Archimedes Plutonium wrote:
Wed, 13 Oct 2004 02:44:55 -0500 Archimedes Plutonium wrote:


IntarsiaCo wrote:


. I do not believe
the data on strength of wood is accurate and am wanting to test these
woods myself. I believe oak is stronger than hickory.

The mechanical properties of native hardwood species of wood are well known,
true hickories are "stronger" than white oaks. Do include black locust in your
trials, now that would give the hickory some competition.

The thing I remember most about locust is when I apply a chainsaw it feels as if
I am bouncing on a rock and not wood.

But anyway, I am set to apply various tests on whiteAsh, whiteOak, Hickory,
locust, elm, mulberry, blackwalnut, cedar, redwood, spruce and other woods.

I suspect the old tests are not scientific enough and pandering to a sales
industry where hickory is promoted.

I believe the test for strength is multidimensional and that hickory surpasses
one test of shock absorbing and on the basis of just that one superiorty bracket
it is called the strongest when in fact it is not the strongest in various other
tests.

One test already shows that my hickory is inferior in strength to whiteAsh and
whiteOak in the tendency of hickory to peal off in huge long splinters so that if
a flooring were made of hickory would not outlast oak.

And obviously hickory grows branches that are seldom horizontal whereas Oak, and
they call it "spooky oak not for nothing" can grow branches horizontal to the
ground indicates enormous strength in wood. And Ash seems better able to grow
horizontal than hickory, so in another test of strength oak should excel both
whiteAsh and Hickory in that category.

Obviously spruce is dense in form and its wood must reflect its ability to
withstand huge winds as the saying goes "you cannot throw a cat throw a spruce
tree". So it gives good reason as to why airplane builders prized spruce wood. So
that perhaps given the weight per strength category spruce may outbest even the
hardwoods.

I am going to test locust after I get a equal test piece, but I already know one
superior strength test of locust in that it dulls my chainsaw or any saw faster
than any wood I know of.

Soon I should have some numbers data on strength such as a weight-flex test, a
penetration test, a density test, etc.


Today I have some numbers:

I took 3 boards of 4,000 mm long by 170 mm wide by 25 mm thick of WhiteOak, Hickory
and WhiteAsh and put them through various tests of strength.

A weight test where a weight is placed in the middle of the board and WhiteAsh
flexed off center by 145 mm and Hickory flexed 106 mm and Oak flexed 70 mm. So Oak
is clearly the strongest and not Hickory!


STIFFEST.... is not Strongest.

The deflection under load measures stiffness.

The load required to cause fracture is a measure of strength.

STRENGTH isn't Stiffness.

It is technology.

Misuse of the basic terms helps make people believe you are dumb and
ignorant.

Use the terms correctly, then they will have to listen a little more
carefully to make the negative conclusion.