# Cherry wood better than oak?



## Innovan (Dec 7, 2005)

Does anyone know why cherry wood is considered higher class than oak for furniture?

Is this just a local preference I'm coming across or is this widespread?


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## Jill (Sep 11, 2003)

Yes!

Then again, I guess before answering, I should ask, "define 'better'".

I ran a quick query for you, with a tool I like to use occasionally for various projects. I selected criteria that I think would be important for furniture. The results were mixed, but I coudn't save the link. It all depends on what type of cherry and oak you are comparing. For instance, we used Jatoba, which is a Brazillian Cherry, on our last project (a tie display rack). It is MUCH harder than white or red oak. But domestic cherry is typically softer. to a neat website, comparing the traits of various woods.

It really depends on personal preference, though, especially as it pertains to grain. I simply dislike the large, distinctive grain of oak and ash, for instance, so I would not be inclined to use them for large pieces. Any major price difference you see, though (which is why I assume you're asking) is probably more the result of supply/demand, than "quality" per se, IMOSHO. For instance, African blackwood is ~ $80/bf at my local wood store, whereas Mahogany ~ $8/bf. I'm assuming that the ebonies aren't 1000% better! They're just more scarce.

I'm sure there are experts out there who could give you a more technical answer. In fact, Chuck is at Woodworld right now, as we speak, meeting with a guy who spent most of his career at the Smithsonian. Unfortunately, he doesn't post here!

Edited to say, if you want to run your own query, here's the Critera Selection page.
Here's


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## Patrick M Thayer (Dec 24, 2004)

NO! Each has it's own beauty and best application. Close-grained, quartersawn white oak makes some of the most beautiful classic American furniture. Cherry can also be beautiful -- but it's tempermental in terms of getting an even finish -- and it darkens with time and exposure to natural light. In cherry, the heartwood is most prized. Oak is much harder than cherry and is a good outdoor wood (naturally resistant to rot).


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## Joe Tradly (Jan 21, 2006)

They really are different woods for different purposes and design styles. No doubt cherry is a finer wood, tighter grain, beautiful color. Really a wonderful wood to work with. Cherry starts out golden brown and reddens with age and sun exposure to a really luxurious deep red. 

Oak on the other hand tends to be more "utilitarian" in its appearence. As Jill said, it has an open grain that appears "rougher". To be sure, a perfect piece of quarter sawn oak will be as beautiful if not more than a piece of cherry.

Generally to answer you question, in my opinion, cherry is a finer wood and makes more beautiful furniture. Unless we're talking about mission or craftsman style (a la Stickley) which is historically oak and really should not be made in any other species of wood.

JB


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## Joe Tradly (Jan 21, 2006)

Patrick M Thayer said:


> NO! Each has it's own beauty and best application. Close-grained, quartersawn white oak makes some of the most beautiful classic American furniture. Cherry can also be beautiful -- but it's tempermental in terms of getting an even finish -- and it darkens with time and exposure to natural light. In cherry, the heartwood is most prized. Oak is much harder than cherry and is a good outdoor wood (naturally resistant to rot).


Ha! Pat, good post.


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## Trenditional (Feb 15, 2006)

I also think Cherry wood has a history of being made into the more "expensive" pieces. I think Oak has been given the stigma of being more of "work horse" type wood. Personally, Oak furniture in the Craftsman style is some of the most beutiful pieces of furniture I've seen.


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## Patrick M Thayer (Dec 24, 2004)

Joe Bondi said:


> They really are different woods for different purposes and design styles. No doubt cherry is a finer wood, tighter grain, beautiful color. Really a wonderful wood to work with. Cherry starts out golden brown and reddens with age and sun exposure to a really luxurious deep red.
> 
> Oak on the other hand tends to be more "utilitarian" in its appearence. As Jill said, it has an open grain that appears "rougher". To be sure, a perfect piece of quarter sawn oak will be as beautiful if not more than a piece of cherry.
> 
> ...


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## pt4u67 (Apr 27, 2006)

As stated above cherry oxidizes very well and leaves a beautiful, rich patina with age. It is however a softer wood than oak and so it really depends on your living situation. Is the furniture going to be exposed to a beating by children and pets or is it an adults only home. As I type I am sitting at a cherry desk and I must say over the years it has grown more and more beautiful.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

pt4u67 said:


> As stated above cherry oxidizes very well and leaves a beautiful, rich patina with age. It is however a softer wood than oak and so it really depends on your living situation. Is the furniture going to be exposed to a beating by children and pets or is it an adults only home. As I type I am sitting at a cherry desk and I must say over the years it has grown more and more beautiful.


This observation actually applies to applications within the same home. My study is done in antique oak (rolltop desk, library table, filing cabinet and rocker) and the dining room is natural cherry (table & chairs, serving buffet, china hutch). The dining room is used perhaps 10 times per year and the study is used daily and yet, the oak furniture remains in as good of a condition as does the cherry furniture. Nice oak is durable, as well as beautiful!


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## DukeGrad (Dec 28, 2003)

Gentlemen

Jill is right again, some exoctic woods are very costly. Of all of them, mahogony is very nice for the price.
Over the years, have collected very fine pieces from Stickley, Ethan Allen and other places.
They all have different qualities.
I love cherry woods, and enjoy the Sticley for furniture.
We bought some cherry pieces some time back for our family room, from a Pompanussac Mills in Vermont. These have become what cherry wood should look like over time. Very nice woods.
On the other hand oak is very nice as well.
Have done cabinets in oak, which has a nice glow to them.
I did cherry floors, in my last home, and it is a nice look. Am doing a rustic look in a part of the home, and using birch, whih is cheap, but very nice.
It boilis down to what you have(your home), and what you are trying to create.
Again, high end furniture, I like cherry. Stickley, very costly, makes fine furniture.
My library is done in their cherry.
Again, a classic cherry wood, and look comes from Poppanussac Mills, a small but very fine furniture maker.
This was some 20 years ago we got this stuff.
Gentlemen have a nice day


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## JLibourel (Jun 13, 2004)

Off the topic a little bit, but cherry wood makes a pretty good pipe with a distinctive flavor. "Cherry bowl" pipes were usually made with the bark still on them and had a rustic look. The better ones were made from one piece of wood; others were made from two pieces--one for the shank and one for the bowl. The latter looked oddly like wooden corncob pipes and didn't strike me as nearly as attractive as the one-piece kind. I haven't seen a cherry bowl for sale in ages, but that may be because I don't frequent pipe shops and tobacconists as much as I used to.

I am mentioning this in part to show the superior toughness and durability of cherry wood. Make an oaken pipe, and I am sure it would be a charred ruin in no time if it didn't catch fire outright!


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## Martinis at 8 (Apr 14, 2006)

Cherry would is the better wood for furniture, IMO.

M8


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