Color

Ash is light-colored to nearly white and the heartwood varies from greyish or light brown, to pale yellow streaked with brown.

Grain and Texture

The wood is generally straight-grained with a coarse uniform texture.

Hardness and Durability

Ash has a Janka hardness of 1320 which is similar to Oak. It is known for being a "tough" hard wood with good elasticity, making it quite resiliant.

Availability

Ash is grown throughout the Eastern U.S. and represents just 4.6 % of total U.S. hardwoods commercially available.

Color

The heartwood of cherry varies from rich red to reddish brown and will darken with age and on exposure to light. In contrast, the sapwood is creamy white.

Grain and Texture

Cherry has a fine uniform, straight grain, satiny, smooth texture, and may naturally contain brown pith flecks and small gum pockets.

Hardness and Durability

Cherry has a Janka hardness of 950. The wood is of medium density with good bending properties, it has low stiffness and medium strength and shock resistance.

Working Properties

Cherry is easy to machine, nails and glues well and when sanded and stained, it produces an excellent smooth finish. It dries fairly quickly with moderately high shrinkage, but is dimensionally stable after kiln-drying.

Availability

Cherry is grown throughout in Eastern U.S., principally Northern and Lake states and represents just 3.9 % of total U.S. hardwoods commercially available.

Color

The sapwood of hickory is white, tinged with inconspicuous fine brown lines while the heartwood is pale to reddish brown.

Grain and Texture

Hickory is coarse-textured and the grain is fine, usually straight but can be wavy or irregular.

Hardness and Durability

Hickory is the hardest, heaviest and strongest American wood with a Janka hardness of 1820.

Working Properties

Hickories can be difficult to machine and glue, and are very hard to work with hand tools, so care is needed. They hold nails and screws well, but there is a tendency to split so pre-boring is advised. The wood can be sanded to a good finish. The grain pattern welcomes a full range of medium-to-dark finishes and bleaching treatments. It can be difficult to dry and has high shrinkage.

Availability

Hickory is grown throughout in Eastern U.S., principally Central and Southern states and represents just 2.2 % of total U.S. hardwoods commercially available.

Color

The Maple sapwood is creamy white with a slight reddish brown tinge and the heartwood varies from light to dark reddish brown. The amount of darker brown heartwood can vary significantly according to growing region. Both sapwood and heartwood can contain pith fleck.

Grain and Texture

Maple hardwoods have a close fine, uniform texture and is generally straight-grained, but it can also occur as "curly," "fiddleback," and "birds-eye" figure.

Hardness and Durability

Maple is hard and heavy with good strength properties, in particular its high resistance to abrasion and wear. It also has good steam-bending properties. Maple has a Janka hardness of 1450.

Working Properties

Hard maple dries slowly with high shrinkage, so it can be susceptible to movement in performance. Pre-boring is recommended when nailing and screwing. With care it machines well, turns well, glues satisfactorily, and can be stained to an outstanding finish. Polishes well and is suitable for enamel finishes and brown tones.

Availability

Maple is a cold weather tree favoring a more northerly climate. Maple grows primarily in the Eastern U.S., principally in Mid-Atlantic and Lake states as well as Canada. Maple represents 4 % of total U.S. hardwoods commercially available.

Color

The sapwood of Red Oak is white to light brown and the heartwood is a pinkish reddish brown.

Grain and Texture

Red Oak wood is similar in general appearance to white oak, but with a slightly less pronounced figure due to the smaller rays. The wood is mostly straight-grained, with a coarse texture.

Hardness and Durability

Red Oak is hard and heavy, with medium bending strength and stiffness and high crushing strength. It is very good for steam bending. Great wear-resistance. Red Oak has a Janka hardness of 1290.

Working Properties

Red Oak machines well, nailing and screwing are good although pre-boring is recommended, and it can be stained to a good finish. It can be stained with a wide range of finish tones. It dries slowly.

Availability

Widespread throughout Eastern U.S. The oaks are by far the most abundant species group growing in the Eastern hardwood forests. Red oaks grow more abundantly than the white oaks and represent 37 % of total U.S. hardwoods commercially available.

Color

The sapwood of Walnut is creamy white, while the heartwood is light brown to dark chocolate brown, occasionally with a purplish cast and darker streaks. The wood develops a rich patina that grows more lustrous with age. Walnut is usually supplied steamed, to darken sapwood.

Grain and Texture

Walnut produces a greater variety of figure types than any other. The wood is generally straight-grained, but sometimes with wavy or curly grain that produces an attractive and decorative figure.

Hardness and Durability

Walnut is a tough hardwood of medium density, with moderate bending and crushing strengths and low stiffness. It has a good steam-bending classification. Walnut has a Janka hardness of 1010.

Working Properties

Walnut works easily with hand and machine tools, and nails, screws and glues well. It holds paint and stain very well for an exceptional finish and is readily polished. It dries slowly, and care is needed to avoid kiln degrade. Walnut has good dimensional stability.

Availability

Walmut grows primarily in the Eastern U.S. Walnut represents 1.9 % of total U.S. hardwoods commercially available.

Color

The sapwood of White Oak is light-colored and the heartwood is light to dark brown.

Grain and Texture

White oak is mostly straight-grained with a medium to coarse texture, with longer rays than red oak. White oak therefore has more figure.

Hardness and Durability

White Oak is a hard and heavy wood with medium bending and crushing strength, low in stiffness, but very good in steam bending. Great wear-resistance. White Oak has a Janka hardness of 1360.

Working Properties

White Oak machines well, nails and screws well although pre-boring is advised. Since it reacts with iron, galvanized nails are recommended. Its adhesive properties are variable, but it stains to a good finish. Can be stained with a wide range of finish tones. The wood dries slowly.

Availability

Widespread throughout Eastern U.S. The oaks are by far the most abundant species group growing in the Eastern hardwood forests. White Oaks represent 15 % of total U.S. hardwoods commercially available.