12 



BULLETIISr 426_, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGEICULTUKE. 



Table 4. — Hardness of small, clear, green sticks of sugar pine, v:estern yelloiv pine, white 



pine, and Douglas fir. 



Specios. 



Surface. 



End. 



Radial. 



Tangential. 



Load required to embed a 0.444-inch 

 steel ball to one-half its diameter. 



Douglas fu- (Pacific Northwest) . 



Sugar pine (California) 



Wiiite pine ("Wisconsin) 



■Western yellow pine (California) 



Pounds. 



Pounds. 



511 



457 



334 



307 



304 



294 



316 



306 



Pounds. 

 490 

 342 

 299 

 323 



The specific gravity of the dry wood of sugar pine is 0.386. The 

 weight of a cubic foot of oven-dry wood is 24.1 pounds. The weight 

 of white pine (P. strohus) is 24.4 and of western yellow pine {P.jpon- 

 derosa) 26.3 pounds. The green weights per cubic foot for the three 

 species are: Sugar pine, 50.2 pounds; white pine, 39.5 pounds; western 

 yellow pine, 48 to 53.1 pounds. 



The shipping weights for sugar pine lumber of different sizes, 

 accepted by manufacturers, are shown in Table 1. Table 2 shows 

 the strength. Table 3 the shrinkage, and Table 4 the hardness of 

 sugar pine and several other species. 



DURABILITY. 



Early settlers found sugar pine more durable than the commoner 

 western yellow pine and used a great deal iii fence construction and 

 building. In contact with the ground it lasts longer than most of the 

 common Sierra species, but is not so durable as incense cedar or 

 juniper. In the air, even where exposed to all kinds of weather, it 

 shows great lasting properties. 



TREATMENT. 



So far as is known, no attempt has been made to increase the life 

 of sugar pine by preservative treatment. Its value for other pur- 

 poses is so great that very httle of it is used in contact with the 

 ground. Theoretically, the sap wood should receive preservatives 

 very readily, but the heartwood, Uke that of white pine, is so close- 

 grained as to resist absorption and penetration under ordinary 

 methods of treatment. Applications of paint, oil, varnish, or shellac, 

 or boihng in oils or paraffin, would doubtless increase its life by 

 preventing the absorption of water. 



LOGGING. 



The process of logging sugar pine in a typical Cahfornia operation 

 consists of the following steps : Felhng, bucking, yarding, chuting or 

 "roading," loading, hauUng to mill. 



