It’s not a secret that Walnut lumber has a smooth texture suited for fine furniture projects. And since it suits many applications, being oblivious of its attributes could limit what you can do with this material.
In this post, our wood experts will discuss walnut wood characteristics to help ease your woodworking experience.
Walnut Timber Characteristics at a Glance
- Common Name: Walnut, Black Walnut, Eastern Walnut, American Walnut
- Scientific Name: Juglans Nigra
- Source: Black Walnut Tree
- Color: Light to dark brown; purples and reddish tints for heartwood; yellow-gray or blonde color for sapwood.
- Density/Janka Hardness: 1010 lbf
- Common Uses: Furniture making, flooring construction, paneling jobs, cabinetry, veneers, gunning stocks, crafting cutting boards, and making novelties and kickbacks.
- Dried weight (average): 610 kg/m3
- Gravity Specifics: 0.51 & 0.61 for basic 12% moisture content
- Modulus Rupture: 100.7 MPa
- Elastic Modulus: 11.59 GPa
- Crashing Capacity/Strength: 7,580 lbf/in2
- Shrinkage: 1.4 T/R Ratio, 5.5% Ratio, 7.8% Tangential, and 12.8% Volumetric.
- Cost: $2-$38/bf (board feet)
More About Walnut Timber
Besides being sturdy, most woodworkers in the country prefer walnut lumber products because of their rich color and workability with different projects and power tools.
Because of these attributes, these durable hardwood options are a familiar sight when handling wood carving and turning projects.
You may not know, but black walnut species are often thinned and steamed during manufacturing to complement their sapwood and heartwood color.
Origin: Where Do Walnut Trees Grow?
If you worked long enough in the woodworking industry, you’d know that this straight-grained lumber was initially discovered in North America.
The natural habitat for walnut trees typically consists of temperate climates with well-drained soil, as they require a combination of sunlight, moderate rainfall, and suitable growing conditions to flourish.
How Big Can it Grow?
Most walnut lumber trees can grow up to 150 feet tall with a thickness diameter of 8 feet as soon as they mature at 150 years old.
These hardwood trees have massive root systems that release chemicals to slow vegetation growth around 50 feet from their trunk.
Color and Appearance
Many woodworkers prefer using walnut lumber for cabinets and other pieces of furniture mainly because of its attractive color quality. If you inspect the lumber as closely as we did, you’ll spot its heartwood color, ranging from light brown to dark chocolate.
Depending on the wood’s growing conditions and age, its heartwood could also develop its wood color with red, purple, and grey tints. Meanwhile, the sapwood for walnut lumber turn faded yellowish-gray to almost white as it reaches maturity.
You’ll also see these hardwood boards with different grain patterns. The stock variations sold in the market come with burls, curls, and crotches on their wood surface.
Does Its Color Change Over Time?
Unlike hard maple, white oak, pine, cedar, and cherry lumber which darkens over time, black walnut develops a lighter wood surface as it ages.
The generations of development for this wood specie don’t result in dramatic color changes. Instead, walnut lumber develops subtle honey shades.
However, you can keep the wood surface in the same shade as long as it has an oil finish or varnish. The wood grain detail will also be more detailed and saturated as the lumber matures.
Grain Pattern and Texture
Most walnut lumber boards in local stores come with straight wood grains. However, some black walnut species grow unique patterns like curls and waves.
Our resident woodworkers recommend these wood grain variations on furniture pieces, cabinets, and flooring jobs to give the surface a unique rustic look.
Another reason why it’s a prized woodworking material is its even and fine wood texture. It’s also slightly coarse with a natural luster.
Endgrain
When the lumber is cut, these walnut boards show distinct earlywood vessels called semi-ring-porous and large pores. The wood end grain also features around two to three solitary and multiple radials with subtle rays not visible without lenses.
Is it a Harwood or Softwood?
As a wood specie under the dicot tree family, walnut belongs to the hardwood category. This specification also signifies that this wood type has a stable and durable wood surface, similar to other hardwoods like alder and maple, less likely to be susceptible to damage, dents, and scuffs.
How Hard/Dense is Walnut?
You can determine walnut material’s durability through the Janka hardness test. This procedure will include testing the wood’s width perpendicular to its grain. You opt to do this test on the side of the wood or its edge.
Through these wood tests, we can determine that walnut boards have a 1010 Janka rating. It’s a close comparison to known hard-wearing woods like maple with 1450 pounds-force and red oak with 1290 lbf.
Resistance to Rot and Decay
These thick wood materials are sturdy, so you can expect them to last long, even when exposed to wet conditions, humidity, and heat. However, its stable wood shape can deteriorate without proper maintenance. We also don’t recommend using walnut materials for outdoor workpieces.
Workability
Walnut boards have steam-bending attributes, so these materials always sell well for popular woodworking projects like cabinets and furniture. The material’s color range is also unique, so its surface is rarely stained in projects.
This wood type glues well and handles screws and nails without hassle. You’ll only encounter problems when handling walnut pieces with distinct wood grains. These materials are often a challenge to get surfaced. Its hardness also results in a moderate blunting effect on tool blades.
Odor
You’ll only notice the scent walnut carries during the cutting process. The faint smell is bearable if your nose isn’t close to the wood material.
Toxicity/Allergies
Wood allergies [1] aren’t so common, but black walnut may cause common contact reactions like irritation in the eyes and skin areas.
Availability/Pricing
Given its popularity, we don’t doubt that you can easily find walnut boards in your nearest hardware store. These wood products are often sold in smaller width specifications, but the varieties aren’t limited.
It’s a premium hardwood and a domestic wood specie, so expect the prices to be competitive and high. However, the price range still depends on the material quality and specifications.
Is Walnut Timber Eco-Friendly? Is it Endangered?
Yes, walnut timber is eco-friendly because it grows in many local locations. Thanks to this, it doesn’t require long transit time or a massive carbon footprint.
Although walnut trees are far from extinct, their abundance isn’t as much as before. These wood species take over 100 years to mature, so the harvesting process requires government permission and regulation adherence.
It’s also one of the reasons why their prices are higher than other wood materials.
Eastern Black Walnut Trees: Characteristics and Origins
These trees grow well when nurtured under direct sunlight and dry ground dirt. In fact, you’ll find most of them in Eastern America and Canada.
However, generations of growing and harvesting these lumber materials proved that the best quality walnut lumber grows in the Midwest of the US.
Common Uses of Walnut Timbers
Despite their high price, these walnut materials are exceptionally sturdy and workable with different tools and tasks like:
- Flooring
- Wood Veneer
- Gunstocks
- Cabinet Making
- Furniture Making
- Knickknacks
- Wood Carvings
- Wood Turning
How to Distinguish Real Walnut Timbers
Since it doesn’t come at a low price, you’d want to buy authentic walnut material. The best way to go about it is to buy from reputable manufacturers or brands. It’s easy to fall victim to fake walnut because the wood’s appearance isn’t too complicated to mimic.
If you’re in a wood shop, don’t forget to check that real walnut workpieces will have a range of colors within their surfaces.
Solid Walnut vs. Veneered Walnut
If you’re looking for a cheaper alternative, veneered walnut should fulfill your needs without switching to another wood specie. However, solid walnut boards are still our top recommendation if you don’t want a less sturdy option.
Are Walnut Timbers Ideal for Outdoor Use?
While walnut boards have high durability and strong resistance to rotting and damage, it’s not best used for outdoor projects. You may not know, but this timber has a higher chance of deteriorating when exposed to external elements.
Factors to Consider in Buying Walnut-Made Furniture
Walnut lumber shares similar colors and textures with other wood types. Hence, it’s easy to get confused and buy furniture pieces not made with authentic material. To prevent this, here are the shopping pointers you must remember:
- Check the physical attributes of the material to confirm if it’s an authentic walnut.
- Evaluate the craftsmanship and determine if it’s made with well-executed techniques.
- Ask if the walnut furniture comes with a lifetime product guarantee.
- Don’t forget to examine what wood finish is used and if it requires regular maintenance.
- Investigate if the walnut workpiece is made with locally sourced and properly harvested materials.
Walnut-Colored Finishes and Stains
Each walnut piece carries unique patterns and colors, so adding stain over its natural surface will result in a loss of character and distinction. We recommend quality clear coat finishes, like oil, wax, or varnishes.
How to Maintain Walnut-Made Furniture
When cleaning walnut workpieces, never use abrasive products, or they’ll damage the surface. The best you can do is to regularly dust the furniture and wipe the spills immediately to avoid lingering marks. It would also be best to keep the walnut furniture away from direct sunlight.
Conclusion
The availability of walnut wood in the market may sound convenient, but it’s also one of the reasons why it’s at risk. So when you’re going wood shopping, we urge you to inquire where and how these materials are sourced to discourage and protect them from improper and illegal harvesting.
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