Q Why do I receive so many different quotes regarding hard maple? Can you explain terms like No 1&2 White, Unselected, Saps, Natural and so on?
A Hard maple is often sorted for colour and the terms you refer to designate the amount of sapwood or white colour in the board. In order of importance – and therefore, cost – they are:

  • No 1&2 White H Maple: No 1 White requires that both faces and both edges of the clear cuttings must be all sapwood (white). No 2 White requires that one face and both edges of the clear cutting area be sapwood and the reverse face of the clear cutting area be not less than 50% sapwood. These two designations are nearly always shipped together. The key to No 1&2 White Maple is that if there is any heartwood on one face, it must be in the middle of the board away from the edges of the clear cuttings. The grades are the same as the standard National Hardwood Lumber Association (NHLA) grades except the FAS grade will allow 4&5in widths, provided they are 100% clear.
  • Sap H Maple: This only requires that one face of the clear cuttings be sapwood. There could be unlimited heartwood on the reverse face. Sap H Maple will allow a 5in FAS board. All other grades are the Standard.
  • Unselected H Maple: This is graded Standard, with colour having no bearing on the grade. The full product of the log containing sapwood and heartwood clear cuttings are permitted.
  • Brown H Maple: This designates that most, if not all, of the boards will have a large percentage of heartwood in the clear cuttings. This is an accumulation of what is left after the No 1&2 White and Sap boards have been sorted out.

Q We buy FAS red oak that is sold to us 80/20. What do these numbers mean?
A Normally these numbers represent the percentage of FAS grade and Selects or FAS1F grade in the shipment. In this case, 80% of the lumber is FAS and 20% is Selects or FAS1F.

Q Quite often I am quoted pricing based on grades that aren’t in the NHLA Rule book such as Prime and Comsel.
A Prime and Comsel are grade names that have evolved primarily for export shipments. They represent levels of quality in the same regards as the NHLA grades of FAS and No 1 Common. The confusion in receiving pricing for these and all grade names other than the NHLA grades is that they may vary from one supplier to the next. A simple way to deal with these quoted grades is to ask the supplier how they relate to the written grades from the NHLA. Prime may be a 5in and wider allowance for one supplier and a colour sort for another.

Q Why are there no export grades in the NHLA Rule book?
A The NHLA has a set of Standard grades which are widely taught, published, and readily available. If buyer and seller prefer to deviate from these standards, they can use a common language and virtually write their own grade specifications. It may be as simple as allowing a 7ft long or a 4in wide FAS board. This is done by numerous companies both in our domestic and export markets. In fact, the NHLA encourages its members to use the framework of the rules in this way. This promotes the entrepreneurial spirit of the industry while providing a common language to which to refer.

Q Can you give some easy metric/imperial conversions?
A Most exporters are willing to quote pricing in cubic metres or even cubic feet so the quantities of an entire shipment should be no problem. When it comes to calculating individual boards, a good guesstimate for FAS is 80% and better, for No 1 Com 60% and better, and No 2 Com use 50% and better. In determining if a board will surface two sides (S2S), to standard surface thickness (in the case of a board with slight cupping) a 1in (25.4mm) board must be S2S at 13/16in (20.6mm), a 2in board (50.8mm) must be S2S to 44.5mm. All other thicknesses must surface proportionately. For other conversion factors most commonly used see the fact file below.

In a typical container, you can stuff approximately 12,000 bd ft of kiln-dried lumber. This would convert to around 28-30m3 depending on the species, thickness and length distribution.

Bob Sabistina worked with the NHLA for more than 22 years as a field inspector. AHEC offers NHLA grading for individual companies. If you have a question for upcoming articles, e-mail bshardwoods@yahoo.com