24 



Hardwood Record — Veneer & Panel Section 



May 25, 1917 



ture. A board is considered dry when it contains not Some users of quartered oak, especially those who buy 



more than 4 per cent of moisture. Suppose that it con- in small quantities, occasionally resaw lumber to get the 



tained 3 per cent at the surface and 5 to 6 per cent thin material they need for special purposes, and appear 



toward the center; in cutting out the veneers, there to think that they are "beating the game" by doing so., 



would be irregularity in the distribution, and in estab- But, as suggested in the foregoing, any analysis of actual 



lishing a balance, after the surface was exposed to the cost figures shows that the plan doesn't work out. It 



atmosphere there would be a tendency to warp. In looks good superficially, but the proposition won't stand 



fact, trouble is experienced not infrequently from this examination. It is not logical to believe that when special 



very source. machinery, operated by experts, has been designed to do 



The plan used at the veneer mill seems by all odds the a certain thing, and when this system has resulted in the 



best. The veneer is cut out of green material, and is then almost universal use of the product of this equipment, 



dried. This is accomplished uniformly, so that when the another way, involving greater waste of material, and 



drying is completed, all of the material is dry, not simply with less assurance of accuracy, is going to produce better 



part of it; and all of it is dried just to the same degree. results. 



This is more readily controlled when mechani'-,al 

 methods are used, but in any drying system the general 

 result is uniformity. This is something which could 

 hardly be claimed for the other plan, and the resawed 



The moral of the situation is that in attempting to 

 "put one over " and save somebody's profit by perform- 

 ing work which is usually done in another way, the 

 manufacturer first makes sure that he knows what it is 



stock might or might not give satisfaction in this respect. costing him. Unless he knows the actual expense of 



The user would certainly be taking a chance. producing in that fashion, and unless he includes all of 



There is one justification for resawing lumber into the items which legitimately belong in this category, he 



veneers, instead of buying the latter, and that is inability is likely to have the doubtful satisfaction of taking pains 



to get the material. Veneers are scarce, and have been to produce something of inferior quality which could have 



for some time, and traffic conditions are not favorable been bought more cheaply from another source. 



to prompt deliveries. The consumer may be up against 

 it now and then for thin stock, and in this event the plan 

 of resawing lumber would serve. But it would be done 

 then not as a means of saving money, but in order to 

 meet an emergency. And in figuring costs no attempt 

 would be made to disregard items of expense which 

 actually pertained to it. 



One of the big items of expense of operating a resaw 

 is its maintenance. it takes a good filer to keep equip- 

 ment of this kind in operation every day, doing good, 

 dependable work, and when the proper kind of labor is 

 not available, the work suffers. In fact, the manufac- 

 turer whose methods were outlined at the beginning of 

 this article indicated that he was not always able to get 

 four pieces of eighth-inch stock out of every inch board, 

 for in some cases only three were obtainable. This sug- 

 gested a variation which could be explained only by 

 assuming that the resaw was not cutting accurately. If 

 it was not doing accurate work, then variations in thick- 

 ness were being introduced which would have to be made 

 up for on the sander, and while this is one way of getting 

 results, the better way is to get the thickness right in the 

 first place. 



G. D. C. Jr. 



The Rice Veneer & Lumber Company, Grand Rapids, Mich., 

 has increased its capital from $4,000 to $6,300. 



L. P. Groffman of the St. Louis Basket & Box Company, St. 

 Louis, Mo., and O. C. Lemcke, Underwood Veneer Company, 

 Wausau, Wis., represented the panel and veneer manufacturers 

 before the Western Classification Committee, Transportation 

 building, Chicago, on Wednesday, May 23, in a hearing to develop 

 a more fair classification for veneers and panels than that proposed 

 by the committee. As they reported after the hearing, it is prob- 

 able that the committee will adopt their suggestions giving veneers 

 and panels of other than foreign woods classification in Class B 

 rather than as taking lumber tariffs. 



The Evansville Veneer Company Has Flag 

 Raising 



Popular subscription among the employes of the Evansville 

 Veneer Company, Evansville, Ind., resulted in sufficient funds to 

 purchase an 8x12 flag, which was raised on a ninety foot pole 

 last week. The raising of the flag was attended with fitting 

 ceremonies, the force being let out at 4:30 in the afternoon for 

 the occasion. Three men each week are delegated to take 

 care of the flag, which is raised at 6:30 in the morning and 

 lowered at 5 :30 in the afternoon. 



li.Mrr.oYKS OF TIIK EVANSVII.KK VKNKKi: i'n.MrANV. KVAXSVIl,!.!-:. IXIi.. OX (H'l'ASloN nV IL,\); IIAlSIXi; LAST WKKK. 



