Thanks for digging up that chart J.Dean
Looks like I should stick with black locust!
I never tested any of my pegs to failure. OK, there was that time, in vain pursuit of perfection, I tried to rack the frame with my backhoe, and just plain gave up when I heard something pop somewhere - I suspect it was a brace peg, in tension. (but I can't be sure - could've been the relish on the tenon).
What I found really redeeming about black locust pegs was that you can wail on them with a huge mallet, as when driving stubborn (oversized, octagonal, and/or drawbored) pegs. They'll usually rebound from errant off-center hits. Black locust pegs hardly ever split. Dried white oak pegs will split more often under the same abuse. Did I mention - walnut pegs aren't worth a dime?
-Thomas
