Types of Wood for Woodworking: Hardwood, Softwood, Plywood, Veneer and MDF

The wood you choose affects what a piece costs, how it looks and how long it lasts. This post covers hardwood and softwood, common species and their uses, how boards are cut and why it matters, plywood grades and cores, veneer, MDF and particleboard, the formaldehyde labelling rule for products made with composite wood, and how to choose wood for products you sell.

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The wood you choose affects what a piece costs to make, how easy it is to work, how it looks and how long it lasts. Woodworkers use two broad kinds of material: solid wood, cut straight from the tree, and manufactured sheet goods such as plywood and MDF. Most furniture and woodcrafts use one or both.

This post covers hardwood and softwood, common species and their uses, how boards are cut and why it matters, plywood, veneer, MDF and particleboard, and how to choose wood for products you sell. For where to buy wood and how lumber is graded and priced, see where to buy lumber for a woodworking business.

Hardwood and Softwood

Hardwood and softwood are botanical groups, not measures of hardness. Penn State Extension explains that hardwoods come from broadleaf trees (angiosperms), whose wood contains pores or vessels, while softwoods come from conifers (gymnosperms), whose seeds are uncovered. Some hardwoods are softer than some softwoods. Penn State’s figures show yellow poplar, a hardwood, at 2,400 newtons of hardness, below loblolly pine, a softwood, at 3,100.

In general:

  • Softwoods grow faster, cost less and are widely sold as construction lumber. They suit painted furniture, outdoor projects, shelving and practice pieces.
  • Hardwoods offer a wider range of colour, grain and figure, and most are harder and more durable. They are the usual choice for fine furniture, cutting boards, boxes and turned work, and they cost more.

Common Softwoods

  • Pine. Light-coloured, easy to cut and carve, and widely available. Eastern white pine is soft; southern yellow pine is harder. Pine can take stain unevenly, so test first or use a pre-stain conditioner. Good for painted furniture, shelves, signs and rustic pieces.
  • Fir. Douglas fir is strong, straight-grained and common as construction lumber. It suits painted furniture, workbenches and shop projects.
  • Cedar. Western red cedar is light, aromatic and naturally resistant to decay, which makes it a common choice for outdoor furniture, planters and birdhouses.
  • Redwood. Reddish, light and decay-resistant, used for outdoor furniture and decking where it is available.

Common Hardwoods

  • Oak. Strong, hard and widely available, with a prominent grain. Red oak is common in home centers. White oak resists water better and suits outdoor and kitchen use. Quartersawn oak shows a distinctive ray fleck.
  • Maple. Hard maple is very hard, pale and close-grained, the classic wood for cutting boards and butcher blocks. Soft maple is easier to work and costs less.
  • Cherry. Reddish-brown, close-grained and easy to work. It darkens with exposure to light. Popular for furniture, boxes and boards.
  • Walnut. Dark brown, easy to work and highly valued. Common in serving boards, furniture and small luxury items, and priced accordingly.
  • Ash. Pale, strong and springy, with an open grain similar to oak. Used for furniture and tool handles.
  • Birch. Pale and fairly hard, often used as plywood. It can look blotchy when stained, so many makers paint it or use a clear finish.
  • Poplar. Soft for a hardwood, inexpensive and stable. It is often painted, and used for drawer parts and hidden structure.
  • Mahogany. Reddish-brown, stable and easy to work. International trade in genuine (big-leaf) mahogany has been controlled under CITES since 2003, and much wood sold as mahogany today comes from related species, such as African mahogany. Ask the supplier for the species name.
  • Teak. Golden-brown, oily and very resistant to weather, which makes it a premium choice for outdoor furniture. It is expensive.

Prices, availability and quality vary by region. A local lumberyard can tell you which species are common and good value where you live.

Wood Moves

Wood swells and shrinks as the humidity around it changes. A board moves much more across its width than along its length. If a piece is built without allowing for this, joints can loosen, panels crack and doors stick, often after the piece has been sold.

  • Buy wood that has been kiln dried for indoor use, and let it adjust to your shop before use.
  • Design for movement: let solid panels float in their frames, and attach tabletops with fasteners that allow sideways movement.
  • Use sheet goods where stability matters more than the look of solid wood.

How Boards Are Cut

The way a board is sawn from the log affects its grain pattern, stability and price. The cut is described by the angle of the growth rings to the face of the board. Gene Wengert, writing as Woodworking Network’s Wood Doctor, gives the US Forest Service definitions:

  • Flatsawn (plainsawn): growth rings at 0 to 45 degrees to the face. The most common and economical cut, with a cathedral or wavy grain pattern. It moves the most across its width and is more prone to cupping.
  • Quartersawn: growth rings at 45 to 90 degrees to the face. A straight, even grain, and in oak a ray fleck pattern. More stable, but it costs more because cutting a log this way yields less lumber.
  • Riftsawn: growth rings at roughly 45 to 70 degrees. A straight, uniform grain often used for table legs and furniture fronts. It is not defined in the NHLA grading rules, so ask what the supplier means by it.

A log sawn “through and through,” in parallel cuts from one side to the other, yields all three types, with flatsawn boards from the outside and quartersawn boards near the center.

Working With Flatsawn Boards

Flatsawn boards are the most common and least expensive, so most woodworkers use them. To limit problems, cut parts slightly oversize, let them rest for a day, then cut and plane them to final size once any movement has shown. Choose quartersawn or riftsawn stock for parts where stability matters most, such as wide panels and table legs.

Veneer

Veneer is a thin sheet of wood cut from a log and glued to a stable base such as plywood or MDF. There are two main ways to cut it:

  • Rotary cut: the log is turned against a blade, peeling a continuous sheet. It yields the most veneer but gives a wide, wavy grain. Most construction plywood is made this way.
  • Sliced: the log is cut into a flitch and sliced flat, giving grain that looks like sawn boards. Used for furniture and cabinet panels.

Because so little wood goes into each sheet, veneer makes expensive and rare species affordable. It lets you offer the look of walnut, cherry or figured woods at a lower material cost, on a base that does not move like solid wood.

Plywood

Plywood is made of thin layers of wood glued with the grain of each layer at right angles to the next. That cross-grain build makes it stable, strong and much less prone to movement than solid wood. It is used for cabinets, shelves, drawer bottoms, backs and jigs.

Softwood Plywood Grades

Softwood plywood, such as fir and pine plywood used in construction, is graded by the quality of each face, usually shown as two letters such as A-C:

  • N: a premium grade for natural finishes, on special order.
  • A: smooth and paintable, with a limited number of neat repairs.
  • B: solid surface with small plugs, tight knots up to 1 inch and minor splits.
  • C-plugged: small plugged knotholes and narrow splits.
  • C: larger tight knots and some discoloration.
  • D: the largest knots and knotholes. Not allowed in exterior panels.

Hardwood Plywood Grades

Hardwood plywood, with faces of oak, maple, birch, cherry, walnut and other species, is graded under the Hardwood Plywood & Veneer Association standard. The face is graded by letter, from A (best) down to D, and the back by number, from 1 (best) to 4. An A-1 sheet has a top-quality face and a good back, suitable where both sides show. An A-4 or B-4 sheet has a good face and a rough back, suitable for drawer bottoms and parts with one visible side.

Plywood Cores

  • Veneer core: all wood layers. Light and strong, and holds screws well. It can have hidden gaps that show on cut edges.
  • MDF core: a fiberboard center with veneer faces. Very flat and smooth, heavier, and holds screws less well in the edges.
  • Particleboard core: cheaper and heavy, used for some cabinet panels.
  • Combination core: veneer layers with thin MDF just under the faces, for a flat surface with lighter weight.
  • Lumber core: strips of solid wood between the faces. Strong and holds screws well, but less common and more expensive.

Baltic birch plywood, with many thin birch layers and few voids, is popular for drawers, boxes and jigs because its edges look clean.

MDF and Particleboard

MDF (medium-density fiberboard) is made from wood fibers bonded with resin under heat and pressure. It is flat, smooth and has no grain, so it paints very well and is widely used in cabinets, painted furniture and signs. It is heavy, does not hold screws well in its edges, swells if it gets wet, and makes very fine dust when cut, so dust control and a respirator are essential.

Particleboard is made from larger wood particles and resin. It is cheaper than MDF and is used mainly as a core under laminate or veneer. OSB (oriented strand board) is made from large strands and is used mainly in building.

Selling Products Made With Composite Wood

Hardwood plywood, MDF and particleboard sold in the US must meet formaldehyde emission limits under the Toxic Substances Control Act, Title VI. The EPA defines a fabricator as anyone who incorporates these panels into finished goods, and a woodworker who makes and sells furniture or cabinets from them may be a fabricator. Fabricators must label every finished good, or its box, with at least the fabricator’s name, the production date (month and year) and a statement that it is TSCA Title VI compliant. There is an exception for finished goods containing no more than 144 square inches of regulated composite wood. Buy compliant panels, keep your supplier’s paperwork, and check the EPA’s guidance for your products.

Choosing Wood for Products You Sell

  • Match the wood to the use. Hard, close-grained woods such as maple, cherry and walnut suit cutting boards and kitchenware. Decay-resistant woods such as cedar suit outdoor products. Stable sheet goods suit cabinet carcasses and painted pieces.
  • Match the wood to the price. Walnut and cherry raise the material cost but also what buyers expect to pay. Pine and poplar keep the cost low for painted and budget items.
  • Think about finishing. Some woods, such as pine, birch and cherry, can stain unevenly. Choose woods that look good with the finish your product needs.
  • Keep the supply steady. For products you make often, choose species you can buy reliably, so pieces match from batch to batch.
  • Know where imported wood comes from. The Lacey Act makes it illegal to trade in wood taken in violation of the law, and importers must file a declaration with the species and country of harvest. If you import exotic woods yourself, check the requirements first. If you buy from a US dealer, ask about the source.
  • Describe the wood accurately. Name the species in your listings. Buyers search for walnut, cherry or maple by name, and accurate descriptions avoid disputes.

For food-contact products, see the finish guidance in top woodcrafts to sell. For ways to keep wood costs down, see where to buy lumber.

Practical Tips

  • Learn a few species well before stocking many.
  • Use solid wood where it shows and where buyers value it, and sheet goods where stability and cost matter more.
  • Allow for wood movement in every design.
  • Check the face and back grades of plywood before you buy.
  • Label finished goods made with plywood, MDF or particleboard as the EPA requires.

Sources

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