Ambrosia maple - weaker than normal maple?

[Tyler Bancroft]

I have some hard maple that was going to be used for table legs, but which turns out to have some ambrosia figuring. Is maple with ambrosia figuring substantially weaker than regular wood (due to the effects of the fungus)?

[Dan Baginski]

I made a headboard earlier this year out of ambrosia maple. I didn’t see much difference in the wood. Seemed to cut like normal maple to me.

[Richard Coers]

No, not weaker at all. It's just a color change with tiny holes.

[John K Jordan]

I have some hard maple that was going to be used for table legs, but which turns out to have some ambrosia figuring. Is maple with ambrosia figuring substantially weaker than regular wood (due to the effects of the fungus)?

Not unless it is punky from decay, soft enough to dig out chunks with your thumbnail. (Check around spalted areas.) That said, I recently cut into ambrosia maple that for some reason had dozens of insect holes in one spot about 1" across - I can imagine a thin section through that spot might be weak.