Southern Yellow Pine
Southern Yellow Pine is a group of dense, resin-rich structural pines graded under ASTM D245, with density about 0.62 g/cm³, 80 MPa tensile strength, an 11.5 GPa elastic modulus and about 1.2 % elongation.
Reference datasheet — Southern Yellow Pine is not in the instant-quote catalog. Upload your part and an engineer will quote it in this grade or suggest the closest stocked equivalent.
Southern Yellow Pine tempers and conditions
Southern Yellow Pine is supplied in one standard condition, GRN.
Supply forms, finishes and certifications
Ways Southern Yellow Pine is supplied — form, process route, surface or paperwork — without a datasheet of their own. The property values above apply.
| Option | What it is | Type |
|---|---|---|
KD15 | KD15 / MC15 | Surface finish |
KD19Default | KD19 / S-DRY | Surface finish |
MC12 | Conditioned to 12 % EMC | Surface finish |
PT | Pressure-treated | Surface finish |
What is Southern Yellow Pine?
Southern Yellow Pine is a group of dense, resin-rich structural pines graded under ASTM D245, with density about 0.62 g/cm³, 80 MPa tensile strength, an 11.5 GPa elastic modulus and about 1.2 % elongation. It is the densest softwood in this group, gives high nail and screw withdrawal resistance and accepts preservative treatment readily, so it is stocked green, kiln-dried to 19, 15 or 12 % MC and pressure-treated. Untreated wood has poor decay resistance (corrosion score 30), resin gums cutters, and the service limit is about 80 °C. Douglas Fir is the alternative where lower resin content is needed. Southern Yellow Pine has a density of 0.62 g/cm³ (0.0224 lb/in³), lighter than 62% of natural material grades. Southern Yellow Pine has a tensile strength of 80 MPa (11.6 ksi), stronger than 70% of natural material grades. Elongation at break is 1.2% and the elastic modulus is 11.5 GPa (1.67 Msi).
What is Southern Yellow Pine used for?
- Structural lumber
- Pressure-treated decking
- Utility poles
- Plywood
- Railway ties
Advantages
- Low embodied carbon — 0.3 kg CO₂/kg, better than 79% of natural material grades
Limitations
- Low fracture toughness — 0.38 MPa·√m (0.346 ksi·√in), worse than 97% of natural material grades
- Needs corrosion protection — 30/100, worse than 77% of natural material grades
Southern Yellow Pine properties
Typical room-temperature values; bars are the position among natural material grades.
Physical2
Southern Yellow Pine has a density of 0.62 g/cm³ (0.0224 lb/in³), lighter than 62% of natural material grades.
Mechanical9
Southern Yellow Pine has a tensile strength of 80 MPa (11.6 ksi), stronger than 70% of natural material grades. Elongation at break is 1.2% and the elastic modulus is 11.5 GPa (1.67 Msi).
Thermal5
Southern Yellow Pine is rated for continuous service to 80°C (176 °F). It conducts heat at 0.16 W/m·K (0.0924 BTU/hr·ft·°F), better than 64% of natural material grades. Thermal expansion is 4 µm/m·K (2.22 µin/in·°F).
Electrical2
Southern Yellow Pine is an electrical insulator with a dielectric strength of 5 kV/mm (127 V/mil) and a resistivity of 1×10⁷ Ω·m.
Chemical & Environmental1
Corrosion resistance is poor (30/100), worse than 77% of natural material grades.
Sustainability4
Producing a kilogram of Southern Yellow Pine takes about 9 MJ of energy and emits 0.3 kg of CO₂ — less than 65% of natural material grades. Typical recycled content is 2%.
Manufacturability2
Southern Yellow Pine's machinability is very good (80/100, worse than 52% of natural material grades).
Common Calculations4
Values are nominal handbook figures for design screening. Certified mill or lot data ships with every FabDigit order on request.
Working with Southern Yellow Pine
Is Southern Yellow Pine easy to machine?
Cuts easily with carbide-tipped tooling, but resin/pitch gums blades and router bits — use high rake, frequent cleaning, and back-up cuts to avoid tearout at the hard latewood bands.
Can Southern Yellow Pine be welded?
Not weldable; join by nails/screws (excellent withdrawal resistance), bolts with washers, metal plate connectors, or PVA/PUR/RF structural adhesives on freshly machined, dry surfaces.
Can Southern Yellow Pine be formed, bent or molded?
Poor steam-bending species (resin and steep density gradients cause failure); shape by sawing, CNC routing, finger-jointing or laminating into glulam/LVL.
Southern Yellow Pine chemical composition (wt %)
Limits by weight percent from the governing specification, written the way the spec states them — a single maximum for impurities, a range for alloying elements, and the base element as balance. Nominal is the typical mid-range value.
| Element | Spec limit (wt %) | Nominal |
|---|---|---|
| celluloseoven-dry basis | 40 – 45 | 42 |
| hemicellulosemainly galactoglucomannan/arabinoxylan | 24 – 30 | 27 |
| ligninguaiacyl-type softwood lignin | 26 – 32 | 28 |
| extractives (resin/pitch, fatty & resin high in heartwood and pitch pockets; causes bleed-through | 2 – 7 | 3.5 |
| ash (inorganics) | 0.1 – 0.6 | 0.3 |
| moistureas-supplied MC: green >19 %, KD19 ≤19 %, KD15 ≤15 %, interior EMC ~8–12 % | balance |
What surface finishes work on Southern Yellow Pine?
Sand to 120–150 grit, seal knots and pitch streaks with shellac/knot sealer before painting; pressure-treated stock must reach ~19 % MC before coating and requires hot-dip galvanized or stainless fasteners.
Equivalent designations
Standards and trade names that resolve to Southern Yellow Pine in FabDigit's catalog. Equivalence is nominal — check the exact specification when certification matters.
- Also called
- SYP
How much does Southern Yellow Pine cost?
Southern Yellow Pine is a budget-cost natural material ($), cheaper than about 90% of the materials FabDigit quotes. Part price depends far more on geometry, tolerance and quantity than on the raw stock — upload a CAD file for a live quote.
Southern Yellow Pine — frequently asked
What is Southern Yellow Pine used for?
Southern Yellow Pine is typically used for structural lumber, pressure-treated decking, utility poles, plywood and railway ties. In short: densest structural softwood here; best fastener holding power; takes preservative treatment well.
What is the tensile strength of Southern Yellow Pine?
Southern Yellow Pine has a typical tensile strength of 80 MPa (11.6 ksi) — stronger than 70% of natural material grades.
Is Southern Yellow Pine easy to machine?
Yes — machinability is rated very good (80/100, worse than 52% of natural material grades). Cuts easily with carbide-tipped tooling, but resin/pitch gums blades and router bits — use high rake, frequent cleaning, and back-up cuts to avoid tearout at the hard latewood bands.
Can Southern Yellow Pine be welded?
Not weldable; join by nails/screws (excellent withdrawal resistance), bolts with washers, metal plate connectors, or PVA/PUR/RF structural adhesives on freshly machined, dry surfaces.
What surface finishes work on Southern Yellow Pine?
Sand to 120–150 grit, seal knots and pitch streaks with shellac/knot sealer before painting; pressure-treated stock must reach ~19 % MC before coating and requires hot-dip galvanized or stainless fasteners.
Can Southern Yellow Pine be formed, bent or molded?
Poor steam-bending species (resin and steep density gradients cause failure); shape by sawing, CNC routing, finger-jointing or laminating into glulam/LVL.
What is the maximum service temperature of Southern Yellow Pine?
Southern Yellow Pine is rated for continuous use to about 80°C (176 °F). Strength falls off well before that limit — check the elevated-temperature data for load-bearing parts.
How much does Southern Yellow Pine cost?
Southern Yellow Pine is a budget-cost natural material ($), cheaper than about 90% of the materials FabDigit quotes. Part price depends far more on geometry, tolerance and quantity than on the raw stock — upload a CAD file for a live quote.
Sources
- Wood Handbook — Wood as an Engineering Material, FPL-GTR-190/282 — USDA Forest Products Laboratory (2021)
- ASTM D245 — Establishing Structural Grades for Visually Graded Lumber — ASTM International (2019)
- ASTM D2555 — Establishing Clear Wood Strength Values — ASTM International (2017)
- Standard Grading Rules for Southern Pine Lumber — Southern Pine Inspection Bureau (SPIB) (2021)
- NDS Supplement — Design Values for Wood Construction — American Wood Council (2018)
- AWPA U1 — Use Category System: User Specification for Treated Wood — American Wood Protection Association (2023)
- ICE Database v3 / CES EduPack eco-property data for sawn softwood — Circular Ecology / Granta (2019)
Property data is compiled from published supplier and standards handbooks and normalised for comparison; hardness values on non-Brinell scales are converted approximately for charting only. Manufacturability limits are FabDigit quote-engine defaults and may be relaxed by engineering review. Nothing on this page is a certification — request mill certs, CoC or material test reports with your order.