Can anyone give me some advise about alder wood. I have been given a project to do and with it comes the stack of material to be used. It is alder which looks to me like birch but it seems to be much different than birch when sawing.
The project involves specific parts to be used in the building of furniture. All I will be doing is rough cutting and a bunch of tenons. Am I in for a lot of trouble? I'm thinking that maybe I should be jointing and surface planing to get to final dimension. Customer said no but I am fearful of the tear out because of what I have seen.
Alder Wood
Moderator: admin
Alder Wood
MarkFive510
Mark - Although I have never worked with alder, I have seen some beautiful cabinet doors made from alder. Several high end motorhome manufacturers have advertised and used alder cabinets. They look beautiful!!!!
It appears you should have no big issues in your work. I would suggest you use a board or two for trial machining. That should help you to get used to any properties you are not used to. Alder should be an easy wood to work with.
Here are three quotes (found on internet) about alder:
Main Uses
Furniture, kitchen cabinets, doors, shutters, moldings, panel stock, turnings, carvings and kitchen utensils.
Working Properties
Red alder machines well and is excellent for turning. It nails, screws and glues well, and can be sanded, painted, or stained to a good finish. When stained, it blends with walnut, mahogany or cherry. It dries easily with little degrade and has good dimensional stability after drying.
Physical Properties
Red alder is a relatively soft hardwood of medium density that has low bending strength, shock resistance and stiffness.
It appears you should have no big issues in your work. I would suggest you use a board or two for trial machining. That should help you to get used to any properties you are not used to. Alder should be an easy wood to work with.
Here are three quotes (found on internet) about alder:
Main Uses
Furniture, kitchen cabinets, doors, shutters, moldings, panel stock, turnings, carvings and kitchen utensils.
Working Properties
Red alder machines well and is excellent for turning. It nails, screws and glues well, and can be sanded, painted, or stained to a good finish. When stained, it blends with walnut, mahogany or cherry. It dries easily with little degrade and has good dimensional stability after drying.
Physical Properties
Red alder is a relatively soft hardwood of medium density that has low bending strength, shock resistance and stiffness.
Octogenarian's have an earned right to be a curmudgeon.
Chuck in Lancaster, CA
Chuck in Lancaster, CA
-
mbcabinetmaker
- Platinum Member
- Posts: 1627
- Joined: Thu Jul 20, 2006 6:18 am
- Location: Greer SC
I have worked with alder wood for 30 years. It is one of my favorites to work with but it is a little on the soft side. I am not sure what you mean by rough cutting. I would think you would have to dimension it before cutting accurate tenons. It machines very well unless you encounter some squirrely grain.
Knotty alder cabinets and furniture are popular in my area.
Knotty alder cabinets and furniture are popular in my area.
****************
****************
Mark
2017 Power Pro Mark 7
2002 50th anniversary model 520
and a few other woodworking tools.
****************
Mark
2017 Power Pro Mark 7
2002 50th anniversary model 520
and a few other woodworking tools.