The Way Wood Works -- What Every Woodworker Needs to Know About Wood.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 13 มิ.ย. 2024
- If you are a novice woodworker, this is stuff you absolutely need to know before you cut another board. If you’re a master craftsman, you know it well enough to understand that a quick review never hurts. And if you’re somewhere in between, this may fill in some important gaps. What I present here is the very foundation of wood technology; the way wood works as a construction material and the basic concepts you must keep in mind to get it to work for you.
Novice or master, please understand that these are the just the basics. Wood is an incredibly complex material, more than I could explain in a zillion videos. Additionally, there are hundreds of wood species each with different botanical, physical, and mechanical properties. If you would like to explore wood’s characteristics in depth, or just look up the properties of a single species, there is an amazing book that you should have. “The Wood Handbook: Wood as an Engineering Material” is published by the United States Forest Products Laboratory as a FREE service for those of us who rely upon wood and wood products for our livelihood and well-being. You can download a PDF copy free from our store at workshopcompanionstore.com/pr... or you can get it straight from the USFPS web site at www.fpl.fs.usda.gov/documnts/.... If you prefer a condensed version aimed at craftsmen and woodworkers - and if you’d like to support this channel - consider my book “Wood and Woodworking Materials” available here: workshopcompanionstore.com/pr... .
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#wood #technology #grain #movement #strength #sawn #plain #quarter #quartersawn #flat #direction #compressive #bending #stiffness #hardness #specific #gravity
Great video.... however.... in one segment you say that wood moves 4% across quarter grain and 8% across flat grain. In another segment, you say 3mm over 30cm for quarter and 6mm over 30cm for plain (flat) grain which works out to 1% for quarter and 2% for flat. So which is it? 4~8% or 1~2%?
Great observation. And actually, both sets of numbers are correct. This seems confusing, I know, but let me explain the science behind it. The figures that the US Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) publishes for radial and tangential expansion and contraction are the dimensional changes they observed when wood loses its “bound” water - all of it. A freshly-felled tree has two types of moisture content - free water, which fills the cells, and bound water, which saturates the cell walls. As the wood is being dried, it loses free water first. During this phase there is very little dimensional change. And once it’s shed of the free water, it will never again re-absorb it - unless you store the wood underwater for a very long period of time.
When it reaches about 26% moisture content (MC), wood begins to lose the bound water. This is where things started happening and they continued to happen until the wood reached 0% MC in the FPL ovens. During this phase, the wood shrank about 8% tangent to the annual rings and 4% radial to them.
I should warn you that these are averages, and they can be wildly different for specific species. Take beech, for example. The FPL found its tangential movement to be 11.9%! The radial movement of redwood is only 2.2%. The 8% and 4% numbers are what wood engineers use for guesstimation. They also describe the maximum amount of movement for most wood species - the movement that occurs between 26% and 0% MC. In the real world, the wood we use never gets that wet or that dry.
Kiln- and air-dried wood loses moisture until it reaches equilibrium with the relativity humidity (RH) in its immediate environment. Once it stabilizes, it will release or absorb about 1% MC for every 5% change in the RH. Here in my corner of Ohio, the average RH wanders between 40% and 70% during a typical year - a change of about 30%. Consequently, the moisture content of the wood in my barn wanders between 8% and 14% -- a change of about 6%. That’s 6% out of a possible 26%. So it doesn’t begin to move as much as it might if I lived in the place where the RH swung between 0% and 100%. Fortunately, there are no such places.
As you can begin to see, the calculations necessary to determine how much a given piece of wood might actually move in a given year are complex - you need to take into account not just wood species, but the climate in which that species exists. And what happens if you build a table in the Arizona desert and send it to a client in a Louisiana swamp? To overcome this complexity and uncertainty, craftsmen have developed a rule of thumb that works for most cases - for every 12" (30 cm) of width, allow for 1/4” (6 mm) of movement tangent to the rings and 1/8” (3 mm) radial to them. These numbers are purposefully larger than they need to be and will accommodate more movement than the wood is likely to display in a temperate environment - once again - in most cases.
I hope that clears things up.
Absolutely great explanation!... But unfortunately too much for my (unfortunately) small brain!... Easier to stick to plywood!?... 🤝🍻🖐️👍
@@WorkshopCompanion thanks a ton for that explanation (especially the last part, was already starting to type that up as I was reading and beat me to it :P )
Leaving a 6mm of room for expansion would seem like it would make for a wobble or shakiness to the construction, and when watching vids learning here it never is seems like people are avoiding clamping something firmly together, or making as exact a fit as possible. Is it just the case that the natural human inaccuracies of manual processes introduces enough "error" (so to speak) to allow for this expansion?
@@Sharkey007x Honestly, I don't believe those content makers really care about the science of it. They need to build something in order to produce the video for youtube. Once they know how to push the lumber through a table saw, or band saw, or know how to turn a router on, they don't care beyond that.....imo. They just want to make good looking content. This is honestly the most educational video I've watched in wood working, and I've watched a ton (outside the "How to (watch me) make [this]" vids).
@@WorkshopCompanion My lord, what a specialist. Thank you for this information
The author does like to from scratch, th-cam.com/users/postUgkxbnOKZBE4evMO5V2vroHeCjq6d_MV6wJO shaping and trimming wood from large blocks into fine finished products. As another reviewer mentioned, most projects require a lot of high-dollar equipment that most of us don’t have the room or budget for. But, knowing how to do these things, even if we won’t be able to practise the full stack project, is still great.
I have done some woodworks in the past but this woodwork plan th-cam.com/users/postUgkxZF0EMnrujZvqHhGkxiz559uIABJWR9TG helps me do much in a far lesser time than i used to do i have already built several projects with this plan and i intend to do many more soon. Thank you so much!
This may be some of the best content I've ever seen on TH-cam since this information channel came into my life in 2007-2008. You're pedagogic approach, proper enthusiasm and the love for your trade is really worth a Nobel Prize in the category of YouTubing. I'm a hobbyist woodworker myself and a educated as a mechanical engineer and this is such spot on delivery of what engineering and is all about - the application of knowledge. I almost feel honored that you've spent your time making this - you have such amazing teaching and communications gifts.
I love that word "pedagogic." I honed my teaching skills at the University of Cincinnati and thoroughly warmed to the idea of a workshop as the classroom and each class as an adventure in which in which we explored the relevant knowledge and discovered how to apply it. But this vid isn't just my doing. There is a spectacularly gifted producer/editor behind the camera -- Travis Blair -- that shares this vision. Thanks for noticing our modus operandi.
I couldn’t agree more. I’ve seen a number of articles that address this topic, but none as clear and helpful as this. Thank you for sharing your excellent knowledge!
@@shamu7014 Most welcome.
@@WorkshopCompanion I laughed at the brilliant way to show adding and removing moisture at th-cam.com/video/oZkYLVrTYe4/w-d-xo.html. My compliments to Mr. Blair.
@@WorkshopCompanion Thank you!
Did anyone else think this was hilarious? This guy is a damn gift. I have never been more educated and entertained.
This man should explain everything on TH-cam from now on.
Isn't that Neil deGrasse Tyson's job?
@@WorkshopCompanion :D
Woodworker for 35 years. I love the way he puts this stuff together! To the point without a bunch of jabbering. I learned something new everyday thanks to TH-cam and guys like this.
The best part is how I knew most of this already, but was laser focused on the information anyway. Solid video.
Awesome, thank you!
Absolutely indispensable information for woodworking ! The sad part: I must reconsider my woodworking skills ... I now know without a doubt, that I have none. The good news: I now know why my stupid doors stick in the summer and work great in the winter !
Love your presentations. Thanks from Canada.
As a forester, I appreciate this video. You did an excellent job presenting this often confusing material.
As a former woodwork teacher, I am very bloody impressed with your density and flow of information, Nick. Thank you!
With your permission, I would like to forward this video for classroom use to some teaching colleagues of mine, as a brilliant lesson or even a minor assessment task, could be planned from this video.
Kind regards from Australia,
Jason
Permission granted. Compliments bloody appreciated. A salient point, relative to your purpose, is that this vid is a distilled version of my opening lecture when I was teaching at the University of Cincinnati.
@@WorkshopCompanion Thank you sir! I knew you had to have taught. My colleague, a veteran of four decades in wood rooms, described this video as "One of the best teaching resources he's ever seen." I shall pass your preamble on to him. Our plan is to build an online quiz for the video and make it a minor assessment, early in it furniture making course, but really, this is adaptable to any year in high school, college, or uni, as you point out.
Thanks again,
Jason
@@jasondoust4935 Keep me informed. I'd like to be be involved, if I could. You are extremely lucky to be living in a country that values and teaches hands-on skills. Shop programs in my neck of the woods are an endangered educational species.
@@WorkshopCompanion my grandfather, father, and myself all went to the same highschool. We all took woodshop, I learned on the same my father did. In 2004 they tore the shop down and replaced it with computers and 3D printers. I was heartbroken. Thank you for making these videos and sharing your experience. You have the BEST content!
@@jimbusmaximus4624 Thanks for saying.
The sheer amount of comments which have been replied to directly by WC speaks volumes about the quality of this channel 😭
Great presentation. All relevant information, no fluff, confident and expressive delivery, just enough humor, and diverse visual demonstrations
Thanks.
That was amazing...and overwhelming, at the same time. A must rewatch to retain the info. Thank you for this. There is so much so many of us don't even consider when wood working.
This is a thinking man's (or woman's) craft; there is little doubt about that.
@@jeremiahbullfrog9288 Some, perhaps. But I learned blacksmithing from a farrier when I was much younger, and metalworking from a top-notch machinist when I started building airplanes. Both crafts require incredible amounts of skill, knowledge, and finesse, and most of the iron mongers that I've hung out with seem to understand this.
This man's content seems almost too good for the Internet. Hats off to you sir, appreciate your work. Love from Zambia 🇿🇲
Thanks, and right back at ya from Ohio.
I have several books written by Mr Engler, about 15-20 years old. Clearly written, easy to understand, and spot on as far as accuracy. He is a genius on anything wood. Thank you.
Most welcome, an thanks for the kind words.
Thank you so much for the free wood handbook, that's an amazing resource and the woodworking world will be so much better for having that information freely available. Again, thank you.
Good information presented here, what really got me was the hammer flip, had to replay it and busted out laughing 🤣🤣🤙
You, sir, yes you. I like you.
You bring a good dose of nutty, somewhat corny, professor vibes combined with actual, quality information, and I'm absolutely loving it.
Please keep doing what you do, the way you do it, because it's a joy to watch and learn from.
We'll try.
I was getting a little of the vibe of Belle's father in Beauty and the Beast (cartoon version). I'd like to hear you say "pass me that dog-legged clincher..."
In all seriousness though, great video.
What a great video! The more I learn, the more I realize I don't know. For instance I had no idea that relative humidity had that much impact on wood movement. Sure there is some, but to be able to calculate the amount to get an idea... That could come in handy on larger projects. I've got a lot to learn and I'm glad that Nick is here to help guide the way. Thanks Nick.
Aw, shucks...
Found the discussion of effects of relative humidity very interesting. I live in Florida and have had a particular problem with outdoor projects, now I know why.
@@UnsaltedCracker267 You live in an area of the country where there are wide swings in relative humidity and the moisture content of the wood rarely falls below 12%. Sure, there are going to be problems. If you're making outdoor furniture, consider Atlantic White Cedar. Not only does it do well in humid conditions,; it's resistant to salt water.
This is the first video I’ve seen from this channel and already I’m impressed!
I like the way you share your wisdom and your friendly nature. You have gain my respect and wood be more than happy to subscribe to your channel.
Thank you for your kind words, and by all means, subscribe! We have a seat reserved. ("...wood be more than happy..." Pun intentional, I'm sure...)
Same
@@bennygerow Welcome!
I agree that one must watch more than once but very informative.
My favorite channel for woodworking advice
I already understood the basics of wood movement, but I learned even more. Engler explains it very well.
Great video! Who would have thought I'd learn more from a video without any tools?
This guy is one of the best! And we get to drink from the fountain of his cornucopia of knowledge for FREE!
i think this is my favorite youtube video. the intro by itself is better than the last 20 movies ive seen
This video is so well made. Huge props to the creator, it was so easy to digest the information and I'm not even a woodworker.
Thanks for the kind words.
6:45 I got really scared for a sec!😅 You engulf your viewers into the world of your topic. First-time watcher!
Hands down - major value content right here.
i swear i learn more between you , mathew peach , and 731 woodworks than the next 12 woodworking channels combined.
Thanks.
This is one of the best "primer" videos on wood I have ever seen. It summarizes years of reading and experience, and summarizes them into a quick digestible format. 👍
Thanks for the kind words.
What a nice and easy to understand explanation 👏👏👏👏
Wow … it’s only recently I’ve started paying attention to my passions and I have discovered woodworking as one of them. I loved this video and for me it was jaw dropping… I never realised how complex it all was. I wish you had of been my school teacher sir as your passion is infectious.. I have subscribed and I look forward to delving into your channel.
Thanks for your kind words...and welcome!
YOU'RE AWESOME! you wouldn't believe how hard it is to get an explanation of the names of the wood boards I've collected over the years. The dark & heavy like walnut
With your extravagant haircut I thought you to be one of those youtube clowns.... Man was I wrong!
You really did change my approach on building anything from wood. I used to build without even considering your explanations due to not knowing about it.
Thank you for this video! Well done mate!
So much just clicked into place in my brain watching this. I thought I had a pretty good understanding of wood but a fair bit is new to me. Thanks for making this
Most welcome.
Having a passionate and enthusiastic teacher and great visuals makes for an excellent guide. Thanks for this,
You're most welcome.
Best shop teacher I never had 👍💯
Lovely video, engaging and informative! I can already tell I'll often be coming back to this for reference
A breath of fresh air. Subscribed two minutes in. Happy holidays!
Thanks...and welcome.
All the top comments brilliantly said it already, you've made such an insanely informative and entertaining lesson. Thank you
Most welcome.
This channel deserves many more subscribers.
What a great teacher.
Thanks for saying -- it's getting there.
Has to be the best and most informative video about wood I’ve seen! And i was just looking for information on grain orientation for a hatchet handle!
Much thanks, glade to be of help.
Thank you for the free link to the Wood Handbook! And thank you for making so much of your own content freely available!
Most welcome.
First time I've seen your videos, I'm 15 seconds into it and already I love it.
Then please, stick around for another 15 seconds -- it gets better.
Been a pipe organ builder the last 24 years, we work mainly with poplar, and white oak, with some cherry and walnut, cedar.
The older instruments typically had quartersawn sugar pine, spruce pipes, windchests and so forth.
It's always amazing how when we do a restoration or repair on an organ built in the 1890s and sanding or cutting into the wood the scent of sugar pine etc is strong even after well over 100 years!
They typically made sure to use knot-free boards, the wood pipes' boards might range from 3/16" thick" for the smallest pipes, 3/4 to an inch thick for the mid range pipes, and quite a bit thicker for the larger pipes.
When we installed a new organ in NY City, the old organ's largest wood pipes came back to cut up for boards to re-use to make new pipes from, the 100 year old boards were sugar pine up to 16 feet long, 1-1/2" thick and the largesr pipes were a good 30" deep, 20" wide.
I've always been amazed at the tonal qualities of clear spruce and pine. I have a 8-foot long piece of Sitka Spruce laid up to make some stringed instruments. When struck with a wood mallet, it rings like a bell.
I enjoyed the video and saved for future reference. I’m more the bird house person, but always looking to learn.
I have made a living working with metal all my life. I know very little about wood. This honestly is one of the most informative, best presented information pieces I have ever seen on you tube. Now I know what I don't know.
Thank you!
You're most welcome.
Great. Now the interwebs can read my mind! I watched yet another few hours of YT project videos, and I was yearning for the information you gave in this video... which magically appeared in my suggested list. Well done!! Thanks for the great info!
Most welcome. We'll reassign our clairvoyants to someone else's case now.
Nice job, sir. At first, given the closeness to Christmas, I thought I had stumbled in to Santa's workshop and the Head Elf giving the newbies a lecture before they went off to make wooden toys. Very enjoyable and educational format. Thanks.
There's usually a lot more horse-play that goes on when I have to address the elves.
Just found this channel, I’m going to save this show for my son. This info is priceless. It could save your life!
Not sure it's all that critical, but it certainly will save you some wood. Thanks.
Thank you! Learning the basic science behind any pursuit or hobby is well worth the time spent. Without a solid foundation any project crumbles.
Well said.
You are an excellent teacher. I like your style and appreciate your wit. Thank you for the tip on the book!
Most welcome.
You are TOO clever for me!... I will have to watch your video 10 times before I understand everything you explain!... But I promise to LIKE your video each time I watch it!!! Please give your loyal doggie a biscuit and a hug each time I watch your great video! ... At least 10! 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Bella says thanks...x10.
This channel imparts the most technical wood working knowledge than any other channel I've watched on TH-cam thus far. Great, informative content!
Thanks for saying.
Good Sir, thank you very very much for putting this together... like you said- there's a ton of sources for info on wood but few that make it easy to absorb !
I am an MBA grad that quit his corporate job and jumped into this vast ocean that is woodworking in the hopes of reviving a family business of furniture retail... Info like this gives me some confidence while approaching woodworking- which, frankly terrifies me with its low margin of error. Much much more comfortable with plywood; but wood working is what I consider 'the challenge' to overcome ! ✌️
If you're building a business, I can't stress overmuch the importance of networking. Join a professional woodworking organization and start asking questions. You will quickly find (1) you aren't the only one who has to deal with these problems and (2) for every problem, there are many solutions. Oftentimes, you can cobble together a solution for your specific problem by combining several different solutions that have already proven effective. You might take a look at the International Furnishings and Design Association for starters, but I would go down the list here: www.woodworkingnetwork.com/red-book/woodworking-industry-associations and see if there are any other associations that appeal to you.
Absolutely excellent! This is, without a doubt, the best presentation of this info to be found on the web. You are incredibly clear, supremely informative and wonderfully entertaining. Thank you so much for all the time and effort you obviously put into it. Bravo!
I should hire you as my agent. You're most welcome.
I could watch you read that book and still enjoy three video. You're quite the speaker and educator sir. Thank you for taking the time to make this video.
Geppetto, is that you? Wood is a wonderful medium. Thanks.
You sir, brought out the childhood love that I had for woodworking right back up to the surface. I just feel really warm and cozy watching this video for some reason... keep doing what you are doing!
That's the plan.
Once again, thank you for your experience, and explanations.
Recently discovered this channel. This guy’s great. Needs to put out a video on how to spin that hammer
The hammer spin was cool 😎
Perfection. The croquet comment had me chuckling for a while.
You have earned a subscriber. I love people who dive into the fine details that others avoid.
Thank you, and welcome.
Nick you would make the world’s greatest shop teacher! You speak and explain so clearly it’s like I should be paying for this! Thank you!
Most welcome. And thanks for the kind words.
Bravo!! This is one of the most informative videos I have yet watched about wood working. I have wondered about many of the things you mentioned already but finding content that was neither too in depth nor too superficial was close to impossible. Thank you for the great content, I just subscribed!
You're most welcome...and welcome!
Amazing knowledge!! Thanks for sharing.
This kind of video is exactly why I have not written off TH-cam completely. Great content... Thank you.
Most welcome.
I am a big fan. As a beginner who always want to learn and know science/technical details of "why" something happens - thank you for your educational content
Most welcome.
Extremely professional.
This guy is awesome! Info is priceless
I'm linking this video to anyone who questions the fact that wood can move as much as it does. I do hardwood flooring for a living and so many people are in disbelief when their home has giant gaps and or buckling planks because they can't stabilize the conditions
I've found that it's not only difficult for folks to believe how much the wood moves, but also how impossible it is to restrict the movement -- and how much damage they can do by attempting to restrict it.
Wow!
There is many with knowledge to be found on the internet but there is something about you and the way you present things that makes it come through and land in me with such ease and actual joy of learning.
Bless you and thank you for doing what you do.
Kind of you to say.
I found this informative. I have a collection of old Ww2 rifles with beautiful wood stocks. I can now understand how the woodworker made the wrist strong enough.
Once interviewed a craftsman who reproduced flintlock rifles. He would scour his patch of forest for hardwood limbs and roots with a slight bend, dry them, then carve the stock with the bend at the wrist. That way the grain ran straight through both the butt and the forestock.
Thank you for the information and link!
I'm not even much of a wood worker, and even I think this guy is awesome! Great stuff!
Thanks.
Great job thank you. Bow makers rejoice. Best I have ever seen
Thanks.
What a great primer in woodworking!
Thanks.
You’re exactly right: this is A LOT to digest. And as beautifully and clearly as you describe it, it’s still necessary for me to listen to it again. Imo, you are the very best at disseminating this basic woodworking info. I have many more of your vids to catch up on. So thank you for all you do for woodworking education.
Thanks for your kind words.
I have gained a significant amount of knowledge from you posts. Thank you for the free book!
You're most welcome, but it's real the Forest Products Laboratory that provided it.
I just want to say you have a gift and i am grateful you share it with the world
I don’t woodwork but your passion knowledge and delivery are inspiring
Thank you
Most welcome.
Only left to say is thanks, that was nice and very kind of you to share your knowledge with us.
FINALLY somebody talking about grain!
That is the beginning of a running joke at my shop -- when the younger craftsmen I work with do an imitation of me, they point their fingers in the air and say, "Wood has grain..."
Well what an interesting video, just goes to show that even a seasoned woodworker like me (40 plus years ) can still learn something, thank you
Reallly really well done. Dense. Well edited. Easy to understand. Thank you.
Most welcome.
Thank you for this video, this is probably the most informative video I've seen on wood itself ever. It adds a complicated dynamic to novice guys like me walking into a box store but it's wonderful to see that there is such depth when it comes to woodworking. Happy Holidays.
The same to you, and thanks for the kind words.
Man your videos are the only ones that I can't watch at any faster than normal speed. I need to slow down and even pause certain parts and think about what you said.
Absolutely worth any woodworkers time to watch this video . Very well done !!
Thanks so much for your recommendation!
This is my first time seeing one of your videos. I have to say you are an excellent presenter. Perfect balance of energy, delivery pacing and information density. Love it
Thanks.
This was well done. Artful, informative and insightful! Much appreciated Paul.
Thanks!
Simply amazing.
Thank you for this comprehensive information.
Now that was a terrific video Nick! Yet another one to bookmark for later viewing. As you have shown, wood is truly an amazing natural product. Thanks for this video.... 👍👍😉😉👏👏
You're most welcome.
I am currently binge watching your library. So much info crammed into a series of amazingly easy to digest videos.
Thank you. Kind of you to say.
"Something to consider when building your next canoe." I had to pause, get a good laugh in and head straight for the comments!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge!!!!!! I learned a lot today.
I LOVE your enthusiastic presentation
Thanks for saying.
I'm so glad this information is out there and being taught for future generations...