Types of Wood
In the woodworking world, wood is typically classified as either a "Hardwood" or a "Softwood". With terms like hardwood
and softwood you would think that wood would be catorgorized by its hardness. You would be wrong!
Woodworkers classify wood into two major types of wood based on the specices of tree the wood comes from.
Hardwood comes from angiosperm trees, which typically have broad leaves and are usually denser and stronger,
while softwood comes from gymnosperm trees, like conifers, which have needle-like leaves and generally grow faster, making them
lighter and less dense. The terms do not always indicate the actual hardness of the wood, as some hardwoods can be softer than softwoods.
In fact the softest species in the world, Balsa, is actually classified as a "hardwood".
Softwood Examples
Eastern White Pine |
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| Eastern White Pine is one of the most common and widely used timbers for construction lumber in the northeast United States.
It’s one of the three primary commercial species of White Pine, with the other two—Sugar Pine and Western White Pine—being found on the west coast.
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Red Cedar
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Although Aromatic Red Cedar is included in the cypress family (Cupressaceae) which includes many species of cedar, it’s perhaps more closely
related in junipers in the genus Juniperus. In tree form, it is more commonly called Eastern Redcedar, while the wood itself is usually referred to as Aromatic Red Cedar.
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Hardwood Examples
Black Walnut |
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| It would be hard to overstate black walnut’s popularity among woodworkers in the United States. Its good working characteristics,
coupled with its rich brown coloration puts the wood in a class by itself among temperate-zone hardwoods. To cap it off, the wood also has good dimensional stability, shock resistance, and strength properties.
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White Oak
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Strong, beautiful, rot-resistant, easy to work, and economical: white oak represents an exceptional value to woodworkers. It’s no wonder that the wood is so widely used in cabinet and furniture making.
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