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Blunting Effect Boring Carving Certified Source Comments Common Names Common Uses Countries of Distribution Cutting Resistance Distribution Overview Drying Defects Ease of Drying Environmental Profile Family Name Gluing Grain Heartwood Color Kiln Drying Rate Kiln Schedules Mortising Moulding Movement in Service Nailing Natural Durability Natural Growth Defects Numerical Data Odor Painting Planing Polishing Product Sources References Regions of Distribution Resistance to Impregnation Response to Hand Tools Sanding Sapwood Color Scientific Name Screwing Staining Steam Bending Strength Properties Substitutes Texture Trade Name Tree Size Turning Veneering Qualities Scientific Name Acer saccharum Trade Name Sugar maple Family Name Aceraceae Common Names Bird's eye maple, Black maple, Blister maple, Canadian maple, Curly maple, Fiddleback maple, Hard maple, Maple, Rock maple, Sugar maple, White maple Regions of Distribution North America Countries of Distribution  [VIEW MAP] Canada, United States Common Uses Agricultural implements, Bedroom suites, Billiard-cue butts, Boat building, Boxes and crates, Building materials, Cabinetmaking, Canoes, Casks, Chairs, Chests, Concealed parts (Furniture), Desks, Dining-room furniture, Dowell pins, Dowells, Drawer sides, Excelsior, Fine furniture, Floor lamps, Flooring, Flooring: commercial heavy traffic, Flooring: industrial heavy traffic, Furniture , Furniture components, Furniture squares or stock, Furniture, Handles: general, Hatracks, Instrument cases, Interior construction, Interior trim, Joinery, Kitchen cabinets, Lifeboats, Living-room suites, Millwork, Moldings, Musical instruments, Musical instruments: piano, Musical instruments: strings, Office furniture, Packing cases, Paneling , Paneling, Plywood, Pulp/Paper products, Radio - stereo - TV cabinets, Railroad ties, Rustic furniture, Shade rollers, Shipbuilding, Sporting Goods, Stools, Tables , Tables, Textile equipment, Tool handles, Toys, Trimming, Turnery, Vehicle parts, Veneer, Veneer: decorative, Woodenware Environmental Profile Abundant/Secure Status has not been officially assessed Distribution Overview Sugar maple grows from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick westward to Ontario and Manitoba, southward through Minnesota, and eastern Kansas into northeastern Texas. It extends eastward to Georgia and northward through the Appalachian Mountains into New England. Local populations occur in northwestern South Carolina, northern Georgia, and northeastern South Dakota. Disjunct populations are known from the Wichita Mountains of southwestern Oklahoma. Sugar maple grows in a wide variety of plant communities throughout eastern North America, where it prefers moist soils of uplands and valleys, but may be found in pure stands. It is a dominant or codominant in many northern hardwood and mixed mesophytic communities. Common codominants include beech (Fagus grandifolia), birch (Betula spp.), and American basswood (Tilia americana). Heartwood Color Brown Red White Purple Black Tan Pink Reddish brown White to cream Red Pale brown Dark brown Pale red to pink Light tan Brown Bird's eye maple, a form of white or sugar maple, usually exhibits a whitish background with brownish dots, which are rarely solid, at irregular intervals. The dots form "eyes" by having a circular rim which is of different color than the center. The dots are believed to be the starting points of new side branches growing from the trunk of the tree Sapwood Color White Yellow Red Pink Green/Grey Brown White to yellow Pinkish Whitish Reddish tinge Paler than heartwood Color not distinct from heartwood Grain Figure Straight Wavy Distinct (figure) Other (figure) Growth rings (figure) Closed Even Variable (figure) Fiddleback (figure) Stripe (figure) Mottled (figure) Birds-eye (figure) Generally straight, but not always Wavy Other figure Clear growth rings (figure) Distinct figure Distinct and very fine figure Variable figure Other figure Striped figure Mottled figure May be wavy or curly Fiddleback figure Closed Decorative figuring includes bird's eye, maple burl, blistered, leaf, and fiddleback. Texture Fine Even or uniform Uniform Very fine Fine Very fine Even textured Natural Growth Defects Bird's-Eye figure is characteristic for the hard maples and appears as attractive patterns on veneer manufactured. Flecks caused by insects may also be present. Boards containing this are often culled during grading and sold at a premium. Natural Durability Non-durable Perishable Non-resistant to powder post beetles Susceptible to insect attack Non durable Perishable Very little natural resistance Susceptible to attack from powder post (Lyctid & Bostrychid) beetles A hard maple rated as more durable than other maples. Fire resistant properties higher than average timber Odor No specific smell or taste Kiln Schedules Dry at a slow speed Drying Defects Distortion Collapse Discoloration Internal Honeycombing Possible Warping can be expected Sapwood discoloration possible due to extractives. Moderate twist/warp Collapse and honeycomb in heartwood is possible due to mineral stains and wetwood. Ease of Drying Fairly Easy Slowly Medium to High Shrinkage Moderately Difficult to Difficult Thick Stock Requires Care Little degrade Easy Moderate Little degrade if dried properly High tangential shrinkage can result from lack of care during drying. Dries slowly Kiln Drying Rate Naturally dries slowly Tree Size Tree height is 20-30 m Bole length is 20-30 m Trunk diameter is 100-150 cm Tree height is 30-40 m Sapwood width is 5-10 cm Tree height is 40-50 m Sapwood width is 10-15 cm Sapwood width is 15-20 cm Product Sources Plain maple is readily available in both lumber and veneer forms, but figured maple veneers are limited in availability and are considerably more expensive. Sugar maple derives its name from one of its by-products, maple sugar. A single Sugar maple tree is capable of producing twelve gallons of maple sap a year. About forty gallons of maple sap is required to produce one gallon of pure maple syrup. Certified Source Certified Source Substitutes Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ) African celtis (Celtis mildbraedii ) Comments General finishing qualities are rated as good Blunting Effect Moderate High to severe Blunting effect on machining is moderate High effect from irregular grain Boring Very good to excellent results Fairly easy to very easy Excellent (95+ pieces out of 100 will yield excellent results) Carving Fair to Good Results Fairly Easy to Very Easy Hard maple responds well to carving, and works without tear-outs or chipping. Cutting Resistance Moderate to saw Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult to saw Easy to saw Cutting Resistance with dry wood is moderate Moderate to fairly difficult to saw Cutting Resistance with green wood is moderate Gluing Fairly Easy to Very Easy Fair to Good Results Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult Moderate gluing properties Easy to glue Satisfactory gluing properties Mortising Very Good to Excellent Results Fair to Good Results Good mortising properties Expected number of pieces out of one hundred producing fair to excellent mortising results = 95 Moulding Fair to Good Results Fairly Easy to Very Easy Number of shaped pieces out of one hundred producing good to excellent results = 72 Timber is relatively easy to shape without chipping and splintering. Movement in Service Fair to Good Stability - Medium Movement Medium Nailing Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult Fair to Good Results Pre-Boring Recommended Poor to Very Poor Results Very Good to Excellent Results Holds nails well Difficult to nail Possible if prebored Tends to split during nailing Pre-boring recommended Poor nailing properties Percent of nailed pieces expected to be free from complete splits = 27 Planing Fairly Easy to Very Easy Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult Poor to Very Poor Results Moderately easy to plane Ease of planing is moderate Difficult to plane Expected number of planed pieces out of one hundred without any machining defects = 54 Resistance to Impregnation Resistant heartwood Permeable sapwood Resistant sapwood Heartwood is resistant Sapwood is permeable Heartwood is moderately resistant Difficult to treat with preservatives Heartwood is fairly difficult to treat with chemical preservatives. Response to Hand Tools Easy to Work Fairly Difficult to Difficult to Work Difficult to machine Moderate working qualities Easy to machine Variable qualities Sanding Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult Poor to Very Poor Results Very Good to Excellent Results Fair to Good Results Good sanding finish Difficult to sand (expect < 50 out of 100 good to excellent results) Extra care is recommended since sanding marks are rather difficult to cover because of the wood's density and light color Screwing Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult Fair to Good Results Pre-boring recommended Very Good to Excellent Results Screwing yields good results Difficult to screw Possible if prebored Pre-boring recommended Expected number out of one hundred of screwed pieces free from complete splits = 52 Turning Fair to Good Results