Hornbeam Shaft 4.95 Maple 3.85 OZ 29" Bubinga butt and forearm Birds Eye Maple due to its considerable density and hardness, wood of the hornbeam is used wherever high-load wood is required. It used to be used for shoe-making, tools, carriages and windmills. It is not so suited for carpentry. Although many uses no longer apply, hornbeam still has a role to play, for example for piano making, plane bases and other tools, cutting blocks for butchers or billiard cues. The wood of the hornbeam is the hardest of all the native trees. It is dense and hard, tough and elastic. It is more resistant to breakage than oak. Despite its hardness, hornbeam wood can be worked with most tools and machines.