Hi, I am going to install 3/4 prefinished hardwood in my kitchen. What of edge bevels?
It would seem that the square edge material like traditional wood flooring would be easier to clean. (No grooves for dirt etc. to get stuck in)
But i am also concerned about the floor looking uneven if the subfloor isnt perfectly flat ( or plank thicknesses vary) and the individual board edges could protrude.

So should I order with Micro (smallest bevel) to help with this issue or would square edges be acceptable for prefinished flooring. I will be installing a high end brand (Lauzon or Mercier) premium grade floor so i would hope the boards would be milled to exacting thickness standards.
What do you think on the subject of edge bevel??
Thanks!

My very limited experience tells me that you need some degree of bevel, else you'll snag your socks every time. Even with a perfectly flat subfloor, which you will not have, the wood will have some tolerance to the thickness and one edge will be above the adjacent edge.

Can one buy prefinished w/o a bevel?

lazons is the best prefinished product I have ever worked with, but even with that you still need a bevel or you will feel miniscule hieght differences between each board.

If you dont like the idea of bevels getting dirt in them ect, go with site finished. it may actually cost less than the prefinished material.

Edge profiles for solid prefinished are available in square edge, micron-beveled, micro-beveled, eased edge, and full beveled edge.

Micro-beveled and eased edge make up the majority. Square edge profile will eliminate probably 95 % of the products out there. Bruce has at least three ... Sterling strip, Fulton strip and Bayport strip.

It seems like most of my work anymore is putting down square edge. It is a real pain but given a choice, most prefer the square edge look.

I just got finished installing Bruce's Natural Choice, a square edged 5/16" thick solid. Here's my take. Factory square edged floors still do not look like finished in place. But they don't have the larger bevels either. This particular floor did fit pretty good. It has nice lengths, a good look, a low price for a solid and a decent warranty (not that it matters). The downside. Because it's thin, care needs to be taken as T&G's get damaged easier when installing it. I could not use a mallet to tap boards into place like I do when installing 3/4". I needed to use my long Award plastic tapping tool, which worded great. And because it's thin, I'd say you'd get only one resand with this floor. The substrate needs to be sturdy as this floor does not lend any strength to the subfloor structure like a 3/4" could. Bruce did a pretty fair job on the quality control and grading. It's not the best of the best. But worth considering for those on a budget.

Ive done a few of those bruce floors (I think the name was bruce natural reflections back then) and I forgot those were square edged prefinished. They did fit together well and lay pretty flat. But dealing with the plastic, and wearing knee pads to install it, thats what I didnt like, with the floor runner guns?

Gary, if cost were secondary, what Brands would you recommend?

If cost was equally factored with quality, what Brands would you recommend?

I'm certain that my recent sucesses will spawn new hardwood projects!

Jay, I have a Power Nailer Model 200 that I use for that flooring. It is no faster than a Floor Runner; maybe slower. But it does get the wood tight!
You still got to do the creeping around on your knee pads though.

I couldnt see myself installing that product with that gun. I would get moving and start hitting the gun like I was doing 3/4, disater. But nice to know theres other options for installing it