Rotary-Cut (Rotary-Peeled) Veneer

Rotary-cut (rotary-peeled) veneer is produced by mounting a log on a lathe-like machine and peeling a single, continuous sheet off its outer surface as it spins, the way a roll of paper towels unrolls. It's by far the most efficient veneer-cutting method -- almost the entire log becomes usable veneer, with far less waste than flat or quarter slicing -- which is why it's the standard method behind construction and utility-grade plywood faces, where cost matters more than a controlled grain pattern.

Because the veneer knife is cutting tangent to the log's growth rings continuously as it peels, rotary-cut veneer shows a wide, often wild and irregular grain pattern compared to the more controlled cathedral or straight grain of flat- or quarter-sliced veneer -- part of why furniture-grade veneered panels usually specify a different, more expensive slicing method for the visible face.