Grading Standards:
Select & Better Grade: Superior quality. Comparatively uniform coloring. Sound knots, 1/16 inch and less (1.5 mm) and mineral streaks, less than 1/8 inch (3 mm) by 1 1/2 inches (38.10 mm) are accepted.  Allow 5% extra material for cutting and fitting.

Pacific Grade:  This grade is a mixture of Select & Better and Natural grades. All variations in natural wood coloring allowed. Boards may be evenly colored or highly contrasted. This grade is generally used for stains.  Allow 5% extra material for cutting and fitting.

Natural Grade:   All variations in natural wood coloring allowed, including mineral streaks. Sound knots accepted. Pieces usually are shorter than in the higher grades due to the nature of the way the trees grow.  Allow 5% extra material for cutting and fitting.

Tavern Grade:  Tavern grade consists of pieces which have imperfections, and therefore do not fall within the higher grades for a number of reasons.  The most common imperfections are knot holes and cracks.  The finish and the milling are the same as on the higher grades, but there is no warranty on the tavern grade products.  You will find a somewhat higher number of unusable pieces in the tavern grade, and the number of unusable pieces will vary from batch to batch.  You can complete a floor with as little as 5% extra for cutting and fitting if you do not set any pieces aside as rejects, but some people like to purchase more, so they can be a little bit selective.  Please remember that every manner of imperfection is allowed into the Tavern grade.

Note:  Industry standards allow for up to 5% mis-graded or mis-specified pieces.  While Model is a premium brand, and generally includes less than 1/10 of a percent of mis-graded and mis-specified pieces, the possibility for errors to occur does exist, so installers are advised to be aware of this possibility.