Comments on: Differences Between Hard Maple and Soft Maple https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/ WOOD Mon, 09 Feb 2026 07:29:56 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 By: Steven Holt https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-33159 Sun, 02 Nov 2025 08:21:42 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-33159 I turned a carving mallet out of a Vine Maple (Acer circinatum) trunk and I strongly suspect it is easily on the hard maple end of the spectrum. I’ve used it for years and it did have a deep split as it dried but it still is with no visible dents, even the bark is pretty hard. They generally do not get over a six inch diameter before the bark at base of an individual trunk will start rotting and eventually falling over. The rootstock happily has multiple other smaller trunks that are generally unaffected. With these small curvy trunked max diameters it is not surprising that milled samples are unavailable for Janka hardness testing,

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By: Dave Gerty https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-23732 Sat, 14 Dec 2024 03:25:18 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-23732 In reply to Dave Gerty.

Update to my previoius comment. After 4 years, the first link is dead. The second one will still get you to the notebook. There is a much better book available that covers everything about maple syrup from growing trees to building the sugar house.
North American Maple Syrup Producers Manual, 3rd Ed.430 pages free download.
https://mapleresearch.org/pub/manual/

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By: Peter https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-22789 Mon, 26 Aug 2024 12:38:26 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-22789 In reply to bob ginn.

From my experience cutting these invasive trees down and removing their roots while still saplings the Norway Maple is on the hard side of Soft Maple. They also grow very fast.
Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_platanoides#:~:text=The%20wood%20is%20hard%2C%20yellowish,in%20regard%20to%20decay%20resistance) says the Janka hardness is 1010 lbf.

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By: Peter https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-22788 Mon, 26 Aug 2024 12:05:57 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-22788 In reply to Mark.

Toronto often planted Norway Maples along streets up to about 50 years ago, I suspect Buffalo did the same. They do very well in urban environments and are now considered invasive.
They get those black fungus circles in the fall. Their leaves are larger than Sugar Maple leaves and look tike the typical maple leaf. When we lived in Toronto both our neighbours had Norway Maples on the city owned part of their front yard. Here in London Ontario we mostly have Silver Maples and Red Maples, these do not get the black spots. We have a Sugar Maple in our back yard, no spots.

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By: Joseph https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-22299 Tue, 11 Jun 2024 14:51:50 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-22299 In reply to wendy.

We tap our silver maple in Iowa and get really good results. over 3% sugar in the sap and good flavor syrup. Yes the sap goes bitter quickly when the buds come out, but we get a month of good production first. Typically over a gallon of 68.5% syrup per large silver maple tree.

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By: Michael https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-21954 Fri, 26 Apr 2024 02:03:47 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-21954 In reply to Ted.

I have a bunch of Norway maple that’s air dried for 4-6 years, it’s the palest of the maples I know about tbh. But it’s also soft. Like much softer than soft maple. I’d also say the same about box elder which in my experience is softer than poplar / on par with basswood.

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By: pulpfriction https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-20488 Sat, 21 Oct 2023 16:51:46 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-20488 In reply to wendy.

Interesting. (And didn’t expect an answer after all this time, lol.) So are you wondering if it’s a cultivar or just a plain ‘ol red maple? (No an expert here, just know a few things from early work life in horticulure.)

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By: wendy https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-20483 Fri, 20 Oct 2023 18:10:22 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-20483 In reply to Mr. Darnaldo Sweemsbottle Esq. III.

Rule of thumb is the softer the maple, the less suitable for syrup.Lots of people tap the reds around here. And boxelders–I forget offhand, but there’s a time when the sap goes bad for syruping–so you get a shorter useable season out of them than other maples.

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By: wendy https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-20482 Fri, 20 Oct 2023 17:58:54 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-20482 In reply to pulpfriction.

I thoght they might be, but my mom pointed out that they don’t do the “crimson” the variety is known for, and the leaf shape is closer to the hard/sugar maples. They’re possibly THE most common maple in my area. “Striking” is not a word I would use to describe them. As I said, they bud out a strong red, but quickly shift to a deep, purplish-green. In “high color” years, they might go a dirty orange in fall, but in most years, they just go purple, then brown. I understand they get the “red” name because their VANES have a distinct redness to them, not the leaf as a whole. Which was my point in posting.

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By: pulpfriction https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-20472 Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:12:53 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-20472 In reply to Wendy.

The is a commonly sold “Crimson King” cultivar of Norway Maple, (a native of Eurasia, and can be an invader in the U.S.) The dark wine-red leaves make it a striking tree, but the leaf shape is of course that of Norway Maple. Could that be what you have?

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By: Eric https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-20471 Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:25:10 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-20471 In reply to Ted.

I never tested Norway maple, but I do know that silver maple gives a relatively mild/light result.

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By: Ted https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-20448 Sun, 15 Oct 2023 07:48:08 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-20448 I’ve been testing multiple species. Red, Silver, Bigleaf and Sugar. It definitely seems to be the case that Bigleaf is slightly darker than Sugar when tested. The problem is that I have Silver and Norway in the mix somewhere. I only know the Sugar, Red, and Bigleaf. Can you tell me if you have any experience with what color Norway Maple turns and if Silver Maple gives the same light green or slightly darker green as Bigleaf?

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By: Mr. Darnaldo Sweemsbottle Esq. III https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-18696 Fri, 18 Nov 2022 15:53:49 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-18696 This is all pretty good information. Could you also add that there are other maples you can tap to make maple syrup? We tap our red maples (yes, they are red maples) and make delicious syrup every February. Granted, sugar maples have the highest sugar content, but that doesn’t mean that other species aren’t used for sugaring. It’s a common misconception that only sugar maples are tapped for syrup. When I tell people this, they are always surprised.

Thanks!

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By: Keliot https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-16681 Tue, 08 Feb 2022 21:32:32 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-16681 Great article, awesome details.
Could you write one on identifying Birch, both sub-types VS other woods?
I bought some but not sure I got the right wood, could be much cheaper substitute.
Thank you

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By: William https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-16593 Sat, 29 Jan 2022 08:49:37 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-16593 In reply to Sheikh Abrahim.

I live in Hawaii and I find Mango to be comparable in color and workability(as maple). It has a slightly different figure than but is very consistent throughout and can be worked weeks after milling. Very economical lumber and abundant.

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By: William https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-16592 Sat, 29 Jan 2022 08:44:51 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-16592 In reply to Deano G..

It’s maple. I run a business making/repairing/and refinishing furniture. It isn’t a “stain” but a tinted lacquer or glaze. I see a lot of maple pieces and it is good solid furniture. It strips easily and repairs well.

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By: Eric https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-14789 Thu, 29 Jul 2021 03:10:35 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-14789 In reply to John.

Seems rather soft and may be a typo. Also, keep in mind that “Camden” maple is just a made up name and not a real wood species, so who knows what you would actually be getting.

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By: John https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-14785 Wed, 28 Jul 2021 19:33:36 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-14785 Hi Eric-

We brought home a sample box of prefinì shed solid hardwood flooring from Floor and Decor labeled as Camden maple. The hardness rating online says 1 with a janka of 700. Does this make sense for hardwood flooring?

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By: Wendy https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-14301 Thu, 20 May 2021 20:14:36 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-14301 In reply to Vivek.

And the preferred harvesting location was on a north-facing slope; in fact, one of the ways our middle-school orchestra teacher told us to gauge the quality of a violin was by measuring the grain. (>1/8 in=student, 1/8-1/16=intermediate, <1/16=pro)

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By: Wendy https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/differences-between-hard-maple-and-soft-maple/comment-page-1/#comment-14300 Thu, 20 May 2021 20:08:28 +0000 http://www.wood-database.com/?page_id=2300#comment-14300 We have red maples in our yard. They are red in SPRING (when they first break bud), and turn a brownish purple in fall.

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