# Type of hardwood is best for home furniture



## craig11152

are you asking about durability?


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## Mort

Oak, maple, walnut. Depends on what you're building, style, etc. Need more details.


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## 47_47

Yes, more details please. Most hardwoods are durable for furniture but it boils down to your tastes, what you want your finished piece to look like and your wallet.


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## christopherjhar

My opinion is Maple!


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## 1acre

If it's paint grade, I'll use poplar (I try to keep ~25 bf laying around). Oak if I need something more durable that won't be seen, but I can't stand the smell. Decorative woods as budget and taste dictate if something will be stained.

I steer clear of pine and the great scam of alder (even more offensive is "knotty alder"). 

walnut runs almost $12/bf at my local lumber yard here in Denver. Bird's eye maple is cheaper.


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## ront02769

All depends on what you are making and what your tastes are. I have a LOt of built ins in my house, all cabinet grade oak faced plywood carcass, red oak face frames. My buddy builds chairs, tables, countertops, etc and he uses mostly live edge locust cut from my property. Gorgeous work....but you have to like the look. Ron


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## ddawg16

Tough subject. 

There are a lot of factors to take into consideration.

Hardness is one.....but how well it takes a stain and resists moisture is another factor. 

Here is a good link for some background info.

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/types-of-wood-for-woodworking.html

I personally am so tired of oak. It's a great wood, but I'm tired of the grain.

For now, my 'go to' is Birch and Maple. 

A few key things to remember......

If you are making shelves, you do not want to use solid wood....it is not as 'stable' as plywood. The preference is to use plywood in the wood of choice with solid edge trim glued on.

When making furniture, do not depend on glue. Glue should be followed up with bolts and/or screws.


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## 1acre

ddawg16 said:


> When making furniture, do not depend on glue. Glue should be followed up with bolts and/or screws.


Glue is a perfectly acceptable way to join wood together. 90% of my "fine furniture" (if one would even call it that), use proper joints for the application with solely glue. 

"Particle board" is also an acceptable material in furniture. It's about the application and how you use it.


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## ddawg16

1acre said:


> Glue is a perfectly acceptable way to join wood together. 90% of my "fine furniture" (if one would even call it that), use proper joints for the application with solely glue.
> 
> "Particle board" is also an acceptable material in furniture. It's about the application and how you use it.


We need to make sure we distinguish the types of 'fine furniture'. 

Cabinets.....yea, glue is fine....assuming you are using biscuits. 

Something you sit on? Glue only? It's not going to last long.

"Particle board"? Ok, we know what your idea of 'fine furniture' is.


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## 1acre

ddawg16 said:


> "Particle board"? Ok, we know what your idea of 'fine furniture' is.


Funny, I thought the same thing when I read "you need bolts/screws [for joinery]" and "biscuits." All things which makes me deem a piece to be of inferior quality. Don't get me wrong, they all have their place and application, but I'm not the one arguing "that glue won't last." 

To each their own, but glue gets it done, and has for a long time. If one prefers screws/bolts and inferior joinery methods, that's their thing. But it's pissing in the wind to say, "do not depend on glue" and "[glue only] isn't going to last." It's backed up by testing and time.


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## sheikhmohammed

Wood is the most popular interior design material. With softwoods and hardwoods the variety of colors, grain patterns and textures can please any taste and emphasize any interior design style.


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## Dobryi_Mi

may be "red wood"? )))


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## macs3

I like marple and wallnut


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## SeniorSitizen

To remove all doubt I prefer cherry for fine furniture but this throne seat, fit for a Queen, is of 4 or 5 pieces of poplar glued with Elmer's School Glue and has been tested by some real heavy weights over the past 10 years.

That's my story and I'm sticken toit.


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## MT Stringer

Disclaimer: I never claimed to be a builder of fine furniture.

But I have built furniture ranging from cabinets to toy boxes and other stuff using white pine, red oak, maple, birch, and walnut. Some of those projects were for my use, others were for other folks. 

In 1983, I built a simple corner cabinet for my mother using 1x12 white pine. It still stands proudly in the corner of her living room! :smile:

So it just depends on what you want to use and the desired look. Stain (light or dark) or no stain.

BTW I like knotty alder also! :surprise::biggrin2: My wife wanted the Tuscany look for her kitchen and knotty alder fit the bill. She also did the staining and glazing. And a lot of cooking since it was complete.

These are all made from pine.


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## SeniorSitizen

That chest is a treasure for sure.


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