Aspen
Aspen grows in the USA and Canada and is related to cottonwood and Canadian Poplar. Aspen is whitish to creamy gray in color with a straight, even and fine grain pattern. Aspen is soft and light in weight making it an excellent choice for the cores of veneer core plywood. Machining and finishing properties are only fair because of the wooly grain that sometimes appears in Aspen.
Other Common Names: Bigtooth Aspen
Sourcing Region: North America
Color, Pattern, Texture: Heartwood tends to be a light brown. Wide sapwood is a pale yellow to nearly white, and isn’t clearly demarcated, tending to gradually blend into the heartwood. Grain is generally straight, with a uniform medium texture and has a low natural luster.
Common Uses and Applications: Boxes/crates, veneer, plywood, and various utility purposes.
Working Properties: Easy to work with hand and machine tools, though sharp cutters are necessary when planning to avoid fuzzy surfaces. It does not split easily, and has poor nail-holding capability and it has a tendency to warp and distort during drying. Glues and finishes well.
How to care for it: We offer a wide selection of products to care for your projects, visit our ‘Decking’ section.
Aspen FAS, or Select and Better
The FAS grade, which derives from an original grade "First And Seconds", will provide the user with long, clear cuttings - best suited for high quality furniture, interior joinery and solid wood moldings. We grade after drying and surfacing, and against all natural drying or surfacing defects (pin knot no defect).
Applications: Quality furniture, interior joinery, solid wood moldings, cabinets, building boats
Grades: FAS, Select & Better
Length and Width: Minimum board size is 6" and wider and 8' and longer. The FAS grade includes a range of boards that yield from 831⁄3% (10⁄12ths) to 100% clear-wood cuttings over the entire surface of the board. The clear cuttings must be a minimum size of 3" wide by 7' long or 4" wide by 5' long. The number of these cuttings permitted depends on the size of the board with most boards permitting one to two. The minimum width and length will vary, depending on species and whether the board is green or kiln dried. Both faces of the board must meet the minimum requirement for FAS.
Aspen #1 Com
Aspen #1 COM grade is often referred to as the Cabinet grade in the USA due to its adaptability to the standard sizes of kitchen cabinet doors used throughout the United States. The number of these clear cuttings is determined by the size of the board. Both faces of the board must meet the minimum requirement for Number 1 Common.
We grade after drying and surfacing, and against all natural drying or surfacing defects (pin knot no defect).
Applications: Widely used in furniture parts manufacturing
Grades: #1 Com
Length and Width: The #1 Common grades includes boards that are a minimum of 3" wide and 4' long and will yield clear face cuttings from 662/3% (8/12ths) up to, but not including, the minimum requirement for FAS (831/3%). The smallest clear cuttings allowed are 3" by 3' and 4" by 2'.
Aspen #2 Com
Aspen #2 Com is often referred to as the ‘economy grade’ because of its price and suitability for a wide range of furniture parts. It is also the grade of choice for the US hardwood flooring industry. If the poorest face meets the minimum requirements for Number 2 Common, it does not matter what the grade of the better face is.
We grade after drying and surfacing, and against all natural drying or surfacing defects (pin knot no defect).
Applications: Furniture
Grades: #2 Com
Length and Width: The Number 2 Common grade includes boards that are a minimum of 3" wide and 4' long that yield from 50% (6/12ths) up to, but not including, the minimum requirement for Number 1 Common (662/3%). The smallest clear cutting allowed is 3" by 2' and the number of these cuttings depends on the size of the board.