S4S

The goal after getting rough cut lumber home from the hardwood dealer is to get it to S4S - surfaced four sides. An S4S board will have all four sides (we’re ignoring the ends for this discussion) straight, parallel to their opposite sides, and square to their adjoining sides. Getting rough wood to S4S takes a bit of work.

Milling wood (how woodworkers refer to this process of getting to S4S and then getting the pieces cut down to the rough size they’ll be working with) isn’t the most fun part of a woodworking project, but it does have its rewards. Consider the grain of the ash lumber in the photo accompanying this post. The bordering pieces framing the top and bottom of the photo are rough cut and frankly not that exciting to look at.

But the center piece is a different story. Planed down flat and smooth, this bit of ash tree is showing its stunning grain pattern. Dark ripples wash through the lighter bands like waves receding from a beach. Random squiggly lines twist and undulate until they give away the secret that there’s nothing random going on here after all. Buried in this ash tree, and never before seen until now, are miniature natural paintings depicting dunes of sand in a desert, eddies of water dancing in a river, or snow swirling in a storm.

Whichever it is, I think I’ll put this piece right at the front of the bookcase I’m making. It deserves to be seen.