Species data
American Sycamore
Platanus occidentalis - a hardwood from eastern United States. Also sold as sycamore.
Properties at a glance
| Janka hardness | 770 lbf |
| Stiffness (MOE) | 1,420,000 psi |
| Specific gravity | 0.55 |
| Density | 34.3 lb/ft3 (550 kg/m3) |
| Weight per board foot | 2.86 lb |
| Shrinkage, green to oven-dry | 8.4% tangential / 5% radial |
| Indicative price | $4.00 per board foot (estimated) |
Values are at about 12% moisture content. Density is specific gravity times 62.4; a board foot is one twelfth of a cubic foot, so weight per board foot is that density divided by twelve. Anything marked estimated is our own figure, not a measured one.
How American Sycamore compares
Measured against the 113 solid woods in this database: it is harder than 34% of them, heavier than 36%, and stiffer than 30%.
What that means in the shop
A 4/4 board 8 inches wide and 8 feet long is 5.33 board feet, so in American Sycamore it weighs about 15.3 lb. A stack of ten is 153 lb - worth knowing before you load a rack or a car.
Against red oak, the trade's usual yardstick at 1,220 lbf, American Sycamore is about 63% as hard and 79% as heavy.
Its shrinkage is 8.4% tangential against 5% radial, a ratio of 1.7 to 1. The wider that ratio, the more unevenly a flatsawn board moves across its width as humidity changes, and the more it wants to cup; anything near or above 2 to 1 is worth quartersawing or restraining for panels and wide tops. This one moves comparatively evenly.
Woods of similar hardness
Closest to American Sycamore on hardness in this database: Black Tupelo (800 lbf), American Elm (830 lbf), Western Larch (830 lbf), Silver Maple (700 lbf). Similar hardness does not mean similar behaviour - check density and movement before substituting one for another.
Working with it
Workability. Easy to handle, though interlocked grain may hinder machining; finishes, glues and turns well
Durability. From non-durable to perishable; insects bore in with ease
Typical uses. veneer, plywood, interior trim, flooring, furniture.
Related calculators
Sources
MOE, SG (12% MC), Janka and shrinkage from The Wood Database (cites USDA FPL Wood Handbook). American sycamore is not listed in the FPL/Hoadley dimensional-change table, so CT/CR are omitted. Uses, region, durability, workability summarized from The Wood Database. Price indicative.
These calculators are for planning and estimation. Engineering results (shelf sag, wood movement) use published average material properties; real boards vary by grade, grain, moisture and defects. Verify load-bearing designs with a professional.