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Clicking any heading in the main data area (at right) will scroll the page back to this top position. Use the following links to jump to the associated section in the main data. Boring 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 Movement in Service Nailing Natural Durability Numerical Data Odor Planing Polishing References Regions of Distribution Resistance to Abrasion Response to Hand Tools Sanding Sapwood Color Scientific Name Screwing Staining Steam Bending Texture Trade Name Tree Size Turning Veneering Qualities Scientific Name Lithocarpus densiflorus Trade Name Tanoak Family Name Fagaceae Common Names Tanoak Regions of Distribution North America Countries of Distribution  [VIEW MAP] United States Common Uses Baseball bats, Beams, Bedroom suites, Building materials, Cabinetmaking, Chairs, Chests, Concealed parts (Furniture), Core Stock, Decorative veneer, Desks, Dining-room furniture, Domestic flooring, Dowell pins, Dowells, Drawer sides, Factory construction, Figured veneer, Fine furniture, Floor lamps, Flooring, Fuelwood, Furniture , Furniture components, Furniture squares or stock, Hatracks, Interior construction, Interior trim, Joists, Kitchen cabinets, Living-room suites, Mine timbers, Moldings, Office furniture, Pallets, Parquet flooring, Plain veneer, Pulpwood, Structural work, Tannin, Veneer Environmental Profile Rather secure globally Rather rare at the periphery of its range Rare in parts of its natural range (population is at risk) Generally widespread, secure, and abundant within most of its range Data source is Nature Conservancy Distribution Overview A disjunct stand slightly north of the Umpqua River in southwestern Oregon has been reported as the northernmost limit of tanoak's natural range. The general northern limit of tanoak in the Coast Ranges, however, is farther south in the Coquille River drainage. Its eastern limit in Oregon extends from west of Roseburg to Grants Pass, and then southwesterly into the Applegate River drainage. Tanoak's range stretches southward through the Coast Ranges in California to the Santa Ynez Mountains north and east of Santa Barbara, CA. The range also extends northeastward from the Humboldt Bay region to the lower slopes of Mount Shasta, then intermittently southward along the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada as far as Mariposa County. In the Sierra Nevada, tanoak is most common between the Feather and American Rivers. Tanoak grows well on a variety of soils developed from igneous, metamorphic, or sedimentary rocks, or sedimentary rock alluvium. It grows best on soils that are deep, well-drained, and loamy, sandy, or gravelly. Tanoak also grows on soils derived from serpentine, which are intermediate between the moist and dry extremes, but is limited to a shrubby form. It is seldom found on heavy clayey soils. Heartwood Color The heartwood is described as light brown, tinged with red. The wood ages to a pleasing tannish or deep reddish brown Sapwood Color The wide sapwood is initially light reddish brown, but turns darker upon exposure and blends into the heartwood Grain Birds-eye (figure) Interlocked Texture Medium Coarse Natural Durability Very durable Decay's readily The wood is susceptible to attack by fungi, including Fistulina hepatica, Inonotus dryadeus, and Schizophyllum commune. It is also vulnerable to attack by insects, including Agrilus angelicus and Melalgus confertus. Odor No specific smell or taste Kiln Schedules 3 - B1 (4/4); T3 - B1 (8/4) U Drying Defects Splitting Checking Uncontrolled drying conditions are reported to cause end and surface checks, and rapid drying rates tend to promote honeycomb and collapse. Adequate air circulation around lumber in the green condition is also essential in order to prevent bacterial stains and molds Ease of Drying Moderately Difficult to Difficult Slowly Requires careful seasoning to prevent degrade Timber containing mineral streak is especially difficult to dry. Air-seasoning requires very mild conditions, with moderate temperatures and high humidities in order to prevent the development of molds and bacterial stains Kiln Drying Rate Naturally dries slowly Tree Size Sapwood width is 10-15 cm Sapwood width is 5-10 cm The evergreen tree is reported to reach a height of 50 to 150 feet (15 to 35 m), with a trunk diameter of 6 to 48 inches (15 to 120 cm). Trees growing in the forest are reported to develop narrow crowns, with straight boles that are clear of branches for 30 to 80 feet (9 to 24 m) Comments Generally heavy, hard and strong The species has similar characteristics to both the true oaks and chestnut. The bark of the tree produces tannin in commercial quantities. Iron is reported to react with Tanoak lumber in the green condition to cause a pronounced blue-black discoloration in the wood Boring Excellent (95+ pieces out of 100 will yield excellent results) Cutting Resistance Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult to saw Gluing Fairly Easy to Very Easy Fairly high bond strength The wood glues satisfactorily under well-controlled conditions Straight Figure Growth rings (figure) Even Variable (figure) Rays (figure) Other (figure) Weak (figure) Percent of moulded pieces with good to excellent results = 39 Movement in Service The wood shows fair to poor stability in service, depending on heartwood content. Nailing Fairly Difficult to Very Difficult Holds satisfactorily High resistance to splitting during nailing Difficult to nail Planing Machining qualities of Tanoak are comparable to or superior than those of the oaks, especially in planing, moulding, boring, and mortising. The wood is reported to plane well and can be worked to a smooth surface. (Percent of planed pieces without any machining defects = 80) Resistance to Abrasion Very good resistance to wear Response to Hand Tools Fairly Difficult to Difficult to Work Sanding Highly resistant to fuzzing Fair sanding qualities Screwing Very high splitting resistance Good screw holding properties Difficult to screw Turning Good results Number of pieces out of one hundred producing fair to excellent turning results = 81 Veneering Qualities The timber is reported to produce good quality veneer that is suitable for furniture manufacture. Blocks heated to 160 degrees F (65 degrees C) are reported to yield smoother, tighter, and higher quality veneer without increasing amount of end splitting. Defects are reported to include surface checking, staining, and knots greater than 2 inches (5 cm). Veneers are reported to dry without difficulty Steam Bending Steam bending properties are rated as fair to poor Polishing High resistance to fuzzing Staining Fair to Good Results Numerical Data Item Green Dry English Bending Strength 10290 17052 psi Density 45 lbs/ft3 Hardness 1421 lbs Impact Strength 43 inches Maximum Crushing Strength 4557 7304. psi Stiffness 1519 2254 1000 psi Work to Maximum Load 13 inch-lbs/in3 Specific Gravity 0.58 0.62 Weight 44 36. lbs/ft3 Radial Shrinkage 5 % Tangential Shrinkage 11 % Volumetric Shrinkage 15 % Item Green Dry Metric Bending Strength 723 1198 kg/cm2 Density 721 kg/m3 Hardness 644 kg Impact Strength 109 cm Maximum Crushing Strength 320 513. kg/cm2 Stiffness 106 158 1000 kg/cm2 Work to Maximum Load 0.91 cm-kg/cm3 Specific Gravity 0.58 0.62 Weight 705 576. kg/m3 Radial Shrinkage 5 % Tangential Shrinkage 11 % References Boone, R.S., C.J. Kozlik, P.J. Bois, E.M. Wengert. 1988. Dry Kiln Schedules for Commercial Hardwoods - Temperate and Tropical. USDA, Forest Service, General Technical Report FPL-GTR-57, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin. Burns, R.M. and B.H. Honkala. 1990. Silvics of North America, Vol. 2 - Hardwoods. Agriculture Handbook 654. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Washington, D.C. California Department of Forestry. Comparative Physical and Mechanical Properties of Western and Eastern Hardwoods. Prepared by Forest Products Laboratory, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California. N/d. Kaiser, Jo-Ann. Wood of the Month: Tanoak - Northern California's 'Other' Important Tree. Wood & Wood Products, June, 1989. Page 58. Little, E.L. 1980. The Audobon Society Field Guide to North American Trees - Western Region. Publishe by Arthur A. Knopf, New York. Niemiec, S.S., G.A. Ahrens, S. Willits, and D.E. Hibbs. March, 1995. Hardwoods of the Pacific Northwest. Oregon State University, College of Forestry, Research Contribution 8, Forest Research Laboratory, Department of Forest Products, Corvallis, Oregon. Panshin, A.J. and C. deZeeuw. Textbook of Wood Technology. McGraw-Hill Series in Forest Resources. McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York. USDA. 1987. Wood Handbook : Wood as an Engineering Material. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Agriculture Handbook No. 72. Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin. USDA. 1988. Dry Kiln Operators Manual, Preliminary Copy. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin. Western Wood Products Association. 19__. Softwoods of the Western USA. Published and Distributed by Western Wood Products Association, Yeon Building, 522 SW Fifth Avenue, Portland, Oregon.