Wuudchuck’s Wuudwerks

Range

Black walnut grows naturally over a large area extending from Vermont westward to Nebraska and southward to southern Georgia and southern Texas. The area of greatest commercial production is limited to the central part of this natural range.

Properties

Black walnut is classified as a heavy wood, averaging 38 pounds a cubic foot. The wood is hard, with a specific gravity of 0.51, is strong and stiff, and has good shock resistance.

Even under conditions favorable to decay, black walnut heartwood is one of our most durable woods. It can be satisfactorily kiln-dried or airdried, and holds its shape well after seasoning. Black walnut works easily with handtools and has excellent machining properties. The wood finishes beautifully with a handsome grain pattern. It takes and holds paints and stains exceptionally well, can be readily polished, and can be satisfactorily glued.

Uses

The outstanding use of black walnut is for furniture. Large amounts are also used for gunstocks and interior finish, while smaller quantities go into railroad tics, fence posts, and fuelwood. In the furniture industry, it is used either as solid wood cut from lumber or as veneer and plywood. It also is extremely popular for interior finish wherever striking effects are desired. The wood of black walnut is particularly suitable for gunstocks because of its ability to stay in shape after seasoning, its fine machining properties, and its uniformity of texture.

Description

Heartwood is chocolate brown and occasionally has darker, sometimes purplish streaks. Unless bleached or otherwise modified, black walnut is not easily confused with any other native species. Pores are barely visible on the end grain but are quite easily seen as darker streaks or grooves on longitudinal surfaces. Arrangement of pores is similar to that in the hickories and persimmon, but the pores are smaller in size.