SpeciesAshAsh belongs to the olive family and grows primarily in the Eastern US. Ash is used for furniture, flooring, doors, architectural millwork and molding, kitchen cabinets, paneling, tool handles, baseball bats, hockey sticks, billiard cues, skis, oars and turnings. Ash is also a popular species for food containers because the wood has no taste. It is also good for steam bending. The sapwood is light-colored to nearly white and the heartwood varies from grayish or light brown to pale yellow streaked with brown. The wood is generally straight-grained with a coarse uniformed texture. Ash machines well, and is good in nailing, screwing and gluing, and can be stained to a very good finish. It dries fairly easily with minimal degrade. BasswoodBasswood is primarily found in the Northern and Lake States. Its main uses are carvings, turnings, furniture, pattern-making, moldings, millwork and musical instruments. The sapwood of basswood is usually quite large and creamy white in color, merging into the heartwood which is pale to reddish brown. Basswood has a fine uniform texture and an indistinct grain that is straight. Basswood machines well and is easy to work with hand tools, making it a premier carving wood. Basswood is fairly good in nailing, screwing and gluing, and can be stained to a good smooth finish. It dries fairly rapidly with little distortion or degrade. Basswood has fairly high shrinkage but good dimensional stability when dry. BeechBeech grows throughout the Eastern US with a commercial concentration in the Central and Mid-Atlantic States. Beech is often used for furniture, doors, flooring, millwork, paneling, brush handles, woodenware, bending stock, toys and turnings. Beech is also used for food and liquid containers since it has no odor or taste. The sapwood of beech is white with a reddish tinge, and the heartwood is light to dark reddish brown. Beech is primarily straight-grained with a close uniform texture. Beech works readily with most hand tools and has good nailing and gluing properties. It can also be stained to a good finish. Beech dries fairly rapidly but with a strong tendency to warp, split, and surface check. It is subject to a high shrinkage and moderate movement in performance. Beech, among other hardwoods can also be found spalted. Spalting results in wood coloration caused by fungi. According to finewoodworking.com “a growing number of woodworkers are looking past the decay and discovering the beauties of spalted wood.” There are three main types of spalting in hardwoods; white rot, pigment, and zone lines. CherryCherry grows throughout the Midwestern and Eastern US with a commercial concentration in Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and New York. Cherry is used in fine furniture and cabinet making. Cherry is also used in moldings mill work, kitchen cabinets, paneling, doors boat interiors, musical instruments, turnings and carvings. Cherry heartwood varies from rich red to reddish brown and will darken with age and exposure to light. In contrast the sapwood is creamy white. Cherry has a fine uniform, straight grain, satiny smooth texture, and may naturally contain brown pith flecks and small gum pockets. Cherry is easy to machine and nails and glues well, when sanded and stained. Cherry produces an excellent smooth finish. It also dries fairly rapidly with moderately high shrinkage but is dimensional stable after kiln-drying. Cherry also has good bending properties. Hard MapleHard Maple grows principally in the Mid-Atlantic and Lake States. Hard Maple is the state tree of Wisconsin, Vermont, New York and West Virginia. Maple has been a favorite of American furniture makers and Hard Maple is the standard wood for cutting-boards because it imparts no taste to food and it holds up well. Maples are cold weather trees favoring a more northerly climate. In the North, during the cold nights and warm days of late winter, Sugar maples are frequently tapped for their sucrose-containing sap as a source of maple syrup. Hard Maple is used for furniture, paneling, ballroom and gymnasium floors, kitchen cabinets, worktops, table tops, butcher blocks, toys, kitchenware, stairs, handrails, mouldings and doors. The sapwood of Hard Maple is creamy white with a slight reddish brown tinge while the heartwood varies from light to dark reddish brown. The amount of the darker brown heartwood can vary significantly according to growing region. Both the Hard Maple sapwood and heartwood can contain pith fleck. Hard Maple has a close fine, uniform texture and is generally straight-grained. Hard Maple grain can however also be found as curly, fiddleback and birds-eye. Figured Maple (curly, fiddleback and birds-eye) has limited availability as such commercial volumes typically only available as veneer. (see figured maple) Hard Maple dries slowly with high shrinkage and can be susceptible to movement in performance. Pre-boring is recommended when nailing and screwing. With care Hard Maple machines well, turns well and is suitable for enamel finishes. Hard Maple is hard and heavy with good strength properties and has a high resistance to abrasion and wear. Hard Maple also has good steam-bending properties. Red OakRed Oak grows throughout the Eastern US and is the state tree of New Jersey. Red Oak grows more abundantly than White Oak. Red Oak is used for furniture, paneling, floors, kitchen cabinets, architectural millwork and mouldings, doors, and caskets. The sapwood of Red Oak is white to light brown and the heartwood is a pinkish, reddish brown. The wood is similar in general appearance to White Oak, but with a slightly less pronounced figure due to the smaller rays. Red Oak is mostly straight-grained with a coarse texture. Red Oak machines well, nailing, screwing are good although pre-boring is recommended. Red Oak can be stained to a good finish with a wide range of finish tones. It dries slowly. Red Oak is very good for steam bending and has great wear resistance. White OakWhite Oak is widespread throughout the Eastern US and is the state tree of Illinois, Connecticut, and Maryland. White oak has been used extensively for ship timbers, barrels and casks. White Oak is also used for furniture, flooring, architectural millwork, doors, kitchen cabinets, paneling, barrel staves and caskets. The sapwood of white oak is light-colored while the heartwood is light to dark brown. White oak is mostly straight-grained with a medium to coarse texture with longer rays than red oak, as a result white oak has more figure. White oak machines well, and also nails and screws well although pre-boring is recommended. In addition, white oak reacts with iron, so galvanized nails are also recommended. Its adhesive properties are variable. White oak can be stained to a good finish with a wide range of finish tones. It also dries slowly and is very good in steam bending. White oak has great wear-resistance. Soft MapleSoft Maple grows throughout the Eastern US and is used for furniture, furniture parts, millwork, paneling, mouldings, butcher blocks, toys, kitchenware, and fruit crates. Soft Maple sapwood is white to light yellow, while the heartwood is light to dark brown. The wood has a fine close texture with interlocked grain. Soft Maple contrasts well with other species. Soft Maple grain can also be found as curly, fiddleback and birds-eye. Figured Maple (curly, fiddleback and birds-eye) has limited availability as such commercial volumes typically only available as veneer. (see figured maple) Soft maple machines well, but high speed cutters are necessary to prevent chipping. The wood tends to be resistant to splitting because of the interlocked grain. Soft maple glues well and stains, with care, to an excellent finish. It dries fairly rapidly, and has a tendency to warp. Soft maple has moderate shrinkage and little movement in performance. Soft maple turns well on the lathe and has good bending qualities. WalnutBlack Walnut grows throughout the Eastern US with a commercial concentration in the Central States. Black walnut is used for furniture, cabinets, architectural millwork, doors, flooring, paneling, and gun stocks. It is also a favorite wood for contrasting with other lighter colored species. Walnut sapwood is creamy white, while the heartwood is light brown to dark chocolate brown with occasionally a purplish cast and darker streaks. Walnut develops a rich patina that grows more lustrous with age. Walnut is usually supplied steamed, which darkens the sapwood. The wood is generally straight-grained, but sometimes has a wavy or curly grain pattern that produces an attractive and decorative look. Walnut is a tough hardwood of medium density with moderate bending and strengths and low stiffness. It also has a good-steam bending classification. Figured MapleFigure is referred to as the pattern produced in a wood surface by annual growth rings, rays, knots, deviations from regular grain, such as interlocked and wavy, and irregular coloration. Straight grain refers to lumber where the fibers run parallel to the axis of the board. Conversely, curly appears as a series of wavy lines or rays known as ‘flames’ running perpendicular to the wood grain. Curly has a unique look and is popular with woodworkers to give a distinctive appearance to finished pieces. Curly typically carries a premium over traditional hardwood of up to 50%. Bird’s eye is a pattern that appears as a series of small circles or eyes. It too is sought after by woodworkers because of the distinctive look it gives to finished products. Bird’s eye is more difficult to come by than curly and can cost upwards of 300% over the price of a traditional piece of hardwood. Because of their unique appearance both curly and bird’s eye are found in guitars, fine furniture, jewelry boxes, bowls and other artistic pieces.
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