# Maple vs Birch



## greengiant (Nov 27, 2007)

Hard maple can be an absolute nightmare to stain. It is also more difficult to work with as it dulls tools quickly. You would not want to stain it anyway, since the whole point of using hard maple is picking out the lovely grain and natural colors (white sapwood and red-brown heartstock). It is well suited for cabinets, but maybe not the look you're aiming for.

Birch is less expensive, and is excellent at taking stain. It holds edges and nails well, making it well suited for cabinets. It normally has a fine and straight grain, but you can find some curly grained wood. 

If the cabinets are going to be the focal point as you describe, consider actually working in cherry rather than staining something else to look like cherry.


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## concretemasonry (Oct 10, 2006)

How about cherry? The grain is more subdued than many other woods (like oak, pine).

If unstained, it will will darken somewhat, but you can decrease the light color by using some stain. I know the recent rage was "cherry" cabinets that were other cheaper species, but stained dark.

With cherry, a lot depends on the lighting (mainly natural) in the area, since the natural light will affect the color change over time less than the artificial.


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## Richo (Dec 6, 2007)

IMO nothing beats cherry with a clear coat, but you're going to pay for it, at least twice as much as maple or birch.

When I build a house in a couple of years I would love to go with cherry for the kitchen, but it's all going to depend on the pocketbook at the time.


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

Maple and birch are just about interchangeable, visual wise. I used the scenario you described for a kitchen. I didn't find the maple difficult to stain at all. I used a conditioner prior to the stain and avoided the blotchiness associated with these woods.
I think I used about 28 sheets of maple 3/4" ply and maybe 5 sheets of 1/2" birch ply for the drawer bottoms.
If the kitchen is small, dark cabinets might not be the way to go.
Ron


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## Richo (Dec 6, 2007)

Hey Ron,

Not meaning to hijack this thread but why is oak seldom used on cabinets anymore (at least around here)? For a long time, oak was everywhere.

I went to a showcase (tour) of new homes recently and none of the homes had oak trim or cabinetry. It was mostly maple/birch, a few with cherry.

Is is just a matter of what's "in" at this point and time?


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## concretemasonry (Oct 10, 2006)

I think that the grain of the oak is too strong and variable and detracts from the details.

Dick


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## Ron6519 (Mar 28, 2007)

Richo said:


> Hey Ron,
> 
> Not meaning to hijack this thread but why is oak seldom used on cabinets anymore (at least around here)? For a long time, oak was everywhere.
> 
> ...


I think it's just a cycle and what concretemasonary said. People seem to like the muted graining of the other woods and letting the wood profiles on the doors and moldings take center stage.
I haven't put in an oak kitchen in 10 years. Mostly maple, one alder( which is a low cost alternative to cherry) and a few thermofoil.
Ron


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