32 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



Utilization of HardWoods 



ARTICLE XLVIIl 

 CASKETS 



The casket mamifaoturing industry, while 

 perhaps not attractive to the average person, 

 is a sufficiently important consuming trade to 

 justify a keen interest in its operations on 

 the part of the hardwood man. Single fac- 

 tories in this line frequently use as much as 

 2,500,000 feet of lumber a year, principally 

 high-grade hardwoods, while it is estimated 



In the cheaper lines of caskets, which range 

 from $30 to $100, a large quantity of chest- 

 nut and pine is used, but the styles which 

 bring the best profit are the hardwood caskets 

 made from selected stock. Casket factories 

 are usually located in hardwood districts from 

 which casket stock can be procured, thereby 

 saving freight and hauling expense. Fre- 



-TIIE FINEST CASKET EVER 



PRODUCED." SOIJD MAHOGANY ELABORATELY 

 HAND CARVED 



that the industrj' as a whole consumes annu- 

 ally easily 30,000,000 feet of hardwood stock. 



The coffin manufacturer restricts his choice 

 but little in selecting lumber for use in the 

 different grades of caskets, and practically 

 every hardwood in the world is used in one 

 form or another. Hardwoods are, of course, 

 desirable on account of the necessity of sup- 

 plying a casket which is durable and water- 

 tight. 



Being proof against moisture is one of the 

 prime requisites, and consequently specifica- 

 tions for stock as given out by t)-i manufac- 

 turers include the requirement o» absolute 

 dryness. Green stock has no place in a casket 

 factory, and the harder and drier the lumber 

 the better the results obtained. Probably 

 more care is taken on this point than on any 

 other. 



Plain oak, quarter-sawed oak, mahogany, 

 walnut, poplar, basswood and teakwood are 

 some of the most extensively used hardwoods ; 

 the latter wood is especially desired on ac- 

 count of its practically indestructible charac- 

 ter. Teakwood, however, is obtained only in 



quently, however, the wood is bought from 

 lumoer companies which are situated conven- 

 ient to the casket plant, and may therefore 

 deliver the timber to the factory at a mini- 

 mum expense. 



The stock is rough-surfaced, but is in board . 



and the custom among the manufacturers is 

 to have only one planer at each plant. How- 

 ever, the single planer is of immense size and 

 can surface 20,000 feet of lumber daily, 

 which is practically twice the consumption of 

 the plant, thereby leaving an ample supply 

 of planed stock for the next day 's use. 



From the planer the casket stock moves to 

 the dimension saws. There is a wide assort- 

 ment of these saws used in cutting the planed 

 boards into suitable lengths and widths. Cut- 

 off saws, edgers, stickers and sanding ma- 

 chines make up the equipment in the dimen- 

 sion department. The customary sizes for 

 the boards are six feet long and about twenty 

 inches wide. Pine is sawed to four-quarter 

 dimensions, and all other woods are sawed 

 from four to six quarter thicknesses. The 

 machines in the dimension department of a 

 casket plant are operated by individual 

 motors, direct connected, and all reliance 

 upon a central power plant is abolished in 

 this way. 



A force of experienced cabinet makers next 

 takes a hand in the casket making. Cabinet 

 work of the highest form is required in a 

 casket manufacturing plant, for every joint 

 of the box must be absolutely tight-fitting 

 and smooth. The next step in the manufac- 

 ture of high-grade hardwood caskets, which 

 are usually more or less ornamental, is the 

 carving, much of which is done by hand by 



RICHLY CARVED CASE IX QUARTERED tNGLlSII WHITE OAK 



form and is as dry as possible. Either sea- 

 soned stock or timber in a dry condition, suit- 

 able for shipping, is bought by the casket 

 manufacturer, and stock which is not as dry 

 as the proverbial bone, is subjected to a thor- 



A PLEASING DESIGN WHICH IS MADE IN A VARIETY OK WOODS AND FINISHES 

 foreign countries, and American casket con- ough drying in kiln. The wood, after being 

 cerns experience considerable difficulty in ob- thoroughly dried, is in rough form and is also 

 taining sufhcient quantities of it to sell at a in original boards of various lengths, 

 reasonable price, and thus make a teakwood After passing through the dry kiln the 



casket one of the staples in the market. stock is transferred to the planing machine, 



skilled operatives. The hand-carving is do- 

 partmentized thoroughly. One operative cuts 

 the fancy scroll work *on the corners of the 

 box alone, while another carves the lid, and so 

 on. The ornamental moulding is all pressed 

 by machinery, and the different designs, in 

 suitable lengths, are affixed to the coffin, to 

 correspond witli the design of the scrolled 

 corners. When the caskets have passed 

 through the woodworking department they are 

 separated into two classes, those to be cloth- 

 covered and those to be varnish finished. The 

 caskets which are to be covered with cloth 

 are removed to a department where this work 

 is done, and a large force of workmen is 

 employed in stretching various grades of 

 Ijroadcloth and velvet over the numerous 

 curves and crevices of the casket. A walnut 

 or oak casket is usually carved heavily 

 throughout, as the hardness of the wood per- 

 mits a very fancy design to be engraved 

 upon the corners, etc., and the cloth coverers 

 literally "have their work cut out for them" 



