Very good feedback. Thanks everyone.
I have used that shelf board and it works fine, but affordable too.
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That would look awesome in some multi-colored micarta.
Pine is good just watch what you get cause some boards can have a high sap content
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I test in pine too 
that turned out real nice!
You gotta understand, Pine (specifically Southern pine) is cheap, abundant in N America, but it is pretty unstable, non-uniform and soft for finish work. (and a biggie- Warpage due to humidity change) I think the reason pine isnāt sold on Inventables, because keeping the stock is a bit futile- Home centers have it readily available, crazy merchandise loss due to warpage, and itās the wood at the bottom of the wood food-chain.
Itās great to cut, but very unstable unless laminated or cross-jointed.
Try to look for a 10ā piece of pine thatās straight. If it is, it might be crooked tomorrow.
Price per square foot- MDF and Plywood are way better to practice on, and usually VERY flat and stable. (Unless you are going for that rustic Pine look of course)
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From that statement - the only materials listed in easel are ones that inventables sales? If so, kinda makes sense I guess as to why pine is not actually listed.
as far as Easel settings, I use them as ballparksā¦ to get me close to the right speeds/feeds. They are by no means an absolute. Pine is forgiving enough, but there are soft spots, hard spots, spots that tear out easy, parts that are ganky with sapā¦ With MDF or Birch Ply, Inventables can dial in more accurate speeds/feeds in Easel since they are more consistent materials.
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We carve a lot of pine and I have never had any pitch at all. It cuts very fast and smooth. The wood is dried so the pitch isnāt gummy typically. You do have to be aware of knots and plan ahead. My cut settings with a 3/16 or 1/4 inch bit with 1/4 " shank is typically 40 "/min and .05 depth. I usually figure out exactly how many passes it will take and make it equal but less than .05. I have the dewalt 611. I have tried faster and deeper with no issues but listening to the sound of the cut I used some judgment and dialed it back a little. If Iām using a 1/16 bit on a 1/4 shank I will keep the speed about the same but I reduce the cut per pass to .03-.04.
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I just thought about something. I ādonātā normally test with pine
I have used pine occasionally, but most of my carving tests is done on poplar
If memory serves, the prices for the 2 are about the same. Why the preference for poplar? Just better material?
Ya, generally less knots 
I wish, I knew a true lumber yard in my area (south central PA). When I was young, I remember visiting one in Illinois and the smell was fantastic. Iām pretty much stuck with Lowes and Home Depot. (Iām probably paying more for poplar than I should be 
)
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Itās about $3.60 per board foot for poplar and about $2.20 for pine.
EDIT: I am curious, for those who have lumber yards or āconnectionsā, am I paying too much at the bigbox stores?
Wow oak is 7.89, poplaris6.99 and pine is 5.99 per linear foot
Where at? Iām about halfway between Lancaster and Philly.
1x12
Actually not a true board foot. Itās actually 3/4" x 11 1/4".
i make and sell a lot of furniture made from pine and I pay 1.60 a board foot for 1x12. but I also buy about 500 boards a year. popular is around 3.40 a board foot.
Is that common or no 2 grade or is that a premium grade?
At these insane prices I can only afford pine. I will be searching out of town now for other sources of lumber