How to reduce chatoyancy?

[John Huber]

I'm making a book-matched curly maple top for a jewelry box. However, the figures of the two pieces don't show up equally because of chatoyancy (the angle of the light and the viewing angle affect its visibility). When the light is from the left, one piece shows great figure, but the other does not. When the light is from the right, the opposite occurs.

I know chatoyancy is a built-in characteristic of many woods. How can I reduce it so the figures display similarly in various light conditions? Presently the finish is General Finishes Seal-A-Cell followed by General Finishes Arm-R-Seal. But I am willing to sand it all off to get a better display of figure.

[Alan Turner]

You raise an interesting question, to which I do not have any answer. But, for this reason, I rarely bookmatch highly figured woods, instead flipping them end for end so this does not occur.

[Tim Sproul]

How can I reduce it so the figures display similarly in various light conditions?

Don't bookmatch - get a piece of stock or veneer that is large enough to obviate the need for 2 pieces.

Skip using curly/figured stuff and use unfigured stuff.

Perhaps look for some spalted maple? Spalting lends itself to the symmetric look under all lighting and observation conditions that you are seeking...and adds visual interest over unfigured stock.

[Randall Frey]

Sounds like you may be stuck. If no one comes up with a finishing option that will help and you can't live with the present appearance. I wonder if you could split the book match seam with a contrasting inlay that would sit proud of the surface giving separation of the two halves. Just a thought, I'm not there, cant see the dilemma, might be a bad idea?

[Steve Schoene]

I think you have to consider this a positive design feature--you catch the shimmer looking at the box from either side. The only things I can think of that might reduce the chatoyance would also just cloud the finish and obscure the grain.

This is just another nail in the coffin of the "alternate the growth rings" doctrine for gluing up boards, and yet another factor to consider when laying out the boards for cutting and gluing. So much for magazine cutting diagrams.

[Brett Baldwin]

I think this solution is a bit late since it sounds like you've glued it up but I've seen a curly bookmatched panel where they solved the problem of the reversed figure by offsetting the panels by enough to align the matching figure lines in the same plane visually. It isn't a mirror bookmatch but to the eye it is much more pleasing than a true bookmatch. Maybe you could bandsaw it and still have enough panel left for the fit?