Technical guide
Wood quality grades
There are four types of wood: R1/3, R5/7, R8 and R11. R1/3 and R5/7 wood is considered PREMIUM or AAA wood, that is, model grade wood; the other two, R8 and R11, are more standard wood.
Choose one grade to see it on its own, or several to compare them.
| PREMIUM (MODEL GRADE), AAA OR FIRST-GRADE WOOD | STANDARD WOOD | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defects | R 1/3 | R 5/7 | R8 | R 11 | |
| Density: | 4 to 14 lbs/ft³ · 64 to 224 kg/m³ | 4 to 7 lbs/ft³ · 64 to 112 kg/m³ | 7 to 14.9 lbs/ft³ · 112 to 238 kg/m³ | 4 to 7 lbs/ft³ · 64 to 112 kg/m³ | |
| Heart | Internal | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted |
| Sound | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | |
| On edges | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | |
| On the face | Not accepted | Not accepted | Max. 1/16" | Max. 1/8" | |
| Cork | Granulated-Fractured | Not accepted | Accepted 1 face/1 edge | Not accepted | No limit |
| Soft-Not fractured | Accepted 1 face/1 edge | No limit | Accepted | No limit | |
| Knots | Hollow | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted |
| Sound | Not accepted | Max. 1" | Maximum 2" Ø | Max. 21" | |
| Shadow | Not accepted | Max. 1 1/2" | Maximum 3" Ø | Max. 3" | |
| Pin knots | Max: 1/4" (6.35mm) Ø. No limit | No limit | Max: 1/4" (6.35mm) Ø. No limit | No limit | |
| Bird's eyes | No limit | No limit | No limit | No limit | |
| Pinholes: Max. 1/16" | White | 10/piece max. | 10/piece max. | No limit | No limit |
| Black | Not accepted | 3/piece max. | 10 / piece | No limit | |
| Worm holes: 3/32" to 1/8" | Not accepted | 1/piece | Yes. Ensuring the good appearance of the piece | Yes | |
| Honeycomb | Maximum 1/32" at the edge | Maximum 1/32" at the edge | Maximum 1/8" 50% of thickness or width | Max. 1/8" 50% thickness or width | |
| Honeycomb cluster | Not accepted | Not accepted | Maximum 1/16" | Max. 1/16" | |
| Splits | At the ends | Tight: Max. 2 of 1/16" at the edge | Tight: Max. 2 of 1/16" at the edge | No | Max. 1/8" |
| On edges | Not accepted | 3 / 1/32" | Tight: Yes max. 3" | Max. 1/8" | |
| On faces | Not accepted | 3 / 1/32" | Tight: Yes max. 3" | Max. 1/8" | |
| Stains | Brown and discoloration | Superficial, light 1/face, 1/edge | Yes, without spotting | No limit | No limit |
| AF | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | |
| Blue | Superficial: Very light, affecting 1 face 1 edge | Medium: Face or edge | Light, affecting 1 face 1 edge. Max. 30% of the strip's cross-section | No limit | |
| Mineral | Light: 1 face/1 edge | Light: 1 face/1 edge | Light | No limit | |
| Hook marks | ACCEPTED Max: 1/8" on face and edge | ACCEPTED Max: 1/8" | — | ACCEPTED Max: 1/8" | |
| Thickness defects | ACCEPTED Max: 1/8" | ACCEPTED Max: 1/8" | — | ACCEPTED Max: 1/8" | |
| Open glue lines | Between Face/Edges | — | — | Max. 2 per block (Only 1 per face/edge) | — |
| — | — | Max. 0.118" (3mm) high x 2" (50.8mm) wide x 10% of block length | — | ||
| Wane | — | — | Thickness 3" to 4": Max: 1" Thickness 1" to 2 1/2": Max: 1/2" | — | |
| Rot | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | |
| Water heart and collapse | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | |
| Fractures or cracks | Perpendicular to the grain direction | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted | Not accepted |
| Warp, Glue filling | — | — | Not accepted | — | |
—: this grade does not include this specification.