Expansion/Contraction
Many otherwise successful projects have been ruined by failing to consider this. Wood is very sensitive to humidity (but not very sensitive to temperature). This is why doors and drawers tend to stick in the summer. You should figure that, in most situations, wood will expand/contract .125” per foot of width through the seasons. This is just a rule of thumb and can vary in extrreme cases. Remember that wood expands accross its width, but almost not at all along its lenghth. Therefore, gluing two boards side by side, or end to end isn’t a problem, but gluing an end to a side can be. Generally, it there is 3” or less of contact, there will be no problem. 3” to 12” may cause problems . More than 12” will almost certainly cause problems. This is where veneer becomes useful. With a proper substrate, veneer will have no problems with expansion/contracction.