The influence of rotary peeling on the different behaviour of tight and loose sides of Eucalyptus globulus veneers has been studied. The presence of lathe checks on the loose sides favours wettability, the contact angle decreasing more rapidly on these sides than on tight sides. Additionally, pine bark tannins improved wettability due to their surfactant character. Bonding quality tests carried out on plywoods prepared using a tannin-phenol-formaldehyde adhesive showed that fracture almost invariably occurred in a glue line with at least one loose side, where wood failure appeared. This behaviour, confirmed by analysing the glue lines by means of fluorescence microscopy, was due to the large surface alterations of the loose sides which reduced mechanical strength but allowed greater penetration of the adhesive giving rise to high wood failure.