Replies

1. 
   ring | Sep 16, 2005 02:04pm | #1

   Forget that they both have the term "maple" in the names.  They are 2 different woods, and you should judge each on its own pluses and minuses.   Hard maple, for instance, might have more in common (from a woodworking perspective, not botany) with European Beech than it does with soft maple.  

   DR

2. 
   JeffHeath | Sep 16, 2005 07:12pm | #2

   brian

   Hard maple is from Sugar maple or Rock maple.  It is harder than soft maple, thus the name. 

   Soft maple is still a hardwood, a little harder than walnut or cherry.  It usually comes from red maple, silver maple, etc....  Soft maple will usually have some browner colors in it, but you can find some extremely nice clear white stock, as well as some great figure.

   Jeff

1. 
   Ricks503 | Sep 16, 2005 10:02pm | #6

   So where does Big Leaf Maple come in?  Soft or Hard?1 - measure the board twice, 2 - cut it once, 3 - measure the space where it is supposed to go        4 - get a new board and go back to step 1

1. 
   JeffHeath | Sep 16, 2005 10:11pm | #7

   Being from the midwest, I'm not sure, as I've never had the pleasure of working with it.

   I seem to remember that it was considered soft maple, but please don't bet on it, and nobody bite my head off either.  It's just from memory, and that's not working to good lately either.

   Jeff

2. 
   jerry | Sep 16, 2005 10:26pm | #8

   big leaf maple is the soft stuff.jerry

1. 
   Kevin | Sep 26, 2005 10:21pm | #16

   Normally I would agree that Big Leaf is "soft" Maple. I've worked with it quite a bit over the years here in Oregon.

   But, a couple years ago I refinished some stools for the flagship branch of a west coast bank. The stools were made somewhere in southeastern Canada - I forget exactly where. Quebec I think. Anyway, the stools were brand new. The bank just wanted them refinished to match a particular stain that I'd created to do all of the other wood fixtures, tables and reception area in this same branch. The literature that came with the stools said they were made out of Maple. And, having stripped the existing finish off and begun to prep-sand them, it certainly looked absolutely like Maple wood to me. The thing is... the wood was very white, but it was also extremely soft. Far softer than any Maple I've ever been exposed to. It was certainly significantly softer than Big Leaf Maple.

   Might there be another softer Maple that is commercially harvested further north?

1. 
   knotsmyproblem | Sep 27, 2005 04:22am | #17

   A wise and talented workbench maker I had the pleasure of working with once, posed this question/observation of hard maple.  He said, "Do you know the difference between maple and aluminum?".  I of course, replied with a bewildered look as per normal, and he replied " the color".  As you work the materiel you will soon realize there is more truth than fiction to his words.  Good luck!

3. 
   royh | Sep 18, 2005 02:15pm | #13

   Bigleaf maple comes/grows in the western United States, mostly NW USA. In the botany world known as Acer macrophyllum.

   I like your 4 steps to prepping a board.

   Roy

2. 
   BigHar | Sep 21, 2005 03:16am | #14

   I worked with both. there is a good reason why hard maple is called rock maple.  It will tear up hss knives fast, only use carbide blades, shaper cutters, etc. 

1. 
   Cooler | Sep 26, 2005 04:55am | #15

   Lowes sells "Maple".   Is that soft or hard or is it something else?  I've used it and it finishes nicely.

3. 
   Bioman | Sep 16, 2005 07:26pm | #3

   My experience has been that soft maple is hard enough for most furniture uses where a severe wear surface is not needed (like a butcher block).  It is easier to hand cut mortises in soft than in hard.

4. 
   notDusty | Sep 16, 2005 07:29pm | #4

            brian1 ,

                           I use soft Maple which may as stated include Brown or  Silver Maple for some paint grade jobs . It has good machining qualities as Eastern Hardrock or White Maple does. IMO it machines better than Poplar or Alder . There is also Western Maple which can have beautiful figure and grain patterns as well , and is ( about ) the same hardness as Soft Maple . There is no reason that I can think of that Soft Maple could not be used for building furniture .

                             dusty

1. 
   Adrian | Sep 16, 2005 08:08pm | #5

   I've used a lot of soft maple....it's underrated. Much more common to find nice stripe and curly figure in soft maple than hard. It is softer than hard maple (quick check has soft maple at 4226 Newtons, exactly the same as cherry, northern red oak at 5738 N, and hard maple at 6450 N), but I've never found that to be any kind of an issue....I know several people who are making flooring with it.Cabinetmaker/college woodworking instructor. Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

5. 
   cmscott6 | Sep 17, 2005 03:58am | #9

   I work for a furniture company that makes several types of futon frames out of american soft maple. The figure that shows up can be incredible, however on any type of stretcher or long, weight-bearing board, if there's any imperfection in the wood, you can bet that that board will break under stress. I get a lot of scraps and for smaller pieces, the wood is beautiful: a joy to plane, takes a nice finish, and gets that almost translucent, shimmery texture in the light. Enjoy!

1. 
   highfigh | Sep 17, 2005 04:21pm | #10

   I was told by someone from a hardwood dealer that sugar maple is hard maple, any other maple is soft, with no exceptions. Jeff- speaking of maple, how did that library turn out?
   "I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."

1. 
   JeffHeath | Sep 18, 2005 07:07am | #11

   highfigh

   It turned out great.  I'm building some furniture for the folks also, for the same room.  I'm hoping that I have enough maple left, it's gonna be close.  I took some pics last time I was at their house, but for some reason, they turned out lousy with my digital camera.  Next time I go back, I'll get some new ones, and post them.  I'm extremely pleased, and I got another job from their neighbor.  It will be good to be working in cherry again.  I'm sick of maple!!LOL.

   See ya

   Jeff

6. 
   rporcaro | Sep 18, 2005 08:29am | #12

   Both can be great if you find boards you like. Hard maple (sugar maple) is less forgiving to work with than soft maple (most commonly red maple) but tends to have better figure in curly, blister, etc. It also seems to be available in more figured varieties. Also be careful buying soft maple. Some of it has a grayish cast that you might not notice at first, even after surfacing. It also seems to be notably susceptible to sticker stain.

   But that said, I've used some soft maple with great curly figure. It is more pleasant to work with but I think plenty hard enough for table tops, etc. Just a question of finding the boards you like with a careful eye.

   I haven't had much experience with big leaf maple but so far I like it a lot, especially in the broader curly figure. Pretty easy to work too.