Black Walnut
Juglans nigra
Also known as American walnut, American black walnut · Botanical Juglans nigra
Revision history
- — Data re-verified in site-wide audit (formulas, sources, durability classes)
- — Working properties and comparable-species data cross-checked against listed sources
About Black Walnut
Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) is a mid-range timber, hard enough for everyday wear and still easy to work, with a Janka hardness of 1,010 lbf (4,492 N) and a density of about 0.55 g/cm³. It grows in North America.
Radial 5.5% against tangential 7.8% is an unusually even T/R ratio of 1.42 — Black Walnut shrinks close to uniformly, which is why it holds a flat panel in interior joinery and furniture. Its fibre saturation point is near 28%. Below it this timber moves a great deal — 7.8% tangential — but evenly, at a T/R ratio of 1.42. Wide boards need genuine expansion room; they are less likely to cup than to simply change width. — wide boards need real expansion room, not a token gap.
At 550 kg/m³ a cubic metre of Black Walnut weighs about 550 kg air-dry — that figure, the 7.8% tangential and 5.5% radial movement and the 1,010 lbf hardness are the three inputs the calculators below actually consume. Select Black Walnut in any of them to get species-specific results for weight, moisture, shrinkage and hardness.
Working properties
How Black Walnut behaves at the bench and on the machine, drawn from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory and the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC).
Durability & use classification
Black Walnut is rated moderately durable (EN 350 Class 3): the rich heartwood resists decay reasonably well, but it is prized as an interior wood rather than an exterior one and is not suited to ground contact. The pale sapwood is perishable and can attract insects, so it's usually cut away.
Typical applications & suitability
Indoor — Best kept indoors. Its value lies in appearance and workability rather than weather resistance, so it belongs in furniture and joinery, not exposed outdoor use.
Documented end-uses: high-end furniture and cabinetry, doors and interior joinery, gunstocks (its shock resistance is renowned), decorative veneer, turned and carved work, and musical instruments.
Comparable species
Species closest to Black Walnut by density, hardness, stiffness and bending strength, computed directly from the Vriksai species dataset rather than hand-picked.
Trade alternatives. Where a dark, premium hardwood is wanted at lower cost or better supply, the trade turns to steamed European walnut or, for a similar tone, dark-stained American cherry — matching on colour and workability rather than durability.
Alternatives to Black Walnut
Black Walnut measures 1,010 lbf Janka at 0.55 g/cm³, EN 350 durability Class 3, movement rated Excellent. Black Walnut is rated Excellent for movement, which is usually why it was specified — so nothing below trades that stability down. Read the numbers against the Janka scale and EN 350 durability classes.
For furniture and interior joinery that needs to survive handling as well as humidity. Harder resists denting; check the movement figures have not worsened with it.
Easier to machine and to hand-finish, for interior work where the surface is not taking abuse.
Already well behaved — these are the few in our library that are measurably steadier still. Size the gaps with the shrinkage predictor and EMC calculator.
If Black Walnut is unavailable and the specification cannot change, these are the nearest substitutes across hardness, density, movement, stiffness, bending strength and durability class together — not on any single property. Lower distance means a closer match.
Black Walnut is EN 350 Class 3, so untreated exterior service is not advisable. These reach Class 1–2 at comparable hardness.
Computed from measured properties only — hardness, density, movement, stiffness, bending strength and EN 350 class. Price, availability and appearance are never inputs. Figures are representative values, not consignment absolutes: two species within a few percent are equivalent until verified on the material. Full method and the rules the engine cannot break.
Substitution is a match on durability class, movement and strength — not on colour or grain. Where two candidates are close, compare them directly before specifying.
Compare Black Walnut side by side
These comparisons turn on movement and finish quality more than on raw strength. Every pairing shows the measured figures side by side; full matrix in the comparison index.
Calculators relevant to Black Walnut
Weighted towards joinery and finishing, where Black Walnut is normally used. Full set in the tool index.
Understand the figures
Wood density reference — oven-dry vs air-dry basis · Moisture content — EMC, FSP and service conditions · Strength properties — MOR, MOE and what they govern · Durability & fire — EN 350 classes and E84 ratings.
Further reading. Wood moisture content explained · How to calculate board feet.
Common questions about Black Walnut
unverified no published source for this figure · FPL USDA FPL Wood Handbook GTR-190 · WD The Wood Database (Eric Meier) · calc derived from the figures above