    
Sycamore plane (Acer pseudoplatanus)
Family: Aceraceae
Common names: Buttonwood, English harewood, English maple, European maple, Gray harewood, Great maple, Harewood, Maple, Plane, Plane tree, Planetree, Sycamore, Sycamore plane
Distributed in: United Kingdom (Africa, Western Europe)
Distribution overview: Sycampore plane grows in northern Europe and western Asia. It is also planted in Great Britain and the U.S. The tree can be found in seashore gardens due to its high tolerance to salt spray, as well as along roadsides and in hedgerows. It is a resilient, hardy tree, tolerating many kinds of soils.
Common uses: Bedroom suites, Boat building (general), Boat building, Boat building: framing, Bobbins, Boxes and crates, Brush backs & handles, Building materials, Cabinetmaking, Canoes, Carvings, Chairs, Chests, Cooperages, Decorative veneer, Desks, Dining-room furniture, Domestic flooring, Drawer sides, Drum sticks, Figured veneer, Fine furniture, Flooring, Furniture , Furniture, Handles: general, Interior construction, Kitchen cabinets, Lifeboats, Living-room suites, Marquetry, Musical instruments , Musical instruments: strings, Office furniture, Organ pipes, Paneling , Paneling, Parquet flooring, Piano keys, Pianos , Plywood corestock, Radio - stereo - TV cabinets, Shade rollers, Shipbuilding, Shuttles, Sounding boards, Spindles, Spools, Sub-flooring, Tables, Textile equipment, Toys, Turnery, Veneer, Veneer: decorative
Product sources: Most of the lumber on the market originates from Great Britain. Supplies from outside Europe are rather scarce and expensive, but some lumber may be available from some of the more prominent importers.The wood is sometimes sold on the market as Harewood, which is Sycamore plane dyed a silver-grey color. The dye is forced into the wood under hydraulic pressure.
Environment profile: Status unknown in many of its growth areas
Tree size: Trunk diameter is 200-250 cm
Colors: the heart isYellow to golden-yellow to orange, Yellowish whiteand the sapwoodWhitish, Yellow.The grain isWavy, the textureUniformand the lusterPronounced
Natural durability: Susceptible to attack from powder post (Lyctid & Bostrychid) beetles, Susceptible to insect attack
Odor: No specific smell or taste
LightInduced Color Change: Lighter
Kiln Schedules: Drying (speed) is fast
Kiln Drying Rate: Naturally dries quickly
Drying Defects: Uneven Moisture Content, Water pockets
Ease of Drying: Stains easily
Tree Identification: Bole/stem form is straight
Comments: General finishing qualities are rated as good
Blunting Effect: Moderate
Boring: Wood can burn readily if tools are dull
Carving: Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Cutting Resistance: Moderate to saw
Gluing: Very good properties
Mortising: Moderately easy to mortise
Moulding: Moulding ease is moderate
Movement in Service: Moulding ease is moderate
Nailing: Very Good to Excellent , Very good nailing properties
Planing: Very Good to Excellent
Resistance to Impregnation: Sapwood is permeable
Response to hand tools: Satisfactorily
Sanding: Very Good to Excellent Results
Veneering qualities: Veneers easily, Veneers moderately easy
Steam bending: Very good
Screwing: Good screwing properties, Very Good to Excellent Results; Turning: Very Good to Excellent Results
Painting: Very Good to Excellent; Polishing: Very Good to Excellent; Staining: Very Good to Excellent;
- Numerical data Metric
- Numerical data English
- Strength properties
- References
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 |
 |
 |
Item |
Green |
Dry |
Metric |
Specific Gravity |
|
0,49 |
|
Density |
|
592 |
kg/m3 |
Bending Strength |
651 |
1000 |
kg/cm2 |
Crushing Strength |
275 |
465 |
kg/cm2 |
Hardness |
|
477 |
kg |
Impact Strength |
71 |
81 |
cm |
Shearing Strength |
|
155 |
kg/cm2 |
Stiffness |
88 |
101 |
1000 kg/cm2 |
Tangential Shrinkage |
|
|
% |
Radial Shrinkage |
3 |
|
% |
Weight |
592 |
560 |
kg/m3 |
Maximum Load |
0,91 |
1,05 |
cm-kg/cm3 |
Toughness |
|
|
cm-kg |
Static Bending |
|
|
kg/cm2 |
|
 |  |  |  | Item | Green | Dry | English | Bending Strength | 9262 | 14224 | psi | Density | | 37 | lbs/ft3 | Hardness | | 1052 | lbs | Impact Strength | 28 | 32 | inches | Maximum Crushing Strength | 3913 | 6619 | psi | Shearing Strength | | 2216 | psi | Stiffness | 1258 | 1438 | 1000 psi | Work to Maximum Load | 13 | 15 | inch-lbs/in3 | Specific Gravity | | 0.49 | | Weight | 37 | 35 | lbs/ft3 | Radial Shrinkage | 3 | | % | Tangential Shrinkage | 7 | | % | |
Density (dry weight) = 38-45 lbs/cu. ft. 0 Max. crushing strength = medium Bending strength (MOR) = medium Density (dry weight) = 31-37 lbs/cu. ft. Shrinkage, Radial = small Shearing strength (parallel to grain) = medium Hardness (side grain) = soft Shrinkage, Tangential = moderate Modulus of Elasticity (stiffness) = very low Modulus of Elasticity (stiffness) = low Shrinkage, Tangential = small Density (dry weight) = 23-30 lbs/cu. ft. Weight = high Shrinkage, Radial = very small Resists denting and marring Hardness = medium Density = high Compression strength (parallel to grain) = high Bending strength (MOR) = high
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