Using cherry structurally

[gashmore]

I have a few more structural parts to add to the cockpit. Some stringers, seat supports, etc. Mostly parts that will not show but will take some load. I am out of mahogany but have a bunch of what I would call "low select" cherry left over from the interior. Primary faults are twists, bends and poor color that will not make any difference as these parts will have to be bent in place any way. Cherry is stronger and stiffer but not quite as stable or rot resistant as mahogany but it will all be encapsulated in epoxy. I don't want to pay freight on any more wood and have nothing better to use the cherry for.

Can anyone think of a reason not to use cherry?

[landlocked sailor]

Actually, cherry is rated as highly durable so why encapsulate it. It is strong and pretty and even bends pretty well. The only caveate is the "poor color". That probably is sap wood which, like most other species, is not durable. Rick

[kpenokie]

My experience with cherry is that it tends to be very brittle which might obviate against use for structural parts.

[JMAC]

I used cherry for the rails on my rowing boat, its been three years and it is holding up well.

[Wayne Jeffers]

Glenn,

I know of no reason you should not use the cherry.

Like Rick says, it is plenty rot-resistant. I have a couple of 20-year-old cherry stumps on the property. I drilled them full of holes to encourage rot so I wouldn't have to dig them up. I think they're gonna outlast me.

The light-colored sap wood, however, is not rot-resistant. I'm not sure about its strength properties. I've never used it.

My biggest complaint with cherry from a wood working standpoint is that it has an interlocking grain which is more difficult than most other woods to plane by hand.

Wayne

[J. Dillon]

Gashmore,

I think I know what you're saying. With all that scrap cherry thats too good to burn and too small to use, how about making some nice belaying pins or blocks with it? Mine look great and lasted so far for 6 years.

JD