Wood species
Karri wood
Karri is a hardwood (Eucalyptus diversicolor). At 12% moisture content it has a Janka hardness of 2,040 lbf (9,074 N) and it weighs about 65 lb/ft³ (1,045 kg/m³), 5.4 lb (2.47 kg) per board foot.
Key numbers
- Janka hardness, 12% MC
- 2,040 lbf (9,074 N)
- Green: 1,360 lbf (6,050 N)
- Weight at 12% MC
- 65 lb/ft³ (1,045 kg/m³)
- 5.4 lb per board foot
- Specific gravity (oven-dry weight)
- 0.82 on green volume
- Shrinkage, green to oven-dry
- 12.4% tangential
- Radial 7.8%, volumetric 20.2%
One source: USDA Forest Products Laboratory, collected from the world literature (its Tables 5-5 and 4-4)
Why: From the USDA Wood Handbook, which collected these values from the world literature; karri's density is worked from its specific gravity with the Handbook's own equations.
How much karri moves
A 12 in wide flatsawn board of karri that goes from 6% to 12% moisture content swells about 0.33 in (about 11/32 in, 8.4 mm). Quartersawn, the same board moves about 0.2 in (about 3/16 in, 5.1 mm). Flatsawn faces move 1.6 times as much as quartersawn ones, because the wood shrinks 12.4% around the growth rings but only 7.8% across them.
Worked from the Wood Handbook's shrinkage values (Table 4-4) with its Eq. 13-4; the Handbook gives no movement coefficients for imported woods. Individual boards vary: the Handbook gives shrinkage a coefficient of variation of about 15% (p. 4-11).
Color, grain and working
- Color
- Like jarrah but usually paler.
- Working and character
- Slightly heavier and stronger than jarrah, less durable, hard to machine and to cut by hand, and dulls edges a little more than jarrah.
- Uses
- Bridges, floors, rafters and beams where bending strength counts; available in long, clear lengths.
Adapted in our own words from the Wood Handbook, Chapter 2, p. 2-26.
Strength
Bending strength is the modulus of rupture (MOR); stiffness is the modulus of elasticity (MOE). Values for karri from Wood Handbook Table 5-5b (p. 5-23), which the Handbook says were collected from the world literature, on clear, straight-grained specimens. Knots and cross grain make lumber weaker than these clear samples (Handbook Chapter 5).
| Property | Green | 12% MC |
|---|---|---|
| Bending strength (MOR) | 11,200 psi (77 MPa) | 20,160 psi (139 MPa) |
| Stiffness (MOE) | 1,940,000 psi (13.4 GPa) | 2,600,000 psi (17.9 GPa) |
| Crushing strength (compression parallel to grain) | 5,450 psi (38 MPa) | 10,800 psi (74 MPa) |
| Shear parallel to grain | 1,510 psi (10 MPa) | 2,420 psi (17 MPa) |
A dash means the Handbook prints no value; none is filled in.
Dust and health
- Wood dust is classed as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1) by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, chiefly for cancers of the nose and sinuses.
- NIOSH recommends keeping wood dust exposure to 1 mg/m³ of total dust, as quoted in OSHA's sawmill guidance.
This is what the named authorities publish, not medical advice.
Compare with
Why these numbers
Why these numbers?
The situation
The Wood Handbook prints 2,040 lbf of side hardness at 12% moisture content for karri, a value it says was collected from the world literature (Table 5-5b, p. 5-23).
One source: USDA Forest Products Laboratory, collected from the world literature (its Tables 5-5 and 4-4) , sources [1]
What that means
Side hardness (Janka) is the load needed to press a 0.444 in (11.28 mm) steel ball halfway into the wood across the grain; a higher number dents less (Handbook p. 5-5).
One source: USDA Forest Products Laboratory, collected from the world literature (its Tables 5-5 and 4-4) , sources [1]
So
The Handbook gives only the green specific gravity (0.82) for karri, so it is moved to 12% with the volumetric shrinkage of 20.2% (Eqs. 4-9 and 4-11), then multiplied by water's density and 1.12 (Eq. 4-14).
Arithmetic: exact by definition , sources [1]
The number
About 65 lb/ft³, or 5.4 lb per board foot (1/12 ft³), at 12% moisture content.
Arithmetic: exact by definition
Sources