The Janka Hardness Scale rates the hardness of hardwood flooring and bamboo as well. You can read more about the Janka Scale and see a list of the Janka Hardness Ratings from FindAnyFloor here http://www.findanyfloor.com/hardwood/JankaHardnessRatings.xhtml
European Oak in many ways in similar on the Janka scale as Ameriacan Oak at 1360.
Rubber tree wood is relatively soft and falls on the lower end of the Janka Wood Hardness Scale. Its hardness varies depending on the specific species of rubber tree, but it is typically in the range of 600-900 lbf (pounds-force).
We've got the chart on our website, www.carpetexpress.com Or just click the link in the related links below.The complete Janka Wood Hardness Scale is on www.morlanwoodgifts.com website. It has 2,166 woods listed alphabetically by common trade name, over 1,500 different botanical/scientific names plus the world's top 125 known softest woods listed in order of softness and the world's top 125 known hardest woods listed in order of hardness. Just click on the link below, Complete Janka Wood Hardness Scale.
Given that there are dozens of different kinds of wood, all of various hardnesses, one should define "regular wood" when asking such a question. Regardless, the short answer to your question is "no." California Redwood is a very soft wood, which is rated at about 400 on the Janka Hardness Scale, and Brazillian Ebony is one of the hardest woods, rated at about 3,700 on the Janka Hardness Scale. By comparison, most plywood is made of birch and/or mahogany, which are rated at about 1,300 and 2,200, repsectively. The hardest plywood is sometimes made of teak, which is rated at about 3,500, which falls short of Brazillian Ebony by about 200 points on the Janka Hardness Scale.
Maple Edit: Maple is incorrect. I believe the correct answer is Hickory. On the Janka hardness scale, Hickory is 1820 while Maple is only 1450. (For perspective, red oak is 1290).
According to http://www.uniquehardwood.com/JANKA_SCALE.pdf & http://www.becklerscarpet.com/hardwood/janka_hardness.php the range is between rated at 995 & 950 respectively so it is in the range of cherry wood.
Poplar has a rating of 540.
The hardness of the wood will depend on the species of hardwood. The Janka scale measures the hardness of species and red oak is the standard with hardness of 1,290 psi (pounds per square inch). You can see more on this in the attached link where it shows the hardness for many species.
Jatoba also known as Brazilian Cherry, it is a very hard wood based on the Janka Hardness scale.
Wood flooring is not required to meet specific hardness standards because each wood species has unique features and hardness. Hardness is measured on the Janka Hardness Scale. The Janka hardness test measures the amount of force required to push a steel ball with a diameter of 11.28 millimeters (0.444 inches) into the wood to a depth of half the ball's diameter. The result is expressed in pounds-force (lbf). If you're installing a floor in a high traffic area or you have large pets, you'll want to look at a floor with a higher Janka hardness rating because a higher hardness rating means that the floor will be more resistant to scratches, dents, and other types of damage. However, hardness isn't the only factor that goes into the durability of a floor. Other factors are the type of finish used, the amount of gloss, the number of coats, and even the grain of the wood. It's important to understand that while hardwood floors are tough, when it comes to indentations NO FLOOR is impervious to damage. The standard in the wood flooring industry is measured by comparing a given species hardness to white oak, which has a Janka rating or 1360. By comparing to domestic white or red oak you can tell how hard or soft a floor is. For species like Santos Mahogany (Janka rating 2200) or Brazilian Walnut aka Ipe (Janka rating 3680) which feature far denser grain patterns, and are thus harder and more resistant to some damage than species like North American Cherry (Janka rating 950) or Black Walnut (Janka rating 1010).
The Rockwell R and Rockwell M scales are typically used to define the hardness of PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) materials. These scales measure the indentation hardness of the material by applying a specific amount of force, allowing for accurate hardness readings.