Buying Wood

Bob Oswald replies: It’s difficult to impossible to detect this side effect. Wood has stresses in it and when you cut it apart by ripping, those stresses are relieved and the wood moves. Woods with a pretty straight grain are less likely to bend and bind than those with irregular or wavy patterns, but I have had straight grain pieces bind and squirrelly ones bind too. Your best protection is to use a splitter or riving knife on your saw.

Dave Emerson replies: Wood that has been dried properly, so that there are no tensions to be released in the wood from too rapid drying, rarely binds. It also helps if the wood is straight grained. Jay Legg (603-786-2319 leggslogs1@aol.com) has the best kilned wood I’ve ever used.