Oregon Pine (or Douglas Fir) is an important, valuable timber to the Northwest of the US — being used in construction and a variety of building applications. Its trees grow to towering heights, yielding huge planks of usable timber. Its color can vary from a light tan to a medium brown, with a yellow, orange or even red tint. Grains can vary from straight to wavy to irregular, with flatsawn pieces often possessing wild, dramatic grain patterns. It is moderately durable, has excellent working properties (cuts, glues, stains and finishes well) and a good strength-to-weight ratio.
It is known for being very stiff for a lightweight wood, which has seen it be used as both an acoustic guitar soundboard and an electric guitar body wood with progressive builders, in recent years.
Sustainability: Not listed in the CITES Appendices, and is reported by the IUCN as being “a species of least concern.”
Common Uses: Veneer, plywood, (occasional) guitar wood and structural/construction lumber, interior and exterior joinery.
Comments: The Douglas Fir tree was named after famed Scottish botanist, David Douglas. Despite its name, it is not a true Fir (Abies genus), but was given its own genus: Pseudotsuga. The wood machines well, but its stiffness can be rough on cutters. It glues, stains and finishes well. We see this wood as having a huge, relatively untapped potential as a guitar luthier wood.