A shake is a wooden shingle that is made from split logs. When these are used for covering the top of a house, the result is a shake roof.

Wood Selection

Shakes are typically made from Western Redcedar (Thuja Plicata). There are various types of shakes, the main differentiating feature between shakes and other types of shingles is that shakes are split while most shingles are sawn on all sides. Shakes can be made in 24-inch lengths - the most common, 18-inch barn shake, or even 48-inch shakes, which are typically used for siding. Likewise wooden shingles are manufactured in differing lengths, 15-inch, 18-inch - common, and 24" which are known as heavy.

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.

Manufacture of shakes and shingles from block form

Shake blocks are split into 1 inch thick slats called blanks, using either a hydraulic press with a blade attached, called a cuber, or split by hand using a froe and mallet. These blanks are uniform in thickness throughout if split from the same edge without flipping the block. Alternatively, the splitter may flip the block after a blank is taken off each edge, which results in a tapered split from end to end, called tapers or hand-split. The blanks which are not tapered require further processing before application to create this taper, and are run through a large band saw, pushed by hand to cut them from corner to corner forming a tapered shake, sawn on one face.