Canyon live oak (Quercus chrysolepis)
Family: Fagaceae
Common names: Canyon live oak, Canyon oak, Goldcup oak
Distributed in: United States (North America)
Distribution overview: Canyon live oak occurs from south-western Oregon, south through the Coastal Ranges and Sierra Nevada to southern California. It is also found in localized areas in western Nevada and in western and central Arizona. The tree usually grows in pure stands and mixed forests in canyons and sandy, gravelly, and rocky slopes. It grows at elevations of 1000 to 6500 feet (305 to 1981 m) in most areas, and at 5500 to 7500 feet (1676 to 2286 m) in Arizona.
Common uses: Farm vehicles, Wheels
Product sources: Although the primary sources of commercial American red oak are northern red oak (Q. rubra) and southern red oak (Q. falcata), various species in the red oak class are mixed and marketed together without distinction. Supplies of red oak are plentiful, and the species is one of the most commonly available domestic hardwoods. Oak in general, and particularly red oak, dominates as the most popular timber for furniture, followed by cherry, pine, mahogany, ash, pecan, hard maple, and walnut.Red oak is also a popular export to other countries, and is one of the most popular American oaks used in Europe.
Environment profile: Status has not been officially assessed
Tree size: Tree height is 20-30 m
Colors: the heart isPurple, Redand the sapwoodWhite, Whitish to grayish brown .The grain isUsually straight , the texture
Texture is largely dependent upon growth rate. Slow growing Red oak from the north parts of its range are often generally less coarse-textured than their faster-grown counterparts from the southern states
Natural durability: Heartwood has low natural resistance to decay and wood destroying organisms
It is inferior to white oak with respect to this property
Odor: No specific smell or taste
Kiln Schedules: US=T3-B1
Drying Defects: Ring Shakes, Ring failure
Ease of Drying: Moderately Difficult to Difficult
Comments: Oaks are classified into two main groups: red oaks and white oaks, although members within each group may be similar, they do not have the same characteristics and may differ significantly. The Red oak group is plentiful in eastern Canada and the United States. The name Red oak is used in reference to several similar oaks which include American red oak or Northern red oak (Q. rubra ), Southern red oak, Spanish oak, Swamp red oak, or Cherrybark oak (Q. falcata ), Shumard oak, Pin oak (Q. palustris ), Nuttal oak (Q. nuttallii ), Scarlet oak (Q. coccinea ), Canyon live oak (Q. chrysolepis ), and sometimes Black oak (Q. velutina ). Red oaks are often described as beautiful because of grain pattern and character. They tend to be plainer in appearance than white oaks because of their smaller rays, and they are not as water-tight as white oaks due to their open pores. The two groups are comparable in strength, and they are both used in steam bending applications. Red oaks tend to be less resistant to decay than white oaks or European oaks. Also, red oak acorns are reported to taste more bitter than white oak acorns
Blunting Effect: Moderate dulling effect on cutting edges
Boring: Very good to excellent results
Gluing: Satisfactory gluing properties
Mortising: Very Good to Excellent
Nailing: Pre-boring recommended, Very Good to Excellent
Planing: Very Good to Excellent
Resistance to Impregnation: Resistant sapwood
Response to hand tools: Works well with hand tools
Sanding: Responds very well to preservative treatment
Steam bending: Very Good to Excellent Results
Screwing: Fairly Easy to Very Easy, Good screwing properties; Turning: Very good
Staining: Very Good to Excellent
Open grain allows great flexibilty in the selection of finishes for red oaks. A darker stain preceded by a light filler is reported to produce the popular lime appearance. The wood can also be treated with ammonia to produce an almost black 'Jacobean' finish because of the high tannin content. Ray pattern on quarter-sawn boards can also yield a truly unique look.
Tip: To avoid conspicuous differences in stained, edge-glued members, separate quarter-sawn and flat-sawn boards and use one consistently for a given project;
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- Strength properties
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