for gymnasium floors cutting boards and the heels of women s shoes.
Creamy white in highest grade.
When close grained wood is cut into lumber it has the appeal of being smooth and without the irregular characteristics of wide grained woods.
Used where minimal grain or pattern is desired.
The sapwood is light colored and the heartwood is light to dark brown.
Difficult to stain evenly.
Hickory carya spp the first strictly american hardwood species since it survived the glacial epoch some 50 million years ago.
A clean and contemporary hardwood floor.
Wide variation in lower grades.
White oak is mostly straight grained with a medium to coarse texture with longer rays than red oak.
12 harder than red oak.
Lignum vitae a hardwood native to the west indies has the finest grain of any wood known and an ironlike density.