ISO 1029:1974

Overview

ISO 1029:1974 - "Coniferous sawn timber - Defects - Classification" is an international standard that defines a systematic classification of defects found in coniferous (softwood) sawn timber. It applies to unplaned sawn timber and timber surfaced to size or planed but without profiling. The standard is trilingual (English/French/Russian) and relies on terminology defined in ISO 1031. ISO 1029 replaces the earlier ISO Recommendation R 1029.

Key topics

The standard organizes timber defects into clear categories and sub‑types to support consistent inspection, grading and specification. Major defect groups covered include:

• Knots

  • Classification by shape (round, oval, splay/spike), position (face, edge, arris), mutual arrangement (scattered, clustered, branched) and degree of intergrowth (intergrown, partially intergrown, non‑adherent/dead).
  • Condition of knots (sound, resinous, unsound, rotten; light vs dark resinous).

• Shakes and checks

  • Types (heart shakes, ring shakes, shrinkage checks) and their location (face, edge, end) and depth (shallow, deep, through).

• Grain and structural irregularities

  • Slope of grain, compression wood, pitch pockets and bark inclusions (one‑sided or through).

• Fungal and colour defects

  • Heartwood rot, mould, sapstain (blue stain and other sapstains) classified by colour, intensity and depth (surface, deep, hidden), and sap rot (hard/soft).

• Insect damage

  • Wormholes: shallow or deep, and by size (small, large).

• Sawing and surface defects

  • Saw marks, snaking (waviness), rough or fuzzy sawn surfaces.

• Deformation (warp)

  • Longitudinal and transverse warps including bow, spring (edge bow), cup and twist; simple and compound forms.

Applications

ISO 1029 is practical for:

• Timber mills and sawyers to classify and document defects at the point of production.
• Inspectors, graders and quality control teams for consistent grading, sorting and acceptance criteria in trade and procurement.
• Specification writers, engineers and architects who need accurate defect terminology for contract documents and structural assessments.
• Timber merchants and buyers to communicate quality and price differentials tied to defect types.
• Standards developers and testing bodies using a standardized taxonomy for reporting and comparative studies.

Using ISO 1029 helps reduce ambiguity in timber quality, supports consistent wood grading, and streamlines trade and specification processes for coniferous sawn timber.

Related standards

• ISO 1031 - Terms and definitions for sawn timber (reference for terminology used in ISO 1029).
• ISO 1029 replaces ISO Recommendation R 1029 (1969).