wanut vs. maple

[navaho]

In the world of wood stocks which is softer? If you had two stocks and all things the same, which stock would break or crack first? I know there is no 100% correct answer, but if you were a betting man.

 

[MSW]

it has often been said (and might actually be true) that my opinion and a ticket will get you on the bus. having admitted that...

i think it depends much more on the orientation of the grain of the wood through the wrist rather thanh the species of wood used to make the stock.

additionally, there can be hidden flaws in the wood which won't be visible until after the thing cracks, breaks or otherwise fails.

then there's the tired, distracted or just plain dumb shooter who tries to pound one last ball through a bore which should have been wiped down three or four shots ago.

and some pieces look better in maple and some look better in walnut.

so, as the bad lawyer joke goes... "it depends."

 

[Birddog6]

Generally speaking, IMHO the maple is considerably stronger. Now we are talking General.. You will upon occasion find some walnut that is dense but on general stockwood, the maple is gonna be more dense, closer grained, & considerably stronger.

 

[Stophel]

Finding a GOOD piece of walnut these days is the problem. If you can find one, it will be ALMOST as hard as good sugar maple, and more than suitably strong. It is a more "splintery" wood when working than maple is. Sugar maple is more consistent in hardness and quality than walnut is. I wouldn't use MOST red maple even as firewood! It isn't called "soft" maple for nothing!

 

[Coot]

All things being the same, Walnut is easier to splinter or chip out when carving. It is also easier to split or break. There is a reason that you can find maple mallets but not walnut. (I have seen a burl walnut mallet but that is not gun wood). I love my walnut stocked fowler but the blank was $$$ and I hope that I never drop test the gun.

 

[crockett]

I am told the distance betweeen the grains makes a difference. I got this from helving an axe head. The closer grain is to one another( that is the distance between the rings) more prone to split, the wider grain less prone( 1/8" or more). Has anyone else heard this?

 

[rich pierce]

No, I havbe always been told that slow growth wood is denser and stronger.

 

[Stophel]

With woods like ash and to a somewhat lesser degree, walnut, the porous rings (which are "summer wood", as I recall) need to be as small and as distantly spaced as possible. The denser "winter wood" is what you want the most of. The wider apart the rings are, the better. :winking:

 

[crockett]

For whatever it is worth, that was always my take on the matter, slow growth was denser and stronger. Maybe what I read only applies to ash since that's what I used for the axe handle.

 

[crockett]

Sorry, but I need to know how you tell the rings apart? The porous rings- is that the light colored area?

 

[crockett]

and... I think there are two issues, the width of the ring itself and the distance from the next ring. In other words if winter wood is the dark rings, then you would want wide, dark rings but thin light rings?

 

[Stophel]

What wood are we talking about here? Maple doesn't do the same thing as regards "rings". It does have the rings, but they are always small, and the porosity is the same (a "diffuse porous" wood). Walnut does have the somewhat more porous rings, and with woods like ash, hickory, and oak, the porous rings are immediately obvious. With walnut, the rings are not really much of an indicator of wood quality anyway. You can tell much more from the thumbnail test (see how hard or easy it is to crease the wood with your fingernails). :winking:

 

[Zonie]

Just as a point of possible interest, an old Materials Engineering book gives this information about Sugar Maple and Black Walnut with 12 percent moisture:

Density: Walnut = .55, Maple = .63 (heavier)

Bending (Modules of rupture): Walnut = 14600 PSI, Maple = 15800 PSI (stronger)

Max Crush Str (par to grain): Walnut = 7600 PSI, Maple = 7800 PSI

Hardness (load required to imbed a .444 dia ball to 1/2 it's diameter) Walnut (end) = 1370 Lb, (side) = 1050 Lb, Maple (end) = 2330 Lb, (side) =1840 Lb.

Max Shear Strength (parallel with grain): Walnut = 1010 PSI, Maple = 1450 PSI.

This data basically says that Maple is heavier, harder and stronger than Walnut.
As one who has worked with both, I would have to agree.

zonie