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DESCRIPTION |
Ash has a pronounced grain, the sap wood is creamy white, the heartwood is a grayish brown, the grain is coarse and interlocked.
Weight ranges from about 35lbs to 41lbs per cu. ft. |
COUNTRY OF
ORIGIN |
North America |
BOTANICAL NAME |
Fraxinus Americana |
OTHER NAMES |
White Ash, Green Ash, Red Ash, Black Ash, Brown Ash |
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES |
Bending properties vary, but are generally very good. It has good strength, toughness, stiffness and hardness for it's relatively light weight. |
WORKING PROPERTIES |
Moderate blunting effect on cutters, but can be worked fairly well with hand or power tools. Pre-drilling required for nailing in the harder Ashes. Stains, glues and polishes well. |
DURABILITY |
Ash is non-durable and perishable. The sapwood is susceptible to attack by powder post and common furniture beetles. Heartwood is moderately resistant to preservative treatment and sapwood is permeable. |
SEASONING |
Dries rapidly with little degradation. Small movement. |
USES |
White Ash is used extensively in sporting goods, bats, oars, pool cues, tool handles, cabinet work, high-class joinery, plywood, paneling and veneer. |
COMMENTS |
Since the late 1990s ash has been under attack from an invasive insect from Asia. The emerald ash borer has been decimating the species. The species as a whole is in decline and may be extinct within 20 – 30 – years |