(see Fact Sheet for discussion of the names basswood / lime / linden)
Tilia spp
Although somewhat boring because of the uniformity of the grain pattern (there sometimes almost isn't one), this is a favorite wood of carvers BECAUSE it has a very uniform grain. For pieces that are going to be painted, it's a great wood to use for carving but if you want a wood that has some character, this isn't it.
my samples:
both sides of a sample plank of linden / Tilia cordata
end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above
3 sections and 2 closeups of a 12' long plank
plank and end grain
end grain closeup of the piece directly above --- the color should be more white
plank and end grain
end grain closeup of the piece directly above
plank and closeup --- the color is not quite as tan as the wood; it's a little too white
planks --- the relatively white color of this set compared to the slightly more tan color of the set below is correct. Although bought at the same time, the two lots (one was 1/4" thick and one was 1/2") were clearly from different trees.
planks
planks photographed at a lumber yard
sample plank and end grain sold to me as American basswood / Tilia americana --- the color correction put a little too much red in the pic; the wood is closer to a slighly yellowish white, closer to the color in the end grain closeup directly below. I was not previously aware of the existance of curly basswood and I have not seen other examples of it so I do not consider this sample plank to be a good reprsentation of the species, but that lack of representativeness is fairly common in the sample planks from the IWCS.
flat cut, quartersawn, end grain
basswood (Tilia americana, also listed as American linden, lime-tree, and bee-tree) from The Wood Book --- both levels of enlargement are avaiable for all 3 views
web pics
log section listed as "white basswood"
raw lumber
end grain identified as European linden / Tilia platyphyllos
planks
plank listed as Dutch linden
plank listed as linden / Tilia spp.
plank listed as European lime
plank listed as lime
plank listed as basswood / tilia spp.
planks that were not listed with any common name but identified as Tilia spp.
planks specifically identified as Tilia americana
planks showing knots and mineral stain
slab and end grain
slab and end grain
two views of a curly plank
curly plank
carving stock
veneer
burl veneer --- boy, howdy ! Now there's a burl that's at extreme odds with the normal wood of the same tree. I've never seen basswood burl, so can't say from experience that that's what this really is.
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