# Veneer Identification



## BigHink66 (Mar 16, 2013)

I have an antique round table. I thought it was all quarter sawn oak veneer. The apron under the table top is. The base appears to be solid oak.

Yesterday I decided to clean off the years of dust to get a good look at the top. I am not sure what type of veneer it is. There are light and dark lines arranged in a V shaped pattern. That is the wood grain forms a V. I still think it is oak, but I don't think I know the cut. It is not quarter sawn.

There are some chips missing, and I need to buy some material to replace those pieces. But first I need to identify it and determine how to finish it. I've thought about just using flat sawn oak and matching the best I can and using different color finish pens to blend it with the existing grain.

I am not sure if this is the finish that was applied by staining the wood using I think chlorine gas. I read a little about a technique that was something to that effect. I don't really want to attempt that route.

Any help with identification and finish tip would be great.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

The picture is really hard to see but if it's actually wood looks like tiger oak. A lot of times the tiger oak was faked with paint though.


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

This does not look like any tiger oak I've ever seen. The line are MUCH too regular to be tiger oak. For that matter, it doesn't look like ANY kind of oak from what little I can see of the pic but it's really hard to tell.

Can you get a better pic?


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## Hammer1 (Aug 1, 2010)

Some misson style furniture was fumed with ammonia, not chlorine. The top coat could be shellac. Rubbing with alcohol in an inconspicuous spot will soften and remove shellac. That veneer was book matched. Slices are taken and opened up like a book. Difficult to tell the species but any species can have unusual or distinctive grain patterns. These are very difficult to repair by finding matching veneers even if you could. The way to make a repair is to find similar grain direction and species match. Then it's techniques with artist paints and brushes, essentially painting in the little slashes, colors and other variable characteristics that will make the repair blend in. It ain't easy, especially on a table top that is so visible. You may need 5 or 6 colors, shading, blotting, two hair brushes, pins and whatever it takes to mimic the existing wood. Look at it with a magnifying aid to see the small detail that makes that grain look like it does. Try to avoid straight repair cuts that will show easily and unsealed edges that may soak in stain or paint.


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## BigHink66 (Mar 16, 2013)

Here is a better photo.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Definitely Tiger oak. The only question is, is it real of faked. Sometimes it's really hard to tell. If you plan to strip the finish, try it on a very small spot toward the back first. If you just want to touch it up I would burn-in the spot and add the grain with a graining pen.


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## BigHink66 (Mar 16, 2013)

How do I determine its real?

Is it worth fixing if faked? I could make a new top.

Where do I get rig e r oak veneer?


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## BigHink66 (Mar 16, 2013)

That blonde spot is where I scraped the finish off with a pocket knife.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

I'm sorry about being concerned about the table maybe being fake tiger oak. I came pretty close to ruining a table onetime that was faked and didn't realize it until I was stripping it and the grain came off in a spot about 12" in diameter. The finish on that table was so bad the customer wanted it off anyway. For a day or so I thought I was going to have to figure out how to fix the spot. I would use paint and varnish remover on as small of a spot as possible to find out if the tiger oak is faked. If it's faked you will find out quick. When it's faked they put down a base color and paint the grain on. Even if it's faked the table could be touched up and recoated and would be better than a new top. Since you have been scraping on it and see no real difference there is a real good chance it's real and can be refinished. 

A source for Tiger Oak would be veneersupplies.com http://www.veneersupplies.com/search.php?search_query=Tiger+oak&x=46&y=9


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## Rick Mosher (Feb 26, 2009)

It doesn't appear to be "tiger oak" or quarter sawn oak as I don't see any medullary rays. It looks like plain sliced oak that was sliced through the center of the "flames" to create a chevron pattern in the book matching. Very unusual these days but could have been a standard practice when the table was made.


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

Rick Mosher said:


> It doesn't appear to be "tiger oak" or quarter sawn oak as I don't see any medullary rays. It looks like plain sliced oak that was sliced through the center of the "flames" to create a chevron pattern in the book matching. Very unusual these days but could have been a standard practice when the table was made.


I absolutely agree that this is not tiger oak.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Steve Neul said:


> A source for Tiger Oak would be veneersupplies.com http://www.veneersupplies.com/search.php?search_query=Tiger+oak&x=46&y=9


That link looks like a source for Tiger Oak, but it still doesn't look like the sample in the post.









 







.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

cabinetman said:


> That link looks like a source for Tiger Oak, but it still doesn't look like the sample in the post.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


It's the same story with a burl or crotch veneer. There is a large variance in the appearance.


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## Wayne Dyas (Nov 12, 2012)

It looks like tiger oak to me too.


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

Wayne Dyas said:


> It looks like tiger oak to me too.


I can't imagine why. Notice the total lack of regularity in the flakes on your box vs the total regularity of the lines on the mystery veneer.


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## Wayne Dyas (Nov 12, 2012)

phinds said:


> I can't imagine why. Notice the total lack of regularity in the flakes on your box vs the total regularity of the lines on the mystery veneer.


Not all of it is cut from the same tree. Some tiger oak is more uniform than others. I think there is enough similarity to call Bighink 66's table tiger oak.


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

:laughing: 


I have an opinion... but I'm going get some popcorn and a coke and just gonna watch. :lol:


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

firemedic said:


> :laughing:
> 
> 
> I have an opinion... but I'm going get some popcorn and a coke and just gonna watch. :lol:


:laughing:


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## BigHink66 (Mar 16, 2013)

I sent the photo to a veneer supplier.

There thought is that its rift sawn white oak and arranged in a V pattern. The good news is that they also feel if I get them some dimensions they would have something that is close enough to work.

Here is a good picture on this website that I think confirms what they determined.

http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/oak, white/oak, white 1 s50 plh.htm

I'll just stain to match and then seal and glaze to improve the match. At least on replicating new leafs. For the repairs I'll get it as close as possible by matching grain and then using finish pens, try to blend it further.


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

BigHink66 said:


> I sent the photo to a veneer supplier.
> 
> There thought is that its rift sawn white oak and arranged in a V pattern. The good news is that they also feel if I get them some dimensions they would have something that is close enough to work.
> 
> ...


Yes, that is my web site that you pointed to for the picture and I certainly agree that it could well be rift cut oak.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Rift sawn white oak sure is a good match. :laughing:


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

phinds said:


> Yes, that is my web site that you pointed to for the picture and I certainly agree that it could well be rift cut oak.


How did I know this would be the outcome?


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

firemedic said:


> How did I know this would be the outcome?


Any popcorn left?:laughing:









 







.


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## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

cabinetman said:


> Any popcorn left?:laughing:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nope... That was gone yesterday!


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## BigHink66 (Mar 16, 2013)

firemedic said:


> How did I know this would be the outcome?


 
Maybe your psycho, I mean psychic.

Thanks to everyone. Especially the guys at Oakwood Veneers.

Like I said in the beginning it was difficult for me to tell what it was. For years I thought is was quartersawn, till I cleared the dust off to get a better look. Then I was baffled at what it actually was and I had the benefit of seeing it up close. Something the rest of you didn't.

I searched hi and low for any antique tables with a similiar pattern and found nothing. It seems to have been a rare pattern and veneer, or they were cheaper tables and made it all to the trash.

This one is worth fixing in my opinion. When its done I'll post an after pic.


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