Species data
European Beech
Fagus sylvatica - a hardwood from europe. Also sold as common beech.
Properties at a glance
| Janka hardness | 1,450 lbf |
| Stiffness (MOE) | 2,075,000 psi |
| Specific gravity | 0.71 |
| Density | 44.3 lb/ft3 (710 kg/m3) |
| Weight per board foot | 3.69 lb |
| Shrinkage, green to oven-dry | 11.7% tangential / 5.8% radial |
| Indicative price | $6.00 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 European Beech compares
Measured against the 113 solid woods in this database: it is harder than 65% of them, heavier than 62%, and stiffer than 81%.
What that means in the shop
A 4/4 board 8 inches wide and 8 feet long is 5.33 board feet, so in European Beech it weighs about 19.7 lb. A stack of ten is 197 lb - worth knowing before you load a rack or a car.
Against red oak, the trade's usual yardstick at 1,220 lbf, European Beech is about 1.2x as hard and 1.01x as heavy.
Its shrinkage is 11.7% tangential against 5.8% radial, a ratio of 2.0 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 sits in that range.
Woods of similar hardness
Closest to European Beech on hardness in this database: Hard Maple (1,450 lbf), Willow Oak (1,460 lbf), Lyptus (1,420 lbf), Pin Oak (1,500 lbf). Similar hardness does not mean similar behaviour - check density and movement before substituting one for another.
Working with it
Workability. Turns, finishes, glues and machines well; steam-bends beautifully; moves heavily once in service
Durability. Quick to rot, with feeble defense against wood-boring insects
Typical uses. furniture, flooring, plywood, veneer, musical instruments, turning.
Related calculators
Sources
MOE, SG (12% MC), Janka and shrinkage from The Wood Database (cites USDA FPL Wood Handbook). CT/CR omitted: the FPL/Hoadley dimensional change coefficient table lists American beech but not European beech, so no coefficients are assigned here. Uses, region, durability and 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.