The Making Of Timber Doors

By Author: Norbert Grimshaw
Total Articles: 1
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The changes in the way timber doors are made has been significant in recent times. At one time the doors were made using solid wood and the quality of the finished door was determined by the quality of the materials used.

The changes in the way timber doors are made has been significant in recent times. At one time the doors were made using solid wood and the quality of the finished door was determined by the quality of the materials used.

Changes to the way timber doors are made

Because doors are no longer made from solid wood and are now manufactured by using veneers around a lightweight core, there has been an explosion of choice and variety for the consumer. Door are no longer made exclusively from pieces traditional hardwoods like oak and beech, but can also have parts of the door made from quick growing woods from managed forests. Oak doors for example will not now be made from solid oak, but will use oak veneers instead.

Use of veneers on timber doors

The way timber veneers are used has improved over time and now doors are made using wood in a more efficient and less wasteful way. Veneers ...
... are thin slices of wood cut from a log, and there are several different ways of slicing to produce a different figuring even from the same log. Common forms of veneer slicing within door manufacture are:

Rotary cut. The veneer is peeled from the log by a sharp blade as if unwinding a roll of paper. Rotary cut veneer can be very wide and long in single pieces.

Flat cut or crown cut. The log is cut in two lengthways and then the veneer is sliced from the outer edge in towards the original centre of the log in increasingly wider slices. Crown cut veneer produces a flowery figured grain effect.

Quarter cut. The log is cut into quarters lengthways and then the veneer is sliced at a 90 degree angle to the direction of the growth rings. This produces a straighter more regular grained effect.

Being able to create alternative veneers has meant that door designs can be more interesting and have more aesthetic appeal. This has meant that doors can be a more integral part of interior design, becoming part of the décor instead of a functional but necessary item. The changes to the way timber doors are made has not only changed the way we look at doors, it has brought them within the budget of most people who have an interest in how their living space looks.
Resource: http://www.jbkind.com/cat_name/timber-types.aspx