Wood Strength

[GregCSarver]

Is one wood stronger than the other? Stronger means less prone to cracks and dents? Cherry vs Maple vs walnut.

 

[deerstalkert]

hard to answer that.
many factors dictate cracks. dents i would say all three are susceptible to if bumped.
given properly cured wood, i would say walnut will crack before maple and i have insufficient experience with cherry to say.
remember that there are many examples of all three woods on guns that are 100+ years old without cracks. finished and cared for correctly i wouldn't lose sleep worrying about it in my lifetime. which is alot shorter than i would like!

 

[SDSmlf]

Is one wood stronger than the other? Stronger means less prone to cracks and dents? Cherry vs Maple vs walnut.

Consider hardness for being less prone to dents. Standard is the Janka Hardness Test.

 

[Phil Coffins]

Then there is the difference between sugar maple, red maple and silver maple etc, etc, etc!

 

[Scota@4570]

Woods of any species will vary depending on where it grew.

 

[Commodore Swab]

Think of wood like steel, you can have something very hard yet prone to breaking. Don't go by hardness alone, far more important is the grain. Sometimes it's surprising, for example portions of the uss const. were made from pine for strength!