Species data
Western Larch
Larix occidentalis - a softwood from northwestern North America. Also sold as tamarack, hackmatack.
Properties at a glance
| Janka hardness | 830 lbf |
| Stiffness (MOE) | 1,870,000 psi |
| Specific gravity | 0.58 |
| Density | 36.2 lb/ft3 (580 kg/m3) |
| Weight per board foot | 3.02 lb |
| Shrinkage, green to oven-dry | 9.1% tangential / 4.5% radial |
| Indicative price | $3.50 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 Western Larch compares
Measured against the 113 solid woods in this database: it is harder than 36% of them, heavier than 41%, and stiffer than 73%.
What that means in the shop
A 4/4 board 8 inches wide and 8 feet long is 5.33 board feet, so in Western Larch it weighs about 16.1 lb. A stack of ten is 161 lb - worth knowing before you load a rack or a car.
Against red oak, the trade's usual yardstick at 1,220 lbf, Western Larch is about 68% as hard and 83% as heavy.
Its shrinkage is 9.1% tangential against 4.5% 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 Western Larch on hardness in this database: American Elm (830 lbf), African Mahogany (850 lbf), Bigleaf Maple (850 lbf), Black Ash (850 lbf). Similar hardness does not mean similar behaviour - check density and movement before substituting one for another.
Working with it
Workability. Performs well across most hand and machine work, though its silica dulls edges
Durability. Shows moderate resistance to decay
Typical uses. construction lumber, glue-laminated beams, flooring, plywood, veneer.
Related calculators
Sources
MOE, SG (12% MC), Janka and shrinkage from The Wood Database (cites USDA FPL Wood Handbook). Western Larch is not listed in the FPL/Hoadley dimensional change coefficient table, so CT/CR are omitted. 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.