I am building a house in Nepal and am trying to extrapolate the mechanical properties of the local pine species - Pinus wallichiana. Does anyone have information on how this compares to North American timber? Douglas fir, Sitka spruce, Southern yellow pine??? I can't find any data on the internet but I believe there should be some information in books or journals on this species. I am looking for compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, maximum allowable shear, and maximum allowable fiber stress in bending.

I am not the best soruce to answer this question but I will put in a small possibility you could try.

Rip out some scale samples say 1"x1"x3' get hold of a set of scales and/or small weights to hang off the sample suspended between a given point and measure the diflection. Compare your results with known inputs to see where the unknown species falls in comparisons.

Sounds like a great physics experiment.

Tim

Average compressionwood free specific gravity and compare to other family members...

It looks like this would be one source, I just found the abstract not the article;
http://www.cababstractsplus.org/abstracts/Abstract.aspx?AcNo=19950602002



Title: Physical and mechanical properties of some Bhutan timbers.
Personal Authors: Shukla, N. K., Guru, R. D., Negi, Y. S., Verma, P. C.
Author Affiliation: Forest Products Division, Forest Research Institute, Dehra Dun, UP248 006, India.
Editors: No editors
Document Title: Journal of the Indian Academy of Wood Science

Abstract:
The physical and mechanical properties, safe working stresses for structural uses and suitability indices for different end uses were determined for 6 Bhutan timbers, viz. Abies densa, Juniperus recurva, Picea spp., Pinus wallichiana, Populus ciliata and Tsuga dumosa. Comparisons made between these species from Bhutan and from elsewhere in the Himalayas found no significant differences in their properties

Would that be an accurate comparison? That would give me deflection but what about the rest, compression, bending, etc..

I am not sure I could interpret any guidelines for the proper testing of wood.

Here is a link from the Pakistan Forest Institute for Pinus Wallichiana (kail)

http://www.sfprd.com/iqv4.html

I think it has the material properties you are looking for.