When describing the properties of wood, the word grain comes up frequently. Just like the human skin has pores, wood has grains. Also like different people have skin pores of different sizes, trees too have grains (pores) of different sizes. Open pore wood is excellent for wooden furniture manufacturing.
The pores in open wood collect stain in the finishing process of furniture manufacturing and appear darker than the rest of the wood. This gives the piece of furniture a very, exquisite and distinctive appearance. Some examples of woods having open pores are Red oak, Fresno Wood, walnut and ash etc. All these are quality woods, ideally suited for furniture manufacturing and the fact that they have open pores, just adds another dimension to the furniture created using these woods.
Furniture manufacturing carried out with open pore woods allows the creation of cheaper pieces. For people on a limited budget, this means they can acquire quality wood furniture pieces without burning a hole in their pockets. This furniture has a lot of character, but tends to be a bit uneven to the touch.
Furniture manufacturing processes can also take an open pore wood, close the pores and produce great looking pieces of furniture. Filling the pores involves using a special past like filler that is applied over the wood in a series of several applications. After each application during the furniture manufacturing process, wet-sanding is carried out. This result in pores being closed and a finish that is very smooth to the touch.
Since closing pores is a time consuming and labor intensive process of furniture manufacturing, it makes the piece of furniture that much more expensive. Traditionally these, glass like finishes are reserved only for the most formal pieces like dining tables and pianos. This is why open pore wood is preferred for furniture manufacturing.
In America, Europe and recently in Asia, there is a great demand of Open pore wooden furniture.