Maple - hard or soft

[tibi]

Hello,

I have just bought maple for making a workbench ( I made up my mind and changed it from steamed beech as the lumberyard had some extra stock of maple that was not listed on their website).

Here in Slovakia, they sell it as maple. I would like to know if it is soft or hard maple and if it does matter a lot when building a workbench. The price was lower than steamed beech and almost equal to unsteamed beech. Can you help me identify whether it is hard maple or soft maple? I assume it is soft maple.

Thank you.

 

[tibi]

Hello,

I have just bought maple for making a workbench ( I made up my mind and changed it from steamed beech as the lumberyard had some extra stock of maple that was not listed on their website).

Here in Slovakia, they sell it as maple. I would like to know if it is soft or hard maple and if it does matter a lot when building a workbench. The price was lower than steamed beech and almost equal to unsteamed beech. Can you help me identify whether it is hard maple or soft maple? I assume it is soft maple.

Thank you.

View attachment 160388

Nobody?

 

[thetyreman]

it's unlikely to be rock maple which grows in the USA and canada

 

[tibi]

it's unlikely to be rock maple which grows in the USA and canada

I have found out that 3 species of maple are being harvested in Slovakia :
Sycamore maple, Norway maple, and Tatarian Maple.

 

[Jacob]

....

Here in Slovakia, they sell it as maple. I would like to know if it is soft or hard maple and if it does matter a lot when building a workbench.

Does it matter? You can make a workbench out of many timbers. I'd just carry on and make the bench.

 

[tibi]

Does it matter? You can make a workbench out of many timbers. I'd just carry on and make the bench.

It does not matter, I just wanted to know, what I have (if someone asked me about the workbench).

 

[Jacob]

It does not matter, I just wanted to know, what I have (if someone asked me about the workbench).

Tell them it's sycamore!
According to my TRADA book yours is most likely to be either sycamore, or "Norway" maple with properties similar to sycamore but less hard and slightly heavier.

 

[Lefley]

Hello,

I have just bought maple for making a workbench ( I made up my mind and changed it from steamed beech as the lumberyard had some extra stock of maple that was not listed on their website).

Here in Slovakia, they sell it as maple. I would like to know if it is soft or hard maple and if it does matter a lot when building a workbench. The price was lower than steamed beech and almost equal to unsteamed beech. Can you help me identify whether it is hard maple or soft maple? I assume it is soft maple.

Thank you.

View attachment 160388

Calculate volume. Hard maple weighs about 44 lbs cu ft. soft maple 34 red maple 38.

 

[tibi]

Calculate volume. Hard maple weighs about 44 lbs cu ft. soft maple 34 red maple 38.

My weights 33,7 lbs cu ft. So it will be soft maple or Norway maple.

 

[Lefley]

My weights 33,7 lbs cu ft. So it will be soft maple or Norway maple.

Perfect. It's quite an easy way to narrow it down.

 

[tibi]

Tell them it's sycamore!
According to my TRADA book yours is most likely to be either sycamore, or "Norway" maple with properties similar to sycamore but less hard and slightly heavier.

Sycamore should be more brownish and my wood is pale yellow/white, so it can be Norway maple.