ACTUAL MEASURE Actual net measurement of a piece of timber as opposed to the nominal measurement.
AFFORESTATION To plant trees on land not previously forested.
AIR DRIED OR AIR SEASONED Timber dried by exposure to the natural atmosphere in the open or under cover without artificial heat.
ALL HEART Heartwood throughout, free of sapwood; particularly referred to as a grade in Californian redwood as C.A.H. (Clear all Heart).
BAND-RESAW A bandsaw used for cutting sawn timber, usually fed by rollers.
BANDSAW An endless, belt-like blade of steel, toothed on one or both edges, which is used to saw timber.
BATTEN A piece of sawn or dressed timber, usually between 6mm to 38mm thick and between 25mm and 75mm wide.
BEAM A structural timber supported at 2 or 4 points.
BEARER A piece of timber placed across piers or a series of stringers.
BIRDS MOUTH particularly referred to as a grade in Californian redwood
as C.A.H. (Clear all Heart).
ACTUAL RINGS Growth rings in which the cycle of growth is one year.
ARRIS The sharp intersection of two surfaces (e.g. the face and edge of a piece of wood.)
BACKCUT (Backed off) Cut so that the wide face of the piece is a tangential plane to the growth rings. Produces “slash grained” figure in some timber. Also refers to the second
and final cut when felling a tree.
BALUSTRADE A railing; series of rails or columns joined by a top rail.
BAND MILL A sawmill equipped with a band head saw.
BAND-RESAW A bandsaw used for cutting sawn timber, usually fed by rollers.
BANDSAW An endless, belt-like blade of steel, toothed on one or both edges, which is used to saw timber.
BATTEN A piece of sawn or dressed timber, usually between 6mm to 38mm thick and between 25mm and 75mm wide.
BEAM A structural timber supported at 2 or 4 points.
BEARER A piece of timber placed across piers or a series of stringers.
BIRDS MOUTH A re-entrant angle cut in a piece of timber to allow the cut to
sit astride the corner of a supporting timber.
BLOWER A contrivance for producing a current of air. The exhaust
system attached to machines and conducting the waste to incinerator or hopper.
BLUE STAIN/MOULD Fungus which develops in wet timber and permanently
discolours it.
BOARD A piece of sawn, hewn or dressed timber of greater width than thickness. Usually 12 mm to 38 mm thick and 75 mm or more wide.
BORER A wood boring insect in the larva or beetle stage, which tunnels into wood or between bark and wood.
BOXED HEART A piece of timber in which the heart or pith is enclosed
within the four sides of the piece.
BUTTING Placing timber pieces end to end i.e. 2 short pieces within a bundle.
C.A.H. Clear All Heart. See All Heart
C.C.A Copper Chromium Arsenate. A chemical used in wood preservation.
C.L.M. 100 lineal meters
CHAMFER The surface produced by the removal of the arris.
CLADDING The outer covering of the external walls of a frame building.
COLLAPSE Flattening or buckling of wood cells during drying, which becomes manifest in excessive and/or uneven shrinkage.
CONVEYOR A series of rollers or belts for the carriage of materials.
CROSS-ARM A piece of timber of rectangular or square section prepared for attachment to a pole, and generally for the purpose of carrying wires for telecommunication or electrical service.
CROSS-CUT To cut a board or timber at right angles to the general direction of the fibers.
CUBING Tallying of timber without counting and measuring individual pieces in a block stack. Calculated by multiplying the three dimensions – height by width by length (metric measure) = approx. cubic volume.
CUP/CUPPING A curvature found in the transverse section of a plank or board.
CUT FULL Cut so that the actual dimension is in excess of the nominal dimension.
CUT SCANT Means cutting under the normal size. There are standard allowances for scant cutting, e.g. Oregon and Canada pine 3mm.
CUTTER HEAD That part of a machine, which holds the knife, as in a planer.
D, DD, D.A.R. etc. D: Dressed. DD: Double Dressed. DIS: Dressed one side. D2s: Dressed two sides (or double dressed). D.A.R.: Dressed all round. DIS2E: Dressed one side, two edges.
D.I.Y. Do it yourself.
DEBARK To strip the bark from a tree.
DECAY Disintegration or decomposition of wood substance due to action of wood destroying fungi.
DECAY INCIPIENT The early stages of decay in which disintegration has not developed far enough to destroy the structure of, or soften the wood perceptibly.
DEEP CUTTING The resawing of timber parallel with its broad surface.
DEFECT Any irregularity in timber that lowers its strength, durability or utility.
DENSITY The weight unit per volume, usually expressed in grams per cubic centimeter.
DOCKERMAN Mill operator who operates docking saw for the production of lengths of timber to meet orders, eliminating defects in pieces and sometimes tallying mill production.
DOCKING To cross-cut timber to specified lengths, or to free it from defects excessive for the grade specified.
DRESSED TIMBER Timber finished to a smooth surface on one or more surfaces. Also known as “wrought timber”.
DRY KILN A structure in which timber is dried by artificial heat.
DRY ROT Decay or decomposition of wood by a fungus.
EARLY WOOD The porous tissue forming the first part of a growth ring.
END PRODUCTS Final product of a number of operations.
END SECTIONS End of a piece of timber – width by depth. The establishment of forest, naturally or artificially upon areas where it is at present absent or insufficient.
EQUILIBRIUM MOISTURE CONTENT The moisture content at which timber neither gains nor loses moisture when subjected to given conditions of humidity and temperature.
FILLET A method of stacking timber for seasoning.
FINE SAWN Surfaced timber that has been passed through a saw to gain a textured process.
FINISHED SIZE The exact size required after sawing or machining.
FLITCH A large piece of sawn log intended for further cutting. A flitch is sawn on two surfaces at least.
FORESTATION The establishment of forest, naturally or artificially upon
areas where it is at present absent or insufficient.
”F” RATING The measurement of stress (symbolised by the letter “F”) in a piece of timber. The higher the “F” rating, the stronger the piece of timber.
FULL SAWN Timber rough sawn off the saw at the thickness in excess of the standard size specified in grading rules.
FUNGUS STAIN Stain caused by fungus growth – fungi can be either of the standard size specified in grading rules.
GAUGE 1. The thickness of a saw blade. 2. A scale for measuring the thickness of a saw blade.
GIRDER A large timber section placed horizontally to support a vertical load.
GIRTH Measurement around a log, normally taken under the bark and at the centre.
GRADING Sorting timber in order of quality.
GRAIN The general direction of the fibers of wood elements relative to the main axis of the piece of timber: cross, diagonal, interlocked, spiral, straight.
GREEN TIMBER Unseasoned wet, with free water present in the cell cavities.
GROWTH RINGS Rings on the transverse section of a trunk or branch which marks successive cycles of growth. (See ANNUAL RINGS).
GRUB HOLE A hole or excavation in a piece of timber made by the larvae of an insect.
GULLETT The concave space or throat between two consecutive saw teeth.
GUM VEIN A ribbon of gum o kino growth rings of a tree which may be bridged radially at short intervals by wood tissue.
HARDWOOD Wood from trees classified botanically as Angiosperms. Most hardwood trees are broad leaved, and the wood is pored. The term does not denote the relative hardness of the wood, though sometimes used in this sense.
HEAD A cutter block carrying the knives in planning machines. Also the top horizontal member of a frame – door or window.
HEADER-IN The operator on the infeed side of a machine who guides the leading end of a piece of timber.
HEARTWOOD The portion of log that includes the pith and associated defective wood.
HOO-HOO The International Concatenated Order of Hoo- Hoo, a fraternal order of imbermen.
HUMIDITY Term used to express the relative amount of moisture in air, compared with dry air.
IMMUNISATION Any form of impregnation with a preservative which protects the timber against lyctus beetle.
IMPREGNATION The introduction of a preservative solution to timber by a pressure system.
INFEED That side of the machine from which the material is fed in.
INHERENT DEFECTS Timber defaults which are part of the growth of the trees.
INSECT ATTACK Deterioration or damage to appearance of timber caused by borers and termites.
IRONBARK, RED Eucalyptus sideroxylon – used for piles, poles, sleepers, cross-arms, girders and heavy construction.
IRONBARK, RED BROAD-LEAVED Eucalyptus fibrosa – used for floor joists & bearers, poles, piles, flooring, sleepers, heavy construction.
JARRAH Eucalyptus marginata – used for flooring, weatherboards, scantling, piles, poles, decking, and sleepers.
JINKER A vehicle used in association with hauling logs.
JOINTER A woodworking machine with horizontal revolving cutters used to straighten timber.
JOIST A piece of structural timber, generally rectangular in section and laid horizontally on edge, used to support the flooring boards or ceilings of a building (see RAFTER).
K.D. Kiln Dried KERF A groove or slot formed in wood while being cut. The width of the cut made by a saw.
KILN An oven like chamber in which timber and veneers are seasoned, under controlled conditions of temperature, humidity and air circulation, to a desired moisture content.
KILNDRIED (Abbrev. K.D.) Timber seasoned in a kiln, usually to a specified or selected moisture content.
KNOT A branch or limb embedded in the tree and cut through during the process of timber manufacturing. They are classified according to size, quality (some examples
encased, decayed, firm, spike, loose and intergrown) and occurrence (clusters and single).
KNOT HOLE A hole in timber caused by the falling out of a loose knot.
LAMINATED WOOD A built-up product made of layers (laminae) of wood, all with
the grain laid parallel and glued or otherwise fastened together.
LATE WOOD The dense fibrous outer portion of the annual ring, formed
late in the growing period but not necessarily in the summer.
LIGNIN One of the principle chemical constituents of wood cellular tissue – the binding agent.
LINEAL/LINEAR FOOT A foot of length irrespective of width and thickness.
LINEAL/LINEAR METER A meter of length irrespective of width and thickness.
LINING Boards machined to profile for paneling and partitions.
LOG A length cut from the stem or large branch of a tree from which timber is to be sawn, hewn or otherwise produced.
LOGGING To cut down trees for logs. Timber sawn and split for use as beams, joists, boards, planks, etc. To cut and prepare forest timber. The North American synonym for “Timber”.
LOSP is an effective solvent based preservative formulation designed to provide a lasting protection for wood products used in external situations above ground.
LYCTUS The powder-post borer, which attacks starchy sapwood of some seasoned or partially seasoned, pored timbers (hardwoods).
MECHANICAL STRESS GRADED Timber that has been evaluated by mechanical stress grading equipment. Each piece is tested and marked to indicate the actual stress grade. Various colours are used for identification.
MESSMATE, GYMPIE Eucalyptus cloeziana – used for general buildings, sleepers,
transoms, bridge construction.
MILL RUN Or “run of the mill”. All of the saleable output of timber from a log or parcel of logs.
MILLED TIMBER Timber which has been passed through a machine to shape it to a desired profile.
MOISTURE CONTENT The weight of moisture contained in a piece of wood, expressed as a percentage of the oven-dry weight.
N.D.S.R. Net dry salt retention.
NEAT CUT Timber which is sawn exactly to dimensions specified.
NEWEL An upright post about which the steps of a circular staircase wind; also the post at the foot of a straight stairway or at a landing.
NOISE ATTENTUATION Noise reduction – as in Noise Attenuation Fencing – usually
used in freeway construction to reduce the noise emanating, to local households, from freeway traffic.
NOMINAL SIZE An arbitrary term used for indicating the approximate size of green, dry, rough or dressed timber, and usually based on the rough size cut to allow for shrinkage and sometime matching.
OFF THE SAW Applied to the size of timber when freshly sawn.
PACK Timber packed in saleable units, either in set or random widths and/or lengths. See also SLING.
PALLET Can be a base for transportation and storage of timber and timber products.
PHLOEM The inner bark of a tree that transports food from the leaves to the other parts of the tree.
PHOTOSYNTHESIS The complex chemical process that takes place in a tree’s
leaves or needles by which a tree produces the materials necessary for its growth.
PICKET A sharpened, pointed or rounded stake or paling used as a fence.
PILE A large section of timber driven into the ground as support for wharves, bridges, etc.
PINE, CYPRESS – WHITE Callitris columellaris – used for house framing, weatherboards, flooring, linings, floor joists & bearers.
PINE, RADIATA Pinus Radiata – used for moldings, flooring, lining, weatherboards, joinery, plywood.
PIPE A longitudinal cavity along the growth centre of a log.
PLYWOOD An assembled product made up of two or more veneers bonded together with the direction of the grain in alternate plies, usually at right angles.
PRESSURE TREATING The process of impregnating timber with various chemicals as preservatives and/or fire retardants within a closed container under a controlled pressure higher than atmospheric pressure.
PURE STAND A tract of timber consisting primarily of a single species.
PIPE A longitudinal cavity along the growth centre of a log.
PLYWOOD An assembled product made up of two or more veneers bonded together with the direction of the grain in alternate plies, usually at right angles.
PRESSURE TREATING The process of impregnating timber with various chemicals as preservatives and/or fire retardants within a closed container under a controlled pressure higher than atmospheric pressure.
PURE STAND A tract of timber consisting primarily of a single species.
REJECT A piece of timber that is not acceptable because it contains defects not permissible in the grade concerned.
RELATIVE HUMIDITY The ratio of the amount of water in the air to the highest amount possible at a given temperature.
RESAW A saw designed to cut already converted or partially converted wood into smaller sections.
RETENTION The amount of preservative in liquid or dry form remaining in the timber after treatment.
RISER A vertical member between two stair treads.
ROLLER A conveyor line in a sawmill for moving sawn timber from one machine to another.
ROT A term synonymous with decay but generally applied to the more advanced stages or to the particular type of decay.
ROUGH SAWN Surface condition of wood as it leaves a saw.
ROUGHER HEADER A process which gauges timber, through a machine with serrated knives to a specified dimension, resulting in timber with a surface not as rough as unsurfaced timber but more textured than surfaced timber. Usually in constructionalsizes, but there are many instances of western red cedar and Oregon clears being produced by method prior to further manufacture.
ROUND TIMBER Logs for conversion into sawn timber, veneer or pulp, poles and posts utilised in the round.
ROUTING Cutting out sections of wood as in moulding profiles.
ROYAL HARDWOODS A collection of eucalypt timbers which command a premium
in price because of their great durability and strength.
RUNNING FOOT A lineal/linear foot.
S4S Square dressed – surfaced four sides.
SAMPLE BOARD A short representative piece of timber placed in a stack of timber so that it can be easily removed for weighting or other testing, during the seasoning period.
SAP The fluid contained in a gum tree not including special secretions such as gum.
SAPWOOD Bot. Xylem. The living outer layers of the wood of a tree, in which its food materials are conveyed and stored.
SOFTWOOD Characteristically cone bearing, evergreen plants with needle shaped leaves and seeds which are not enclosed in cases. The term ‘softwood’ does not refer to the hardness of the wood – cypress pine is a harder wood than some hardwoods.
TAILER-OUT The operative on the out-feed side of a saw or planning machine.
TALLY A record of the number of pieces in a quantity of timber, their dimensions and possibly their grade.
TEREDO A marine creature that infests timber in temperate to tropical salt water.
TERMITE A wood-eating insect.
TOE The small end of a pile or pole.
TONGUE and GROOVE T & G A joint made by means of a ridge or tongue on one piece
and a matching groove on the other.
TRUEWOOD Wood, which in the growing tree, has ceased to contain living cells and in which the reserve materials have been removed or changed into more durable substances.
UNDRESSED TIMBER Sawn timber, not planed or otherwise machines (see ROUGH
SAWN).
VARIATION IN SAWING A deviation from the line of cut, also a variation from specified dimensions as in undersize.
VISUAL GRADING Grading of timber, plywood and veneer visually by a person who follows specific rules as distinct from mechanical grading.
WANE The presence of the original underbark surface with or without bark, on any face or edge of a piece of timber.
WARP A variation from the true or plane surface.
WEATHERBOARD Board for covering external surfaces and overlapping to keep out rain. They are distinguished by the pattern of their cross-section, variously described as rusticated, featheredged, checked and chamfered, etc.
WIDES The wider widths of dimension timber usually 250 millimeters and wider.
WOOD PULP Wood chips, shavings, pulpwood, etc. reduced to pulp for making paper, cardboard, etc.
WORMY A term used to describe wood that has been attacked by a variety of borers.
For all wholesale enquiries, please call us on (03) 9794 4777 or complete our Wholesale Enquiry Form. For all trade and retail enquiries, we recommend the following Treated Pine Stockists.
