# Is beaver board exactly the same thing as particle board?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 31, 2003, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806 "2003-01-31T04:21:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806/1 "2003-01-31T04:21:07Z")

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Just curious

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**Author:** ![banks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/banks)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806/2 "2003-01-31T05:29:26Z")

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Yep.

Beaver board is made of compressed composite wood pulp. Take wet multi-wood pulp, press it into dense sheets. That’s beaver board.  
Particle board is made of wood particles, or in some cases larger wood fragments, bonded together with an Urea-Formaldehyde resin.  
IIRC, particle board is heavier and significantly stronger. Also more expensive.

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**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806/3 "2003-01-31T05:42:43Z")

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There’s also finger-jointed board, which is made of tag ends of real wood (as opposed to pulped wood) cut on a bias in such a way that the jointing between them becomes relatively solid, though weaker than intact wood at that point would be. It’s often used to produce plywood suitable for wallboard and such, although not for flooring or, particularly, for planking with no underpinning.

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**Author:** ![peepthis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9d8465/32.png) [@peepthis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peepthis)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806/4 "2003-01-31T11:49:56Z")

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Is beaver board the same thing as buffalo board then??

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**Author:** ![banks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/banks)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806/5 "2003-01-31T18:08:38Z")

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In reviewing this, I’m not sure why I led my post off with “Yep.” I beleive I’m losing it.

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**Author:** ![Forbin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5e9695/32.png) [@Forbin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Forbin)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-beaver-board-exactly-the-same-thing-as-particle-board/151806/6 "2003-01-31T20:40:45Z")

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Beaver board?  
What’s that?  
I googled, and it appears to be something for making small structures, like model railroads. Is that what it is?