The trunks have an average height of 30 m. The branchless log is 10-18 m long and has a diameter of 0.4-0.8 m.

The heartwood is light brown when fresh. Under the influence of light and air it turns yellow-brown to red-brown.  As the trees are harvested in increasingly shorter slices, the trunk is relatively thin. Due to the contrast between early and late wood, quarter sliced wood shows scuff marks, while crowns sliced wood shows clear flame marks. The wood is somewhat stronger than European pine.

Processing with hand tools is not easy. Machining presents few difficulties, provided that sharp tools are used. Nailing and screwing must be done carefully to avoid the risk of splitting (for  massive wood).