Kail Blue Pine
Pinus wallichiana
Also known as blue pine, Himalayan pine, kail, biar · Botanical Pinus wallichiana
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 Kail Blue Pine
Kail Blue Pine (Pinus wallichiana) is a soft timber that works easily but bruises and dents in service, with a Janka hardness of 460 lbf (2,046 N) and a density of about 0.45 g/cm³. It grows in India and South Asia.
At 2.5% radial and 5.2% tangential the T/R ratio is 2.08 — typical, and manageable in interior joinery and furniture provided the gaps are designed rather than assumed. Its fibre saturation point is near 30%. Below it movement is modest at 5.2% tangential, but the 2.08 T/R ratio means one-sided sealing will still pull a panel out of flat.
At 450 kg/m³ a cubic metre of Kail Blue Pine weighs about 450 kg air-dry — that figure, the 5.2% tangential and 2.5% radial movement and the 460 lbf hardness are the three inputs the calculators below actually consume. Select Kail Blue Pine in any of them to get species-specific results for weight, moisture, shrinkage and hardness.
Working properties
How Kail Blue Pine behaves at the bench and on the machine, drawn from the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and Himalayan forestry references.
Durability & use classification
Kail is rated slightly durable (EN 350 Class 4) — and this is worth stating plainly, because popular and regional sources often describe blue pine loosely as “durable”. By the EN standard it is not: it needs preservative treatment for exterior or ground-contact use, and it is best regarded as an interior and protected-construction timber. Its high resin content is a commercial asset in its own right — kail is a source of turpentine and rosin rated superior to chir pine, though less freely produced.
Typical applications & suitability
Indoor — The everyday Himalayan softwood: light, easy to work and inexpensive, used for interior fittings across the hill states rather than for exposure or structure.
Documented end-uses: internal fittings of houses — planking, door and window frames, panels — furniture, camp furniture and drawing boards (after treatment), packing cases, plus resin tapping for turpentine and rosin, and fuelwood and charcoal.
Comparable species
Species closest to Kail Blue Pine by density, hardness, stiffness and bending strength, computed directly from the Vriksai species dataset rather than hand-picked.
Trade alternatives. Its Himalayan companion is Deodar Cedar — genuinely durable where kail is not, and the upgrade for anything exposed. For imported equivalents, Norway Spruce or SPF. Note published research reports blue pine's natural regeneration in the north-west Indian Himalayas as very poor, with the species assessed there as critically endangered.
Alternatives to Kail Blue Pine
Kail Blue Pine measures 460 lbf Janka at 0.45 g/cm³, EN 350 durability Class 4, movement rated Moderate. Kail Blue Pine sits mid-range, which gives the widest choice of substitutes — and the widest scope to pick the wrong one on appearance alone. Read the numbers against the Janka scale and EN 350 durability classes.
For domestic flooring, worktops and furniture edges taking regular contact. Harder timber dents less and machines slower — both matter on a quotation.
Lighter and faster to work. Pricing is not shown here: timber cost varies with region, grade, origin, certification and availability, and we hold no verified price data to publish.
The axis that decides whether a wide panel or a door stays flat through a Panipat monsoon and then a 45 °C May. Size the gaps with the shrinkage predictor and EMC calculator.
If Kail Blue Pine 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.
Kail Blue Pine is EN 350 Class 4, 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 Kail Blue Pine side by side
The head-to-heads specifiers most often weigh against it for furniture and interior joinery. Every pairing shows the measured figures side by side; full matrix in the comparison index.
Calculators relevant to Kail Blue Pine
Chosen for how Kail Blue Pine is actually specified — its density, movement and durability class feed straight in. Full set in the tool index.
Understand the figures
Thermal conductivity — k-value and insulation behaviour · ThermoWood species guide — Thermo-D/Thermo-S treatment classes · Janka hardness scale — how the lbf figure is measured · Wood density reference — oven-dry vs air-dry basis.
Further reading. What is ThermoWood? · Wood moisture content explained · How to calculate board feet.
Common questions about Kail Blue Pine
unverified no published source for this figure · FPL USDA FPL Wood Handbook GTR-190 · calc derived from the figures above · — no published source found
A note on these figures. We have not been able to trace the numbers in the panel above to a named authority. The Wood Database has no Kail / Blue Pine (Pinus wallichiana) entry and the USDA FPL Wood Handbook does not list it; ICRAF covers its distribution and uses only. Where we have been able to check pages sourced this way, the figures have usually been wrong — so treat these as indicative rather than measured. The durability class, working properties and uses below are attributed to the bodies named in the sources list. If a number here matters to your work, verify it against a source you are willing to rely on, or test your own stock.