Pacific silver fir (Abies amabilis)
Family: Pinaceae
Common names: Alpine fir, Amabilis fir, Balsam, Balsam fir, Cascade fir, Fir, Great silver fir, Larch, Lovely fir, Pacific silver fir, Red fir, Silver fir, Western fir, White fir
Distributed in: Canada, United States (North America)
Distribution overview: Pacific Silver Fir is native to the Pacific Coast region from Alaska south to western British Columbia, to western Oregon and locally in northwestern California (Siskiyou County). It grows from about sea level in the western limits of its range, to 6,000 feet in the Cascades. This tree prefers cool, wet regions. It is often found in the coastal fog belt and interior mountain valleys in coniferous forests, and is the dominant fir in the Olympic Mountains of Washington.
Common uses: Beams, Boxes and crates, Building construction, Cabin construction, Casks, Concrete formwork, Construction, Cooperages, Decks, Decorative plywood, Dressed boards, Exterior trim & siding, Exterior uses, Factory construction, Form work, Foundation posts, Framing, Heavy construction, Joinery, Joists, Light construction, Lumber, Millwork, Moldings, Packing cases, Plywood, Porch columns, Pulp/Paper products, Pulpwood, Rough boards/dimension stock, Rough construction, Shakes, Sheathing, Shingles, Siding
Environment profile: Widespread
Tree size: Trunk diameter is 100-150 cm
Colors: the heart isWhitish, Yellowand the sapwoodWhite, Yellow.The grain isStriped figure, the textureMedium
Natural durability: Resistant to attack from pinworms (ambrosia beetles), Very little natural resistance
Odor: No odor, generally.
Kiln Schedules: UK=L US=T14C6S/T12C5S -
Drying Defects: Uneven Moisture Content, Uneven moisture content
Ease of Drying: Moderately Difficult to Difficult
Comments: General finishing qualities are rated as good
Blunting Effect: Little
Boring: Fairly easy to very easy
Carving: Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Gluing: Very Good to Excellent Results
Mortising: Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Moulding: Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Movement in Service: Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Nailing: Holds nails well, Very Good to Excellent
Planing: Straight grained and easy to work in most machining operations
Resistance to Impregnation: Resistant sapwood
Response to hand tools: Easy to machine
Routing recessing: Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Veneering qualities: Veneers easily, Veneers moderately easy
Screwing: Very Good to Excellent Results, Very good screw holding qualities; Turning: Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Painting: Very Good to Excellent; Polishing: Very Good to Excellent; Staining: Very Good to Excellent; Varnishing: Very Good to Excellent;
- Numerical data Metric
- Numerical data English
- Strength properties
- References
 |
 |
 |
 |
Item |
Green |
Dry |
Metric |
Specific Gravity |
0,31 |
0,31 |
|
Density |
|
400 |
kg/m3 |
Bending Strength |
396 |
659 |
kg/cm2 |
Crushing Strength |
15 |
33 |
kg/cm2 |
Hardness |
|
171 |
kg |
Impact Strength |
53 |
60 |
cm |
Shearing Strength |
|
73 |
kg/cm2 |
Stiffness |
94 |
112 |
1000 kg/cm2 |
Tangential Shrinkage |
9 |
|
% |
Radial Shrinkage |
4 |
|
% |
Weight |
400 |
336 |
kg/m3 |
Maximum Load |
0,35 |
0,56 |
cm-kg/cm3 |
Toughness |
|
|
cm-kg |
Static Bending |
|
|
kg/cm2 |
|
 |  |  |  | Item | Green | Dry | English | Bending Strength | 5633 | 9381 | psi | Crushing Strength | 221 | 475 | psi | Density | | 25 | lbs/ft3 | Hardness | | 377 | lbs | Impact Strength | 21 | 24 | inches | Maximum Crushing Strength | 3022 | 5716 | psi | Shearing Strength | | 1052 | psi | Stiffness | 1342 | 1602 | 1000 psi | Work to Maximum Load | 5 | 8 | inch-lbs/in3 | Specific Gravity | 0.31 | 0.31 | | Weight | 25 | 21 | lbs/ft3 | Radial Shrinkage | 4 | | % | Tangential Shrinkage | 9 | | % | Volumetric Shrinkage | 13 | | % | |
Density (dry weight) = 23-30 lbs/cu. ft. 0 Work to Maximum Load = very low Shearing strength (parallel to grain) = very low Modulus of Elasticity (stiffness) = low Hardness (side grain) = very soft Bending strength (MOR) = low Toughness-Hammer drop (Impact Strength) = low Max. crushing strength = medium Max. crushing strength = low Surfaces may dent easily Soft Shrinkage, Tangential = large Shrinkage, Radial = moderate Crushing strength = medium Bending strength (MOR) = very low Bending strength (MOR) = medium
Boone, R.S., C.J. Kozlik, P.J. Bois, E.M. Wengert. 1988. Dry Kiln Schedules for Commercial Hardwoods - Temperate and Tropical. USDA, Forest Service, General Technical Report FPL-GTR-57, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.Brown, W.H.,1978,Timbers of the World: - No.7 North America,TRADAClifford, N.,1957,Timber Identification for the Builder and Architect,Leonard Hill (Books) LTD. LondonDallimore, W. and Jackson, A. Bruce,1966,A Handbook of Coniferae and Ginkgoaceae Fourth Ed. Revised by S.G.,Harrison,Edward Arnold (Publishers) Ltd. LondonForest Products Research Laboratory U.K.,1957,A Handbook of Softwoods,Department of Scientific and Industrial Research Forest Products Research,HMSOHoward, A.L.,1948,A Manual of Timbers of the World.,Macmillan & Co. Ltd. London 3rd ed.I.U.F.R.O.,1973,Veneer Species of the World,Assembled at F.P.L. Madison on behalf of I.U.F.R.O. Working Party on,Slicing and Veneer CuttingLittle, E.L.1980.The Audobon Society Field Guide to North American Trees - Western Region.Published by Alfred A. Knopf, New York.Markwardt, L.J., Wilson, T.R.C.,1935,Strength and related properties of woods grown in the United States,U.S.A. Department of Agriculture Technical Bulletin,No.479Mullins, E.J. and McKnight, T.S.,1981,Canadian Woods Their Properties and Uses,University of Toronto Press 3rd EditionPanshin, A.J. and C. deZeeuw. Textbook of Wood Technology. McGraw-Hill Series in Forest Resources. McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.Patterson, D.,1988,Commercial Timbers of the World, 5th Edition,Gower Technical PressStone, H.,1924,The Timbers of Commerce and their Identification,William Rider & Sons Ltd. LondonTitmuss, F.H.,1965,Commercial Timbers of the World,Technical Press Ltd., London, 3rd editionU.S.D.A. Forest Service,1974,Wood Handbook,U.S.A. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service Handbook,72USDA. 1987. Wood Handbook:Wood as an Engineering Material. Agriculture Handbook No. 72. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Madison, Wisconsin.USDA. 1988. Dry Kiln Operators Manual, Preliminary Copy. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin.Western Wood Products Association.19__.Softwoods of the Western USA.Published and Distributed by the Western Wood Products Association, Yeon Building, 522 S.W. Fifth Avenue, Portland, Oregon.Wood, A.D.,1963,Plywoods of the World: Their Development, Manufacture and,Application,Johnston & Bacon Ltd. Edinburgh & London
|