Maple or oak for face frames, which holds up better long term? I'm torn.

I had to choose between maple and oak for a kitchen face frame job last month. The client wanted cheap and fast, so I went with poplar painted white, but it chipped where the hinges sat. Now I'm wondering if I should have pushed harder for maple or oak even if it cost them more. Has anyone else had paint chip off poplar like that or did I just get a bad batch?

3 comments

3 Comments

owens.anthony1mo ago

Oh man, poplar is notorious for chipping at hinge locations. It's just too soft for face frames long term. Maple would've held up way better, oak too but maple is harder and takes paint smoother.

the_paul1mo ago

Yeah, "notorious for chipping at hinge locations" is exactly what I've been hearing lately. I actually read a thing from a cabinet shop owner recently who said they had to stop using poplar for face frames because they kept getting callback jobs where the screws just wouldn't hold after a year or two. Said they switched to maple and the difference was night and day. I've also seen people online say that pre-drilling with a countersink bit helps a little, but it only delays the problem, not fixes it. Good to know I'm not the only one who ran into this, seems like poplar is fine for trim work but not for anything that takes real hardware.

faith_shah881mo ago

Rotate the screws instead of drilling them straight in.