Hardwoods
Take a note
Hardwoods





Hardwoods are produced from deciduous trees (trees which shed their
leaves annually) and evergreen broad-leaves trees.
These trees are grown in regions with warm temperate climates such as
parts of Europe, New Zealand and Chile, and in tropical regions of Central
and South America, Africa and Asia.
Hardwood tree growth is generally slow, taking around 100 years. This
makes hardwood expensive.
Tropical hardwoods retain their leaves and therefore grow more quickly
and much larger in girth and height.
Hardwoods generally have more attractive grain structures, textures and
colours and greater durability than softwoods.
Hardwoods
Name
Origin/colour
Properties & working
characteristics
Uses
Beech
Europe
Whitish pink to pale
brown
Europe: light brown
Japan: pinky-brown
straight grained, even
texture, strong
furniture, steambending, turnery
strong, durable, hard,
tough, contains tannic
acid which corrodes steel
leaving blue stains
straight grained, coarse
texture, good elasticity,
works and finishes well
fairly strong, medium
weight, easy to work,
durable, prone to warping
turnery, furniture,
outdoor uses
Oak
Ash
Europe
Pale cream and
light brown
Mahogany Central & South
America. W. Indies,
W Africa
Pink reddish brown
to deep brown
Furniture, flooring,
boat building, veneers
Sports equipment,
tool handles, cabinet
making, laminating
Hardwoods
Name
Origin/colour
Teak
Burma, India
golden brown
Walnut
Europe, USA
yellow, brown,
bronze, dark lines
Balsa
Central & South
America
pale cream and light
brown
Properties and
working
characteristics
hard, strong,
durable, natural oils
make it resistant to
water, acids and
alkalis, works well
but blunts tools
quickly
attractive grain,
cross grain can
make finishing
difficult
strong, light, soft,
easy to work
Uses
Interior/exterior
furniture, boat
building, laboratory
equipment
veneers, furniture,
gunstocks
Model airplanes kits,
boats, surfboards
Beech
turnery
furniture
strong
straight grained
whitish pink to pale brown
Comes from Europe
broad-leaves
Oak
furniture
flooring
light brown
100 years old
Comes from Europe, Japan
broad leaves
pinky-brown
Ash
straight grained
pale cream and light brown
tropical regions
finishes well
Comes from America
broad-leaves
cabinet making
Mahogany
easy to work
pink reddish brown to
deep brown
available in long wide
boards
broad-leaves
Comes from Central & South
America, W.Indies, W Africa
furniture
Teak
interior furniture
strong, durable
natural oils make it
resistant to water
exterior
furniture
tropical regions
golden brown
Comes from India
attractive grain
Walnut
100 years
brown, bronze,
dark lines
furniture
broad-leaves
easy to work
light
Balsa
pale cream and light brown
Tropical region
Comes from Central & South America
models
Softwoods
Take a note
Softwoods
Softwoods are mostly produced from evergreen conifers with thin needlelike leaves. These trees are grown in regions of the northern hemisphere,
such as Scandinavia, Canada and northern Europe, which have cold
climates, and at high altitudes elsewhere.
Softwood tree growth is much quicker than that of hardwood trees and
most softwood trees become mature enough for felling in under thirty
years. Softwoods are relatively cheap, and are also easier to sustain be
replanting.
Softwoods
Name
Origin/colour
Properties &
working
characteristics
Uses
Scots Pine
Northern Europe, Russia
cream, pale brown
Straight grained but
knotty, fairly strong,
easy to work
Furniture, joinery,
construction work
Red Cedar
Canada, USA
dark, reddish brown
Light, soft, weak,
natural oils make it
weather-durable
Exterior shingles,
cladding, sheds
Parana Pine
South America,
Pale yellow with red/brown
streaks
Hard, straight, knotfree, strong and
durable, smooth
finish, tends to
warp, expensive
Quality interior joinery:
staircases, built-in
furniture, lathework
Spruce
(Whitewood)
Northern Europe,
America
Creamy white
Fairly strong, small Construction, general
hard knots, resistant indoor work, whitewood
to splitting, resin
furniture
pockets, not durable
Scots Pine
cream,pale brown
easy to work
thin needle-like leaves
straight grained
but knotty
used in construction
work, furniture
Comes from Northern Europe, Russia
Red Cedar
soft, weak
dark, reddish
brown
thin needle-like
leaves
natural oils make it
weather-durable
Comes from Canada, USA
Parana Pine
thin needle-like leaves
staircases
expensive
knotfree
pale yellow with red/brown streaks
Comes from South America
Spruce
fairly strong
not durable
thin needle-like
leaves
Pale coloured
Comes from Northern Europe, America
general
indoor
work
Timber Derivatives
Manufactured Boards
Take a note
Manufactured Boards
Manufactured boards are now extensively used in industry and in the
home. These relatively new materials are known as composites.
Generally, these materials are manufactured using natural timber in thin
sheets or particles, which are bonded with a resin, compressed and
heated.
These products are environmentally friendly because they are often
produced from waste products such as sawdust, bark and off-cuts.
Manufactured Boards
Advantages




cheap
stable (in warm, centrally-heated environments)
thin veneers of expensive timbers can be used as top, decorative layers
boards are available in large sheets (1220 x 2240 and 1550 x 1550)
Disadvantages


edges require ‘facings’
repair and maintenance can be difficult
Manufactured Boards
Name
Composition
Plywood
Thin veneers, crosslaminated using an
odd number of layers
25mm strips glued
together and faced
with ply
Blockboard
Hardboard
Highly compresses
wood fibres
Properties and
working
characteristics
Stable, strong
and easy to
machine
Stiff and heavy,
good loadbearing
capabilities
Cardboard-like,
weak and brittle
Uses
Furniture, joinery,
Construction
work
Furniture,
worktops, veneer
groundwork
Low-cost
furniture parts,
e.g. cabinets
backs, drawer
bottoms
Manufactured Boards
Name
Composition
Properties and
Characteristics
Uses
MDF ( Medium
Density
Fibreboard)
Compressed
wood fibres
Chipboard
Compressed
wood chips
Easily machined, General
moulded and
carcass/painted
painted
work, veneer
ground
Stiffness and
Furniture
strength vary with carcassing, good
density
veneer ground
Plywood



Plywood is made from
layers or plies of wood
glued together.
The grain of each ply is laid
at right angles to the next.
This makes the ply strong
in both directions
Plywood is ideal for
lightweight box
construction, cabinet
backs and drawer
bottoms
Blockboard


These boards are made by
sandwiching strips of
softwood between two plies.
The outer faces of veneer
have the grain running at
right angles to the strips.
Ideal for furniture and
worktops
Hardboard


Hardboard is made by mixing
wood fibres together with
water and resin glue and hot
pressing into sheets.
Hardboard is not very strong
and is usually supported on
timber frames
Ideal for low-cost
furniture parts e.g.
drawer bottoms
MDF


MDF is manufactured in a
similar way to hardboard but is
compressed under greater
pressure and is therefore
much stronger.
MDF is cheap, strong and is
easily shaped and finished.
Ideal for all types of
furniture making and
interior joinery
Chipboard


Chipboard is made by gluing
chips of wood together under
heat and pressure.
Standard sheet size is 1220mm
x 2440mm. Common thickness
is 18mm.
Veneers and plastic laminate
faced chipboard is widely
used for worktops, shelves
and furniture making
Wood Processes
Take a note
Wood Turning
Take a note
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLBHAfSvBFQ
Wood Lathe



This machine is a piece of equipment which is used to turn timber into round shapes, like round
table legs, lamp bases and wooden bowls.
The timber blank is held in the machine and a cutting tool is brought into contact with the revolving
wooden blank which gradually takes on a cylindrical shape as wood is cut away.
The woodturning lathe is a relatively simple machine consisting of two stands, a bed, a headstock,
a tailstock, toolrests and electric motor providing the drive through a system of pulleys and a belt.
headstock
faceplate
tailstock
toolrest
electric motor
bed
Wood Lathe




Wood turning is the process of forming round objects on a lathe.
There are two methods of turning, between centres and faceplate turning.
Turning between centres is used to produce long cylindrical items such as table legs.
Turning with a faceplate is used to produce items such as bases or bowls. As the wood rotates, special cutting tools are used to create
shape.
Between Centres
Faceplate Turning
Routing
Take a note
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Vl8Jbw
3cSk
Routing

Routers are typically used to cut grooves, hollow out larger areas and create
decorative trims along the edge of a piece of wood. The shapes that can be cut
by your router are limited only by the number of router bits that you own.
Routing

Router bits can be categorised in two camps: edge bits and non edge bits.
Edge router bits have small nylon (or metal) wheels on the bottom of them
(see picture) that run along the wood. This allows you to rout along the edge of
the wood without using a fence. Non-edge bits do not have this wheel, and are
therefore more commonly used when routing a groove down the middle of a
piece of wood. However, they can also be used along the edge of the wood as
long as you use a rip fence or a router table.
Laminating
Take a note
Laminating
Definition: A board consisting of layers
of wood bonded together with the grain
from each layer at right angles from the
neighbouring grain.