Shake (shingle) - Cutting

Cutting

Both shakes and shingles must be edge grain cut, to prevent warping and splitting as the wood dries. When splitting blocks and manufacturing shakes or shingles particular care must be taken to consider the orientation of the grain in the wood. Like-wise when bucking, care must be taken to ensure cuts are precisely perpendicular to the grain, to minimize waste and maintain product quality. When bucking, the log must be cleared off well, so the grain can be seen clearly, allowing straight cuts perpendicular to the grain. When splitting, the ringers are typically split from the bark to the heart, perpendicular to the grain. The heart wood is removed by splitting parallel to the grain, and the bark and sap-wood is removed, as well as any imperfections such as rot or bug holes. The initial split is always made on a knot, burl, check or other imperfection, to allow the blocks to made as large as possible while disposing of any waste. The blocks should never be split where there is clear wood, or imperfections will be left in the block; or the block will have to be split too small in the process of removing flaws.

When cutting large logs or severely twisted pieces, it is often necessary to "cant", or split the entire log into "slabs". To split a log a ringer is removed at each end of the tree, exposing the interior. Wedges are driven into the face to split off a slab, usually on a natural check or imperfection which runs the entire length of the log. After the face begins to separate, wedges are driven into the resultant opening, starting very near the face and progressively working toward the other end of the log in small steps.