Which Wood - Similar to Oak Grain, Easier to Work

[Bill Wiggins]

I'm looking for a wood species that is similar to Oak grain, so it will match my wife's other kitchen furniture, but perhaps is easier to work with. The last time I worked with oak (I admit that I am a novice at this) there was a big problem with tear-out. It was also difficult to route.

I like working with birch, maple, and walnut. Is there a wood species that has a similar grain to oak but is easier to route?

[Joe Mioux]

I believe Ash has a similar look.

[Dan Gill]

Ash has similar grain, and in my experience, similar problems with tear-out and chip-out, especially when routing. The big key is to rout with the grain.

[Doug Jones]

Never used it, but has the look of oak, Kentucky Coffee tree.

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

Ash has similar grain, and in my experience, similar problems with tear-out and chip-out, especially when routing. The big key is to rout with the grain.

That, and sharp good quality cutters.

I've been making some raised panel door from Ash, it is the 1/4 sawn type and they have turned out fairly nice, I think.

For me, here in Japan, it is MUCH cheaper than Oak.

Cheers!

[tod evans]

bill, anytime i take a router to oak i "climb cut", minimal if any tearout. don`t try it in a router table though! tod

[scott spencer]

Hi Bill - Ash has a similar contrast and open grain, but I think the curves of the grain are even prettier than oak. Ash is lighter and will need to be stained to match oak. Sassafras has grain that is very similar to oak. It's color is slightly darker and grayer. Both work well in my experiences with them, and sassafras smells great. The last I knew both were cheaper than oak too!

Oak shouldn't be overly problematic to work with. It's possible that your's was extra dry or from a specific tree that posed a problem, or it's possible that your cutters weren't as sharp as they should be, or that you were taking too much off in one pass. The open grain woods like this tend to leave a bit more "fuzz" on the end grain to be sanded off though.

[Ralph Barhorst]

You might want to try some Butternut. It looks similar to Oak but is much softer. I would not use it for a table top since it is soft, but it looks nice for most other applications.

[Jim Becker]

Ash would generally be my choice for faux oak, but as someone mentioned, it, like any open-grain wood will sometimes have the same machining issues, depending on the way the grain is flowing/changing. Part of woodworking is dealing with that as you go. Ralph suggested butternut, but IMHO, it's not necessarily going to work as an oak subsitute. While the grain is still open, it's not nearly as open as oak and ash. Butternet is a virtual twin of walnut ("blond walnut" in a sense), to which it is closely related...and quite soft, too.

You do have the option of choosing to make something contrasting, rather than the same as the existing work...and then your options open up considerably, including working with the species you prefer.