Types of Wood to Cut with Your Stihl Chainsaw

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Different trees result in woods that vary in colour, density, grain, and texture. These factors all affect the uses for the wood, the aesthetic of the wood, and which Stihl chainsaw will be the most effective when cutting the wood. We have paired the ideal Stihl chainsaw with commonly used woods to make cutting wood for your wooden projects easy and efficient.

 

B&S Commercial Power:

 

B&S Commercial Power imports and manufactures power tools. B&S Commercial Power is based in Cape Town but can provide power tools to the whole of South Africa and neighbouring countries, such as Zambia and Botswana. B&S provides you with power tools of exceptional quality which are ideal for professional or at-home use.

 

Our personalised service matches the quality of our products. B&S Commercial Power places you first by ensuring that we can provide a power tool and expert advice for all your equipment needs. B&S Commercial Power upholds its excellent reputation by only stocking high-quality products. Therefore, all chainsaws available at B&S Commercial Power are Stihl chainsaws.

 

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Stihl Chainsaw:

 

If you are looking for an excellent chainsaw, then a Stihl chainsaw is the way to go. Stihl has over eighty-five years of experience in creating power tools of exceptional quality and engineering. Every Stihl chainsaw is made to meet international standards. This provides you with a chainsaw of high performance, easy use, innovative technology, lightweight, and optimum ergonomics.

 

Stihl only allows the sale of their products by approved dealers. This is to ensure that when you purchase your Stihl chainsaw, you are receiving personalised service and advice on the best suitable Stihl chainsaw for your needs. B&S Commercial Power is an approved Stihl dealer, meaning that our service, advice, and customer care reach the high standards of Stihl products.

 

These are the various Stihl chainsaws available at B&S Commercial Power.

 

  • Stihl MS170 Chainsaw.
  • Stihl MS250 Chainsaw.
  • Stihl MS361 Chainsaw.
  • Stihl MS382 Chainsaw.
  • Stihl MSE190 Electric Chainsaw.
  • Stihl MS210 Chainsaw.
  • Stihl MS661 C-M Chainsaw.
  • Stihl MS310 Chainsaw.

 

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Different Types of Wood:

 

From across the oceans and on our home turf we have chosen a few of the most popular woods. We have then paired them with the ideal Stihl chainsaw for your convenient use in your wooden projects.

 

1) Oregon Pine:

 

Oregon Pine trees are easily identified by their characteristic pine needles and pinecones. These trees grow to great heights of sixty meters and are native to Oregon. Pine trees are often the inspiration for artificial Christmas trees, adding more joy to this beautiful wood.

 

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Oregon Pine is known for its great workability. It cuts and stains easily and has a smooth finish. Oregon Pinewood is easily crafted into any desired wooden craft, such as furniture, and is also often used in construction. Oregon Pine is also a common wood used to create instruments. Oregon Pine is light in weight which makes working with this wood a dream.

 

Oregon Pine is a soft white or pale yellow coloured wood. The wood colour varies slightly among the different Oregon Pine species. The beautiful colouring of this wood makes it popular to use for wooden floors in homes or businesses. Oregon Pine has a signature straight grain embedded with knots. The knots are what provide your Oregon Pine wooden crafts with interest and character.

 

Oregon Pine is a softwood that makes it an easy wood to work with for your Stihl chainsaw. You can easily use the Stihl MS382 Chainsaw as this chainsaw is perfectly suited to cutting low-density and medium-density woods. Although the wood is soft, Oregon Pine is still a strong and durable wood which makes it ideal for any wooden projects.

 

Oregon Pine trees were introduced into South Africa a few years ago. This makes the use of Pinewood for wooden projects more affordable for a wider range of budgets. Pine is a great wood option to use for your wood projects due to its great characteristics and low cost.

 

2) Oak:

 

The botanical name for an Oak tree is Quercus, which translates to “beautiful tree, and we can understand why. Oak trees grow to an elegant thirty meters tall and produce the well-known acorn.

 

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Oak is the most widely used hardwood for a variety of wooden crafts. From furniture to flooring to oak barrels for winemaking, oak wood is a great wood to use for many wood projects. Oakwood is exceptionally sturdy and durable meaning that your children will get to inherit all the interesting wooden crafts you create.

 

There is a wide variety of oak species that are separated into white and red coloured oak wood. This offers you a great variety of colour to choose from when creating your oak wooden crafts. Oak is known for having a prominent grain. The grains tend to be enhanced and can contrast heavily with the wood colour.

 

The texture of oak wood also tends to be coarse. The prominent grain paired with the coarse texture can result in your wooden projects having a strong characteristic. If you are looking to make the oak wood subtle in the contrast between the grain and the wood, you can fill the grain with oak wood fillers and sand until smooth.

 

It is advised to use the Stihl MS361 Chainsaw when cutting oak hardwood. This Stihl chainsaw boasts a quick cutting speed, the latest innovation in chainsaw technology, and a great power to weight ratio which will work well with a hardwood. When you are working with hardwoods, you need your chainsaw to be as easy to use as the Stihl MS361 Chainsaw.

 

3) African Teak:

 

The African Teak can be found in Angola, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and other African countries. The African Teak is an important African tree as it has significant spiritual meaning for West African countries. Alongside this, the African Teak is highly effective in reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide. Many conservation groups are working towards placing the African Teak under conservation.

 

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African Teak is mostly used for timber, floors, boats, and furniture. The African Teak wood is exceptionally durable, rot-resistant, borer-resistant, and termite-resistant. The wood emits a spicy fragrance which makes working with the wood pleasant when creating your wooden crafts. African Teak wood has a red-brown colouring with characteristic black lines and flecks. Any wooden craft made using African Teak will be a show-stopper in your home or business.

 

The African Teak generally has a straight grain that is finely textured. This creates a beautiful combination that makes all your African Teak wood crafts unique. The grain combined with the colouring of the African Teak will ensure that your wooden crafts are full of character. African Teak is an exceptionally dense hardwood. This makes working with African Teak difficult.

 

Alongside the difficulty of the hardwood, the African Teak wood has a high silica content. When using a chainsaw, the blades can quickly become dull and sticky. Our suggested Stihl chainsaw to use is the Stihl MSE190 Electric Chainsaw, but we encourage you to seek advice before working with African Teak wood.

 

4) Rubberwood:

 

Rubberwood comes from the tropical-growing Rubber trees. These easy-growing skinny trees live up to one hundred years and can reach a height of thirty meters. Rubber trees are popularly known for their production of latex which is then extracted and used as the natural base in the manufacturing of rubber. Once Rubber trees no longer produce latex they are then harvested and used for wood projects.

 

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Rubberwood can be used to make wooden furniture and flooring. Rubberwood does have low durability, so it is suggested to treat the wood with preservatives before using it to create your wooden crafts.

 

The colouring of rubberwood is a homogenous creamy light colour. These colours range from pale blonde to golden blonde. The colour can also deepen if the wood is exposed to sunlight, which causes the grain to become a light brown. This can create an intriguing contrast in the wood for your wood projects.

 

Rubberwood has a vertical, disjointed grain. The grain also varies in length and thickness. This provides the rubberwood with a rough appearance which can give your wooden projects a tough character.

 

Rubberwood is a medium-density wood. This means that the wood is moderately hard which makes it suitable for furniture but not too hard to be difficult to work with. Using a chainsaw will make easy work of cutting rubberwood. The Stihl chainsaw we suggest is the Stihl MS310 Chainsaw as this Stihl chainsaw works well with harvesting medium-density wood.

 

Rubberwood is also a great wood for novice Stihl chainsaw users to experiment with. The wood is easy to saw, and the surface is smooth which will give your projects a great finish. Another bonus to this wood is that it is relatively low in cost, which takes the pressure off you getting your wood project done without any costly mistakes.

 

5) Mahogany:

 

Mahogany trees are a powerful tree to behold. These semi-evergreen trees grow to an estimated height of sixty-one meters and have a large canopy.

 

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You will find forests of Mahogany trees in warmer climates such as South Florida, the Caribbean, tropical areas in Africa, and the Bahamas. Due to the wood not naturally occurring in South Africa, most Mahogany is imported. This can increase the cost of purchasing mahogany wood.

 

Mahogany is an exceptionally beautiful wood. It is known for its signature red-brown coloured wood and deep tones which make the wood luxurious in appearance. Any mahogany piece will be a talking point in your home or business.

 

The grain of mahogany wood is subject to being stripped, broken stripped, having blister figures, rope, or mottle. This means that the grain varies from tree to tree and between the different mahogany species. The variations of grain can be difficult to work with but also add character to your wooden project.

 

Mahogany is a hardwood which makes it a popular choice for firewood, furniture, and flooring. The wood is dense and therefore strong and durable. Due to the popularity of Mahogany for many wood projects, the trees are becoming increasingly rare and in certain places have been added to the endangered tree species list. This makes using Mahogany for a project one of the most expensive woods you can use.

 

If you are a first-time wood crafter, we would suggest using another wood for your projects. Mahogany is a hardwood which makes it difficult to work with and any mistakes will be an expensive cost to your project.

 

It is suggested to use a chainsaw when cutting mahogany wood. The suggested Stihl chainsaw for any mahogany wood project would be the Stihl MS661 C-M Chainsaw as this chainsaw is popularly used for tougher felling projects.

 

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Find the best Stihl chainsaw for your wood cutting at B&S Commercial Power.