Face Grain vs Edge Grain for Outdoor Countertop

[TomInNC]

I'm nearing completion of the frame for an outdoor kitchen island that I have been working on, and it's time to make some decisions about the top. The legs are 4x4 sapele, and the rails are 3 inches wide made from 8x4 sapele. 

For the top I was initially planning on doing an edge grain lamination to get a top that would be 2 inches or so thick. After thinking about just how much lamination this is going to require, I am wondering if I would be better off just making a face grain top. The 8/4 is pretty straight and was a bit oversized to start with, so I could probably get pretty close to 2 inches in thickness with far less gluing. The top will not be a cutting surface. As I understand it, if you are not cutting on the top, the primary advantage to using edge grain is stability. Should I be concerned about 8/4 sapele warping significantly if it is outside? For what it's worth, the piece will primarily be in a covered area that is shielded from the elements. The hardwood dealer also currently has 12/4 sapele, but that might be overkill. 

[Chestnut]

I'd check your sapele and make sure it's not already rift or quarter sawn. A lot of these woods get imported as such as it provides more of the grain and look that people desire. If the wood is close to rift or qtr sawn, it's already "edge" grain and ripping strips rotating them 90 degrees would be creating a face grain block.

Additionally sapele is a pretty stable wood and I don't anticipate that it being necessary to do any thing other than a face grain glue up in the event that you do have 100% face grain material.

[TomInNC]

On 2/15/2023 at 12:33 PM, Chestnut said:

I'd check your sapele and make sure it's not already rift or quarter sawn. A lot of these woods get imported as such as it provides more of the grain and look that people desire. If the wood is close to rift or qtr sawn, it's already "edge" grain and ripping strips rotating them 90 degrees would be creating a face grain block.

Additionally sapele is a pretty stable wood and I don't anticipate that it being necessary to do any thing other than a face grain glue up in the event that you do have 100% face grain material.

Thanks. I never would have thought of that. The grain on the Sapele is really, really straight. Is this description from FHB an accurate way to try to identify quarter and riftsawn stock: "Quartersawn lumber will have straight, uniform grain on two sides—the top and the bottom. Rift-sawn lumber will have that same straight, uniform grain on the top and bottom, but will also have nice parallel grain on the two edges."

 

 

 

https://www.finehomebuilding.com/2018/07/10/quartersawn-wood-rift-sawn-wood-explained

[curlyoak]

Quartered lumber is identified by looking at the end of the board. If the end grain is vertical then it is quartered. Like said above flat sawn (not quartered) sapele makes a nice top quartered or not. Another possibility using 4/4. Make the 4/4 top about 6" wider than you need. Then rip off 3" from each side. Then if you hold the ripped piece where it was before you ripped it and then roll it under you will end up with a book matched edge. I'd want to bread board the ends with the 8/4 milled to the thickness of the doubled up book matched edges. 

But a 8/4 top on its own is beautiful...

[TomInNC]

Thanks. Looks like the build time just got shorter. That doesn't happen much.