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Underneath the Face Veneer 



More tlian tlie usual amount of attention of the veneer and cabinet 

 world is now being centered upon the core body, the wood that goes 

 underneath the face veneer. Ths most marked feature of the present 

 tendency is to make the core body and the back veneer of the same 

 kind of wood as tlie face veneer though obviously not of the same 

 quality. 



There are two angles from which this idea is considered with 

 favor. One is that of the man selling the goods, who finds an appeal 

 in the idea that though it is built-up work, the wood is the same 

 kind all the way through. The other angle is that of the technical 

 man who contends that for ideal conditions in gluing and in holding 

 together glued-up work, tlio core body should be of the same wood as 

 the face veneer so that it may bo uniform as to porosity, shrinking 

 qualities, etc. 



The selling man 's viewpoint is the strongest card, having the under- 

 body of the same material as the outer face. Thus if a man has a 

 piece of furniture done in mahogany he advertises the fact that it 

 is veneered or built-up and at the same time features the claim that 

 it is solid mahogany; the underbody is maliogany as well as the face 

 veneer, the only purpose of veneering being to get better construction 

 and the finest of the wood for the face. 



It requires no stretch of the imagination to see how this appeals 

 as a selling point. The appeal perliaps is strong enough to make 

 it worth the additional cost of securing low-grade mahogany for the 

 core body. The same might be said of quartered or plain oak. 



As to the technical side of the question, the argument 'that by 

 using the same wood better results can be obtained in the use of 

 glue and more satisfaction generally, presents room for considerable 

 argument. To carry out this sclieme consistently and get the real 

 benefit claimed, the heavy center or core body must be of the same 

 wood as the face veneer, and the back of tlie same wood. If it is a 

 fine job calling for cross banding underneath the face veneer, the 

 cross banding itself should be of the same wood. 



That is where complications enter and room is made for argu- 

 ment. It may be the ideal thing theoretically to glue a face 

 veneer of oak, for example, on top of an oak board, or a built-up oak 

 core body with the grain of each running the same direction, for 

 then we have a wood uniform in porosity on wliich tlie same glue takes 

 properly to both the core body and the face veneer. 



In practice, however, it is generally somewhat different from this. 

 There is usually under the face veneer, as cross banding, a sheet of 

 thin veneer running at right angles. Perhaps even though turned at 

 right angles the oak cross banding would be nearer the ideal for 

 gluing with oak face veneer than some other wood, but there is room 

 for some argument there. 



The nearest thing to the ideal in cross banding is poplar or bass- 

 wood, and following these in the way of substitutes for the sake of 

 saving in cost, cottonwood and gum. Chestnut is used at times, espe- 

 cially where the face veneer is oak and glue is used of sufficient 

 density to make a good joint. 



All that is necessary to fulfill the technical requirements in glue 

 work is to have a core and a cross banding that will glue well with 

 the same kind of glue. It should be practical to secure these condi- 

 tions without confining one's self to the narrow limit of using exactly 

 the same kind of wood for the core body or the cross banding that 

 is used in the face veneer. 



Of course there still remains the other technical problem of shrink- 

 age, involving the behavior of the core body and the cross banding 

 underneath the face veneer. Some woods, if not thoroughly dried 

 and afterward protected from the absorption of moisture from the 

 air, will swell and shrink and cause blistering or checks in the face 

 veneer. This is especially true if the face veneer goes directly on 

 top of a heavy core body and the grain runs in the same direction. 



Where cross banding is used underneath the face veneer, and this 

 should be every wliere where a really good job of built-up work is to 

 be done, it acts as a restraining influence upon the warping tendencies 

 of the core body and alters the relation of shrinkage of the under 



body as compared to tlie face veneer, because even if the cross band- 

 ing is of the same wood as the face veneer it crosses it at right 

 angles and its tendency to shrink would be in the other direction. 



The problem of shrinkage is one that should bo taken care of in 

 the drying and in preparing stock before using. It should be 

 practical to provide a core body and cross banding that will take 

 glue well in conjunction with the face veneer without its being in any 

 way imperative to use exactly the same kind of wood as the face 

 veneer. 



This leaves for consideration mainly the commercial side of the 

 matter, the advertising and soiling value due to having a piece of 

 furniture of the same wood throughout, even tliough it is veneered or 

 built-up. Some day this i)oint may not be considered of material 

 value in the selling game, but at the present time it seems to carry 

 weight, or people think it does, which amounts to the same thing. 

 With each man it becomes a question of whether or not it can be done 

 without adding too much to the cost. Incidentally, it will furnish an 

 opportunity to clean up low grades in mahogany, quartered oak, and 

 any other woods from which face veneer is made. 



Advices Uncertain as to British Hardwood 

 Restriction 



A very important development to the hardwood industry, which is 

 receiving careful study at the State Dejiartment, is the British order 

 prohibiting the importation of hardwoods except under license by the 

 British Board of Trade. There is no question as to the right of 

 Great Britain to issue such an order and the only ground on which 

 a protest can be made is that the order unnecessarily interferes with 

 an important American industry. 



Pending advices from home, the British embassy in Washington 

 declines to comment on the situation, but it is understood from those 

 in close touch with the British embassy that the Board of Trade lias 

 been instructed to be fairly liberal with its licenses. Judging from 

 a message, said to have been received at the embassy, and containing 

 few details, it is understood that the government intends that im- 

 ports shall be curtailed only to the extent of twenty-five per cent- 

 There is no guarantee, however, that this curtailment may not 

 become more sweeping at any time. 



It is the understanding of the tiade advisers of the State Depart- 

 ment that the step was taken more with the idea of providing addi- 

 tional space in vessels than for the purpose of curtailing so-caUed 

 expenditure for luxuries. With the constantly increasing need for 

 food stuffs, munitions, cotton and other articles of prime necessity, 

 the matter of securing adequate room in ocean bottoms is becoming 

 a serious one. 



The Interstate Commerce Commission is very busy digesting the 

 answers received to its lumber questions. The results are being tab- 

 ulated. Cards are being used to index certain features of the tabu- 

 lation. This feature alone requires the use of 15,000 cards, which 

 gives an idea of the complex nature of the task. Plans have been 

 made to reduce the information to concisely arranged tables which 

 will make its significance clear almost at a glance. 



If the furniture manufacturers would just get the spirit of prepar- 

 edness by the right end and take it home to themselves it would mean 

 a return to the good old practice of buying a liberal stock of lumber 

 ahead of their needs. This would mean not only safety against lack 

 of raw material in time of a rush, but a good and safe investment 

 proposition besides. 



Some idea of the importance of the proper crating of furniture may 

 be had from a report made at a southern furniture meeting by a 

 representative of the Southern Eailway, who said he had claims for 

 damage in transit on furniture during the year 1914-15 amounting 

 to $81,568.86. He said that much of this is due to carelessness in 

 crating the furniture. 



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