Alan Turner
06-04-2005, 5:04 AM
Need some guidance here from those with experiece working Am. Beech, from Ohio. Workbench tops is what I have in mind.
I have an opportunity at some 12/4, quarter sawn American Beech. I got a sample board, about 8" wide, and it has roughly 3" of what I would call sapwood, by appearance. I have never worked Am beech before. The suspected sapwood is of a slight diff. color, but seems (to my fingernail at least) of similar hardness. The heartwood has a pinkish cast, but the sapwood has a more yellowish cast to it.
I milled it 3 days after receipt to flat on two sides, and stickered it. Sat for 2 weeks in the shop.
This morning I resawed it, and cut a couple of tuning forks. The one of pure heartwood stayed straight; the one which had both heartwood and sapwood showed the sapwood bending out, and opening the original 1/16" kerf to 1/8" evenly over 9".
Moisture content inside the 12/4 was between 13% and 14%, if my moisture meter is correct, which I would not bet my life on. It is an older one; made by Valley Products & Design, of Milford, Pa. and I got it from an estate, so I know it was probably made before 1987. I suspect that it is pretty hard to get 12/4 wood much lower in terms of MC than this if the wood is not old.
Can anyone comment on the sapwood of Am beech, its strength, or stability. I can live with the appearance. If I scrap the sapwood, which I nearly always do when building furniture, then my price just about doubled, making it not a good buy. I would need to use it to have this purchase make sense.
Is this wood sufficiently stable to make workbench tops? The shop they will live in (my new teaching studio) will be subjected to extremes in terms of heat and humidity in the summer, and cold (smallish amount of heat) in the winter.
Any wood experts here?
I would have sent a sample to Jon Arno, but he passed away a bit ago, to the great loss of the woodworking community as he was a kind and knowledgable and sharing man.
Thanks for any information.
I have an opportunity at some 12/4, quarter sawn American Beech. I got a sample board, about 8" wide, and it has roughly 3" of what I would call sapwood, by appearance. I have never worked Am beech before. The suspected sapwood is of a slight diff. color, but seems (to my fingernail at least) of similar hardness. The heartwood has a pinkish cast, but the sapwood has a more yellowish cast to it.
I milled it 3 days after receipt to flat on two sides, and stickered it. Sat for 2 weeks in the shop.
This morning I resawed it, and cut a couple of tuning forks. The one of pure heartwood stayed straight; the one which had both heartwood and sapwood showed the sapwood bending out, and opening the original 1/16" kerf to 1/8" evenly over 9".
Moisture content inside the 12/4 was between 13% and 14%, if my moisture meter is correct, which I would not bet my life on. It is an older one; made by Valley Products & Design, of Milford, Pa. and I got it from an estate, so I know it was probably made before 1987. I suspect that it is pretty hard to get 12/4 wood much lower in terms of MC than this if the wood is not old.
Can anyone comment on the sapwood of Am beech, its strength, or stability. I can live with the appearance. If I scrap the sapwood, which I nearly always do when building furniture, then my price just about doubled, making it not a good buy. I would need to use it to have this purchase make sense.
Is this wood sufficiently stable to make workbench tops? The shop they will live in (my new teaching studio) will be subjected to extremes in terms of heat and humidity in the summer, and cold (smallish amount of heat) in the winter.
Any wood experts here?
I would have sent a sample to Jon Arno, but he passed away a bit ago, to the great loss of the woodworking community as he was a kind and knowledgable and sharing man.
Thanks for any information.