SCIENTIFIC NAME(s):

Acer rubrum, Acer saccharinum, Acer negundo, Acer macrophyllum

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COMMON NAME(s):

Soft Maples include:

• Red Leaf Maple (Acer rubrum), also known as Water, Scarlet, White and Swamp Maple.

• Silver Leaf Maple (Acer saccharinum), also known as Soft, Large and Sugar Maple.

• Boxelder (Acer negundo), also known as Ash-leaved, Three-leaved and Cut-leaved Maple.

• Bigleaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum), also known as Oregon maple.

• Other types include Spalted Maple and Curly Maple (discussed below).

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

Soft Maple is very similar to Hard Maple in most respects. Generally, the sapwood is greyish white, sometimes with darker-colored pith flecks. The heartwood varies from light-to-dark reddish brown. The wood is usually straight-grained while the lumber is generally sold unselected for color.

 

Spalted Maple has a distinctive, natural pattern of dark lines, streaks, and zones. These patterns are created by decaying fungus as it invades the wood and can include black wavy streaks that resemble a black marble pattern. It has a fine, even texture and a straight grain pattern, usually pale cream in color, with patches of light brown or grey outlined by black lines.

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Curly Maple is also considered Soft Maple. It resembles Hard Maple, being closed-grained, but is much softer. It is easily worked, turns and planes well, and does not require fillers to achieve a glass-smooth finish. Curly Maple accepts finish and paint well. Curls appearing across the board are the result of contortions in the grain that reflect light at different angles.

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REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION:

Soft Maple is found throughout the Eastern United States. Soft Maple from Northern & Eastern regions is more often the Red Leaf variety. Central region Soft Maple, especially from the states of Iowa, Missouri & Illinois are often mainly the Silver Leaf Maple variety. Most all Soft Maples is found in the eastern United States except for Bigleaf Maple, which comes from the Pacific Coast.

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES:

Soft Maple is about 25 percent less hard than Hard Maple. It has medium-bending and crushing strength and is low in stiffness and shock resistance. It also has good steam-bending properties. However, the Silver Leaf Soft Maple often shows a higher heartwood content than the Northern Red Leaf Soft Maple.

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Heartwood and sapwood are similar in appearance to hard maple: heartwood of soft maple is somewhat lighter in color and the sapwood, somewhat wider. The wood of soft maple, primarily silver and red maple, resembles that of hard maple but is not as heavy, hard, and strong.

 

WORKING PROPERTIES:

Soft Maple machines well and can be stained to an excellent finish. It glues, screws, and nails satisfactorily; it also polishes well and is suitable for enamel finishes and brown tones. Soft Maple dries slowly with minimal degrade and there is little movement in performance.

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ALTERNATIVES:

Hard Maple, White Birch, Yellow Birch. Soft Maple is often used as a substitute for more expensive species such as Cherry or Walnut.

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COMMON USES:

Furniture, paneling and millwork, kitchen cabinets, moulding, doors, musical instruments, and turnings. It is often used as a substitute for hard maple or stained to resemble other species. And lower grades of Soft Maple are used for railroad crossties, boxes, pallets, crates, furniture, veneer, wooden ware, and novelties.

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GRADE:

NHLA Standard Grade Rules

 

 

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