hardwoods
We have the largest selection of hard to find hardwoods in the Northern Kentucky area. We carry the following woods in plywood and/or dimensional lumber:
Walnut Cherry
Cedar Oak
Fir Birch
Hickory Poplar
Maple
All of our plywoods are domestic grade and our lumber is S4S, kiln dried, premium or better.
Birch
DISTRIBUTION
Eastern U.S., principally Northern and Lake states.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Birch has a white sapwood and light reddish brown heartwood. The wood is generally straight-grained with a fine, uniform texture, and is generally characterized by a plain, often curly or wavy pattern.
WORKING PROPERTIES
The wood works fairly easily, glues well with care, takes stain extremely well, and nails and screws satisfactorily where pre-boring is advised. It dries rather slowly with little degrade, but it has moderately high shrinkage, so is susceptible to movement in performance.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Birch is a heavy wood, hard, and strong. It has very good benign properties, with good crushing strength and shock resistance.
AVAILABILITY
Reasonable availability, but more limited if selected for color.
MAIN USES
Furniture, millwork and paneling, doors, flooring, kitchen cabinets, turnings, and toys.
Cherry
DISTRIBUTION
Throughout Midwestern and Eastern U.S. Main commercial areas: Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and New York.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
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. The wood has a straight-grain, a fine, uniform, satiny and smooth texture, and naturally may contain brown pith flecks and small gum pockets.
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 dimensionally is stable after kiln-drying.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Cherry is of medium density with good bending properties, has low stiffness, and medium strength and shock resistance.
AVAILABILITY
Readily available.
MAIN USES
Fine furniture and cabinet making, moulding and millwork, kitchen cabinets, paneling, flooring, doors, boat interiors, musical instruments, turnings, and carvings.
Hard Maple
Other Names: Sugar maple, black maple
DISTRIBUTION
Eastern U.S., mainly Mid-Atlantic and Lake states. It is a cold-weather tree favoring a more northerly climate.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The sapwood is a creamy white with a slight reddish brown tinge, and the heartwood varies from light to dark reddish brown. The wood has a close, fine texture and is generally straight-grained.
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. The wood polishes well and is suitable for enamel finishes and brown tones.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
The wood is hard and heavy with good strength properties. In particular, it has high resistance to abrasion and wear. It also has good steam-bending properties.
AVAILABILITY
Widely available.
MAIN USES
Flooring, furniture, paneling, ballroom and gymnasium floors, kitchen cabinets, worktops, table tops, butcher blocks, kitchenware and toys. Can also be used in millwork, stairs, handrails, moulding, and doors.
Hickory
DISTRIBUTION
Eastern U.S. Principal commercial areas: Central and Southern states.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The hickories are an important group within the eastern hardwood forests. Botanically they are split into two groups: the true hickories and the pecan hickories (fruit-bearing). The wood is virtually the same for both and is usually sold together. The sapwood of hickory is white, tinged with brown, while the heartwood is pale to reddish brown.
WORKING PROPERTIES
The heaviest of American hardwoods, the hickories can be difficult to machine and glue, and are very hard to work with hand tools; therefore, 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, can be difficult to dry, and has high shrinkage.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Hickories are well-known for their very good strength and shock resistance, as well as excellent steam-bending properties.
AVAILABILITY
Readily available.
MAIN USES
Tool handles, furniture, cabinetry, flooring, wooden ladders, dowels, and sporting goods.
Poplar
Other Names: Yellow poplar, tulip wood
DISTRIBUTION
Widespread throughout Eastern U.S.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The sapwood is creamy white and may be
streaked, and the heartwood varies from pale yellowish-brown to
olive green. The green color in the heartwood will tend to darken on
exposure to light and turn brown. The wood has a medium-to-fine texture and is straight-grained.
WORKING PROPERTIES
It is a versatile wood that is easy to machine, plane, turn, glue, and bore. It dries easily with minimal movement in performance and has little tendency to split when nailed. It takes and holds paint, enamel, and stain exceptionally well.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Poplar is a medium-density wood with low-bending, shock resistance, stiffness, and compression values. It has a medium steam-bending classification.
AVAILABILITY
Very widely available.
MAIN USES
Light construction, furniture, kitchen cabinets, doors, paneling, moulding and millwork, edge-glued panels, turnings, and carvings
Red Oak
DISTRIBUTION
Widespread throughout Eastern U.S. Oaks are, by far, the most abundant species group growing in the Eastern hardwood forests. Red oaks grow more abundantly than white oaks. The red oak group comprises many species, of which about eight are commercial.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The sapwood of red oak is white to light brown and the heartwood is a pinkish-reddish brown. The 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.
WORKING PROPERTIES
It machines well. Pre-boring is recommended for nailing and screwing. It can be stained to a golden finish, with a wide range of finish tones.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Red oak is hard and heavy, with medium-bending strength and stiffness and high-crushing strength.
AVAILABILITY
Abundant. It is the most widely used species.
MAIN USES
Furniture, flooring, architectural millwork and moulding, doors, kitchen cabinets, paneling, and caskets.
Walnut
DISTRIBUTION
Throughout Eastern U.S. Principal commercial region is the Central states.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The sapwood is creamy white, while the heartwood is light brown to dark chocolate brown, occasionally with a purplish cast and darker streaks. It is usually supplied steamed, to darken the sapwood. The wood is generally straight-grained; sometimes with wavy or curly grain that produces an attractive and decorative figure.
WORKING PROPERTIES
It 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. It has good dimensional stability.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Walnut is a tough hardwood of medium density, with moderate bending and crushing strengths, and low stiffness. It has a good steam-bending classification.
AVAILABILITY
Reasonable availability.
MAIN USES
Furniture, cabinets, architectural millwork, doors, flooring, paneling, and gun stocks. It is a favored wood for use in contrast with lighter-colored species.
