Poplar
American Ash has an excellent shock resistance, and along with Hickory, it is one of the most commonly used hardwoods for tool handles in North America. When stained, ash can look very similar to Oak, although oaks have much wider rays, which are visible on all wood surfaces — even on flat sawn surfaces, where they appear as short, thin brown lines between the growth rings. Ashes lack these conspicuous rays.
​
​
Other common names:
American Ash, Northern Ash, Southern Ash, Fraxinus americana. Sourcing Region: North America
Sourcing Region:
Coastal western North America
Color, Pattern, Texture:
American Ash comes in a light to medium brown color. Sapwood can be very wide, and tends to be a beige or light brown; not always clearly or sharply demarcated, and it has a medium to coarse texture similar to oak. The grain is almost always straight and regular, though sometimes moderately curly or figured boards can be found.
Common Uses and Applications:
Furniture, architectural millwork manufacturing, baseball bats, handles, cabinets, interior joinery.
Working Properties:
Produces good results with hand or machine tools. Responds well to steam bending. Glues, stains, and finishes well.
Poplar 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.
Poplar #1 Com
Ash #1 Com grade is often referred to as the Cabinet grade in the USA because of its adaptability to the standard sizes of kitchen cabinet doors used throughout the United States. Number 1 Common is widely used in the manufacture of furniture parts as well for this same reason. We grade after drying and surfacing, and against all natural drying or surfacing defects (pin knot no defect).
Applications: Furniture, cabinetry
Grades: #1 Com
Length and Width: The Number 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'. The number of these clear cuttings is determined by the size of the board. Both faces of the board must meet minimum requirements for Number 1 Common.
Poplar #2 Com
Ash #2 Com grade is designed to yield shorter cuttings with the best face yielding a minimum of 50% clear-face cuttings with sound backs. The product is unselected for color. We grade after drying and surfacing, and against all natural drying or surfacing defects (pin knot no defect).
Applications: Panels, drawer fronts, picture frames, small specialty items
Grades: #2 Com
Length and Width: Ash #2 Com minimum cutting size is 3” x2’