Worst blank of maple.....ever

[flehto]

Approx. 15 yrs ago a Bucks County LR was being built from a blank  and the stock was perhaps 75% completed and the area being chiseled was behind the breech on both sides of the tang. Was chiseling the right side and a layer of wood 1/8" thick  popped up but was still attached further down the wrist. So I stained the edges and applied super glue and continued chiseling. A short while later another layer 1/4" thick  popped up {included the previous repair} and stained the edges and superglued it. When the 3rd layer popped {included the 2 previous repairs}, the stock was used for kindling in my wood burner. Not too many hrs were wasted on this stock, but it did aggravate me some. Never experienced this w/ subsequent builds. Always  wondered as to why this wood was so  loosely layered because it didn't take that much force to separate the layers. .....Fred

[rich pierce]

Fred, I’ve heard that wood from wind damaged trees can do this (called the “shakes”) but it’s hard to imagine a maple log being weakened by wind. You could use a good sized maple log as part of a ramp to load a bulldozer on a truck if needed. So probably just one of those mysteries.

[Pukka Bundook]

Sounds a bit like what we call "Timber-bound" up here. 
The tree has grown with a twist or stress, and when you start cutting on it, it relieves the stress and the twist straitens out, ...making a flat board a propeller in the process...
Sounds like something of that sort.

[Jim Kibler]

What has been traditionally described as "wind shakes" isn't from wind damage at all, but rather some bacteria that causes separation along growth rings.

[P.W.Berkuta]

Also can come from when the tree was felled internal stresses are released and can start internal separation between the growth rings.