Pyrolytic carbon layers were deposited from methane on planar substrates (pyrolytic boron nitride) at various residence times, methane pressures and deposition temperatures. The depositions were performed in a cavity oriented perpendicular to the gas flow. The small surface area/reactor volume ratio of the reactor geometry allows depositions in the growth and nucleation mechanism. Transmission electron microscopy was applied to study the texture and microstructure of the carbon layers. A texture transition from medium- to high-textured pyrolytic carbon occurs as a result of increasing residence times, methane pressures and temperatures. Improved textures are generally correlated with increasing deposition rates, which are not necessarily constant during long-term depositions. Lower textures are observed in the vicinity of the substrate interface that are attributed to the influence of the substrate morphology and microstructure.