Is Queensland Maple actually a maple?

No. Despite the trade name, it is Flindersia brayleyana, in the citrus family (Rutaceae), not a true maple. The name reflects its look and workability, not its botany.

How hard is Queensland Maple and how does it work?

It has a Janka hardness of 840 lbf (a USDA Forest Products Laboratory value at 12% moisture content). It machines, planes, turns, and carves cleanly; interlocked grain causes minor tearout that sharp tooling handles, and it glues, screws, and finishes very well.

Can Queensland Maple be used outdoors?

No. It is non-durable to moderately durable and the sapwood is prone to powderpost beetles, so it is not suited to exterior or ground-contact use. It is best for fine furniture, cabinetry, joinery, veneer, and guitar tonewood. Raw Heartwood kiln-dries its lumber to 6-8% moisture content.

ExoticFlindersia brayleyana

Queensland Maple

Not a maple. Citrus family. Australian rainforest tree.

Queensland Maple (Flindersia brayleyana) is an exotic hardwood with a Janka hardness of 840 lbf — and, despite the name, not a maple. Its pale pinkish to light red-brown heartwood carries a clean ribbon stripe on quartersawn faces, and it is regarded as one of Australia's best cabinet timbers.

Category: Exotic
Janka: 840 lbf
Botanical: Flindersia brayleyana
Shipped at: 6–8% MC

Flindersia brayleyana Endemic to the tropical rainforests of northeastern Queensland

Endemic to the tropical rainforests of northeastern Queensland.

Not a maple. Heartwood pale pinkish-brown to warm light red-brown, sometimes a faint salmon cast.

Detail of Queensland Maple grain — figured wood texture, photographed at Raw Heartwood — A close read on the grain. Detail of this specimen

What you see.

Heartwood pale pinkish-brown to warm light red-brown, sometimes a faint salmon cast. Pale sapwood, often poorly set off. Quartersawn faces carry a clean ribbon stripe and occasional mottle or fiddleback.

Heartwood color detail of Queensland Maple (Flindersia brayleyana)

Heartwood, this specimen

How the grain runs.

Interlocked. Ribbon figure on radial faces. Medium even texture, soft sheen under finish.

Closer detail of Queensland Maple grain figure

Closer in

On the bench.

Non-durable to moderately durable. Sapwood gets powderpost beetles. Not for exterior or ground contact. Excellent. One of Australia's best cabinet timbers, by reputation. Machines, planes, turns, and carves clean. The interlock causes minor tearout — sharp tooling handles it. Glues, screws, and finishes very well. None. Reports are uncommon. Standard tropical-hardwood dust precautions.

The numbers, looked at directly.

Janka Hardness

0lbf

3,740 N. Side-hardness — force to embed a half-inch steel ball halfway into the wood.

Average Dried Weight

0lbs/ft³

545 kg/m³. At 12% MC.

Specific Gravity

0.45/ 0.55 at 12% MC

Basic over green volume; second number at 12% moisture content.

Hardness, in context

A side-hardness measurement. Higher number, harder wood.

Shrinkage — radial / tangential / volumetric

3.0%radial

5.5%tangential

9.0%volumetric

On sourcing

Where this wood comes from matters.

Not on CITES. IUCN Least Concern. Most of the native range sits inside the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area and harvest from native forest is heavily restricted. Current supply is plantation stock and historic salvage. Confirm Australian source paperwork.

What it's for.

Fine furniture
Cabinetry
Joinery
Plywood & veneer
Guitar tonewood
Boat interiors
Turning

Worth knowing.

Not a maple. Not even close — Rutaceae, the citrus family. The trade name reflects look and workability, not botany. Often subbed for genuine mahogany or American black cherry in Australian furniture. North American buyers usually see it as veneer or guitar back-and-side sets.

Sources & references.

Flindersia brayleyana — Wikipedia contributors
Queensland Maple (Flindersia brayleyana) — The Wood Database
Flindersia brayleyana — Atlas of Living Australia
Flindersia brayleyana — Plants of the World Online (Kew)
Flindersia brayleyana — Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants (CSIRO)
Flindersia brayleyana — IUCN Red List

Common questions.

Is Queensland Maple actually a maple?: No. Despite the trade name, it is Flindersia brayleyana, in the citrus family (Rutaceae), not a true maple. The name reflects its look and workability, not its botany.
How hard is Queensland Maple and how does it work?: It has a Janka hardness of 840 lbf (a USDA Forest Products Laboratory value at 12% moisture content). It machines, planes, turns, and carves cleanly; interlocked grain causes minor tearout that sharp tooling handles, and it glues, screws, and finishes very well.
Can Queensland Maple be used outdoors?: No. It is non-durable to moderately durable and the sapwood is prone to powderpost beetles, so it is not suited to exterior or ground-contact use. It is best for fine furniture, cabinetry, joinery, veneer, and guitar tonewood. Raw Heartwood kiln-dries its lumber to 6-8% moisture content.

From the library to your bench