Maple lumber comes from the Acer genus, with sugar maple being the most common. Hard and soft maple lumber is available, with hard maple being highly desirable for woodworking projects due to its strength and unique grain patterns. Soft maple is used for industrial applications and consumer items.
Maple lumber is wood that comes from any of the trees in the genus Acer. This type of lumber can come from many different species within this genus, but the most common is Acer saccharum or sugar maple, also commonly known as rock maple or hardy maple. Maple lumber is a common type of building material used for many things, such as furniture, cabinets, and many other finishing projects. It is not commonly used for structural purposes because it is much more valuable for decorative and finished products.
Any wood milled from one of the dozen maple species can be referred to as maple lumber, but there are a limited number of common species used to make this highly desirable type of lumber. Maple lumber is generally divided into two main categories: hard and soft. Sugar and black maples are the sources for hard maple lumber. Black maple is also known as black sugar maple. These trees are harvested primarily in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the United States, and these areas account for approximately two-thirds of all hard maple lumber produced.
Hard maple lumber is highly desirable as a subject matter for all types of woodworking projects. It is usually light reddish to medium reddish brown and has a fiber that is generally quite straight. The wood is very strong, heavy, and resistant to bending and impact. It must be dried well before use, because it has a high degree of shrinkage as it dries. These qualities make it a favorite for floors, cabinets, veneers, cutting boards, blocks and furniture.
Maple is also a popular wood for turning, and some Major League Baseball players prefer bats made from this versatile wood. Hard maple lumber is also available in rare varieties such as bird’s eye maple, curly maple and fiddle maple, all of which exhibit unusual grain characteristics that woodworkers and consumers find especially beautiful and desirable. For example, some very expensive luxury cars use bird’s eye maple in the construction of dashboards and cockpit accents.
Soft maple lumber comes from several other common maple species, including silver maple, bigleaf maple, red maple, and boxwood. These trees produce wood that is very similar to hard maples but slightly less hard, strong, or dense. These woods are still considered hardwoods, however, and are considerably harder than many other types of lumber, especially pines.
Most soft maple lumber comes from the eastern United States, with the exception of bigleaf maple, which is found primarily in the Northwest region of the United States. These woods are commonly used for more industrial applications, such as railway sleepers, pallets, boxes and crates. Some consumer items such as toys, kitchen utensils, and veneers might also be made from soft maple.
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