About the wood
Copper Beech
Fagus sylvatica (purple-leaved form Fagus sylvatica f. purpurea)
A purple-leaved form of European Beech that showed up as natural mutants in the 15th century and has been planted as a specimen tree since; OCC's stock is lawn and campus salvage. The purple is in the leaves, not the wood.
- Janka
- 1450 lbf
- Origin
- Europe (the copper form is a cultivated selection planted as an ornamental)
- IUCN Red List
- Least Concern
Working & finishing
Machines, glues, finishes and turns well and responds superbly to steam bending. Closed even grain takes stain evenly and reads clean under a water-based film; oil warms it toward amber. Raise the grain with a damp rag and knock it back at 220 before a water-based coat or it fuzzes. A sensitizer with eye, skin and respiratory irritation reported, so collect dust and wear a mask.
Care
Non-durable or perishable with poor insect resistance; indoor use only. The largest volumetric shrinkage in OCC's Tier 1 group, so a wide top moves visibly with the seasons and the base must let it shift. Keep it out of direct wet areas and refresh an oil finish yearly.