Our building material, Linden Wood (Basswood)

Our building material, Linden Wood (Basswood)

Let's talk about what we use to craft our products.

It is European linden lumber that we use most. In North America, this tree species is known as basswood, while in Britain and Ireland they are commonly called lime trees (although they are not related to citrus lime at all).

Linden trees produce lightweight but fine and stable timber. While it is considered soft hardwood, it has an outstanding MOE-to-weight ratio (it's pretty elastic). Simply said, when put under stress, the wood will remain stiff, but still break at a relatively average weight.

It machines well and is easy to work with hand tools. Linden cuts easily both with and across the grain. It also glues, nails, screws and accepts stain well. Its fine, soft and even texture is subtle which doesn't detract from the form and structure of the finished product.

It is popular wood for model building, intricate carving and sculpture, musical instruments, window blinds and shutters, specialty products and millwork. Despite the availability of modern alternatives, it remains a widely used material today.

Beautiful, workable and lasting, we have been using linden timber since 2012. And since 2017 we supply it locally from Bulgaria.

Tilia_tomentosa by Bruce Marlin our linden lumber

more on The Wood Database and Wikipedia

image by Bruce Marlin, Wikipedia

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2 comments

it will get rot easily

Rob

I have a lot of linden/basswood trees. Can I use them to make a timber frame shed ? Please email me your thoughts

Ross Bergfalk

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