What is “Figured Wood”

When we talk about curly maple or quilted, spalted ect.. We are referring to the pattern in the grain of the wood. Not to be confused with the species of Maple.

Too name a few types of figure we see in Maples: Spalting, Burl, Flame, Quilt, Ray Flecks, Fiddleback, Crotch, Birdseye..

All these figures can have a bit of "curl" in them (which is that ripple effect you see) but not all can be Fiddleback. Fiddleback is classified as a uniform and straight “curl” going 90 across the grain direction having spacing between each “curl” less than a quarter of an inch. Highly sought after by Luthiers and found in the “instrument grade” wood.

What causes the curls?

Figure is often found at the base of the tree and one of the causes for curl is from the massive weight that these tree hold slurping up all that water and preserving it for drought months. With all that weight and gravity, creates tension at the base of the tree and with enough of it, the grain buldges out and creates curl in the sap wood.

🤠 Pretty neat eh!?