Noble Fir

Abies procera Rehd. · Softwood · North America

Janka 410 lbf≈24 lb/ft³ dried (est.)

Properties

Janka hardness	410 lbf (1,824 N)
Average dried weight (est.)	24 lb/ft³ (390 kg/m³)
Specific gravity	0.39
Modulus of rupture	10,700 psi (73.8 MPa)
Modulus of elasticity	1.72 million psi (11.86 GPa)
Crushing strength	6,100 psi (42.1 MPa)
Shrinkage — radial	4.3%
Shrinkage — tangential	8.3%
Shrinkage — volumetric	12.4%
Shrinkage T/R ratio	1.9

Values at 12% moisture content, clear-wood averages. Source: USDA Forest Products Laboratory, Wood Handbook FPL-GTR-282 (2021), Table 5–3b p. 5–12; shrinkage Table 4–3 p. 4–8.

Noble fir is one of the western true firs marketed together as white fir, and its high-grade lumber is used mainly for interior woodwork, molding, and siding. Some of the highest quality material is suitable for aircraft construction, with special uses such as venetian blinds and ladder rails.

Appearance & grain

Like the other western true firs, noble fir's wood is creamy white to pale brown, and the heartwood and sapwood are generally indistinguishable. The western true fir species cannot be told apart from one another by the wood alone.

Workability

The wood of the western true firs is light in weight, and its shrinkage is low to moderately high. The western true firs, noble fir among them, have somewhat higher strength properties than the eastern balsam fir.