Cupped Raised Panel Question

[Steve N]

Don, if the stock was rift or QS and flat, and did this after final prep I would suggest the overall moisture was too high, or your prep didn't equally remove stock from each side of the board. Any inequality of moisture is the only thing I see that will take wood from flat, to cupped like that, especially in rift, or QS stock. That inequality can come from finishing one side, or taking outer stock off while final prepping that is more from one side than the other. Always remember it's the outer wood that will react to moisture, and it's also this outer wood that dries first. Sometimes thinking about that will keep you from minor headaches.

[rwe2156]

Don, you don't have that much movement there, but I've found even though you handled the wood correctly, uneven drying can still occur particularly in an unacclimatiized shop.  I think this is what happened. This can occur by leaving a board unstickered or simply under circulating air - anything that leave one side of a board more exposed to humidity than the other. 

I've sealing up parts in a plastic bag or wrapping in plastic is quite effective at stabilizing wood.  It is a must in my climate where humidity tends to fluxuate erratically certain times of the year.

The post above about using QS is not entirely correct.  With the exception of ray flecking with white oak, you usually want some grain feature like cathedrals which means flat sawn boards.

Also you may want to consider 5/8" rather than 3/4 on the panel.

[Bibliophile 13]

1/32" is nothing to worry about. Tap the panels into the frames and glue everything up. The frames, if they're sturdy, will keep the panels from warping any more, and nobody will ever see the difference.

I also agree with just putting the prettiest side out and not worrying about which direction the panels are cupped.