Hard Maple (Sugar Maple) Lumber
Acer saccharum, Acer nigrum
Hard Maple is used in many applications such as residential flooring, furniture, paneling, sport floors, kitchen cabinets, worktops, table tops, butchers blocks, toys, kitchenware, millwork & mouldings, staircases, and doors.
The sapwood is creamy white with a slight reddish brown tinge. The heartwood varies from light to dark reddish brown. The amount of darker brown heartwood can vary significantly according to growing region. The wood has a close fine, uniform texture and is generally straight-grained. The grain may appear in a "curly," "fiddleback," or "birds-eye" pattern. These patterns are popular for decorative applications or musical instruments.
Pre-boring is recommended when nailing and screwing. With care it machines, turns, glues well and can be stained to an outstanding finish. Polishes well and is suitable for enamel finishes and brown tones.
The wood is hard and heavy with good strength properties, in particular its high resistance to abrasion and wear making it very popular for flooring applications.