Janka Wood Hardness Scale
The
Janka rating is a measure of the amount of force required
to push a .444" diameter steel ball half way into a piece
of wood. In laymans terms it is a way to measure a woods resistance
to denting.
It is not productive to take issue with the exact number,
but rather understand the "relative" hardness of
one wood to another. I say this because I know from experience
that two pieces of the same type of wood, one grown quickly
further south and one slowly in more northern climates will
have quite different Janka ratings, just because of their
individual "speed of growth"... and you certainly
can't ask a wholesaler for a chunk of wood that grew on the
72nd parallel.
Thus a common use of the Janka Hardness Scale is to determine a woods suitabliity as a wood for hardwood flooring. The higher the number the greater its resistance to denting as it lives life.
For the woodworker it will be a good indicator on the difficulty of sawing and nailing... or maybe just moving the wood around your shop...
| California Redwood | 420 |
| Douglas Fir | 660 |
| Southern Yellow Pine (loblolly & short leaf) | 690 |
| Honduran Mahogany | 800 |
| African Mahogany | 830 |
| South American Lacewood | 840 |
| Southern Yellow Pine (longleaf) | 870 |
| Black Cherry | 950 |
| American Black Walnut American Black Walnut Hardwood Flooring |
1010 |
| Peruvian Walnut | 1080 |
| Brazilian Eucalyptus | 1125 |
| Teak | 1155 |
| Bamboo (carbonized) | 1180 |
| Larch | 1200 |
| Heart Pine | 1225 |
| Caribbean Heart pine | 1240 |
| Yellow Birch | 1260 |
| Red Oak (Northern) | 1290 |
| American Beech | 1300 |
| Ash | 1320 |
| White Oak | 1360 |
| Australian Cypress | 1375 |
| Bamboo (natural) | 1380 |
| Royal Mahogany | 1400 |
| Hard maple | 1450 |
| African Walnut/Sappelle | 1500 |
| Brazlian Maple | 1500 |
| Zebrawood | 1575 |
| Wenge | 1630 |
| Brazilian Oak | 1650 |
| Bamboo | 1650 |
| Patens | 1691 |
| Peruvian Maple | 1700 |
| Kempas | 1710 |
| African Pedauk (Padeuk/African Cherry) | 1725 |
| Bolivian Rosewood /Morado | 1780 |
| Hickory/Pecan | 1820 |
| Kempas | 1854 |
| Purpleheart | 1860 |
| Jarrah | 1910 |
| Amendoim | 1912 |
| Merbau | 1925 |
| African Rosewood (Bubinga) | 1980 |
| Grapia | 2053 |
| Jarrah | 2082 |
| Purple Heart | 2090 |
| Tigerwood | 2160 |
| Burma Mahogany | 2170 |
| Amberwood | 2200 |
| Cabreuva (Santos Mahogany) | 2200 |
| Caribbean Rosewood | 2300 |
| Mesquite | 2345 |
| Brazilian Cherry (Jatoba) | 2350 |
| Peruvian Cherry | 2350 |
| Red Walnut | 2450 |
| African Cedar / Bosse | 2600 |
| Patagonian Rosewood | 2800 |
| Bloodwood | 2900 |
| Brazilian Rosewood (Tamarindo) | 3000 |
| Brazilian Redwood | 3190 |
| Tiete Rosewood | 3280 |
| Cumaru (Brazilian Teak) | 3540 |
| Southern Chestnut, Tiete Chestnut | 3540 |
| Lapacho (usually grouped with IPE Wood) Ipe Lumber |
3640 |
| Bolivian Cherry | 3650 |
| African Pearwood/Moabi | 3680 |
| Brazilian Walnut / Ipe Ipe Decking |
3680 |
| Brazilian Ebony | 3692 |
| Patagonian Rosewood | 3840 |
| Brazilian Tiger Mahogany | 3840 |
|
Curupy |
3880 |
