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AFRICAN BLACKWOOD
African Blackwood grows in Africa and is often called Mpingo. It mostly grows as a small bush, making harvest of good pieces very
difficult. Sometimes it does grow in a tree form. It is a true rosewood. It is the classic wood of choice for bagpipes, clarinets
and other musical instruments. The wood has a natural resistance to saliva (which ebony does not) and the grain is very fine. It is
one of the world's finest turning woods and takes the finest details, making it also one of the best for ornamental turning.
AMBROSIA MAPLE
"Ambrosia" is a term applied to maple when the ambrosia beetle has infested it. The beetle bores small holes into the tree and
introduces a fungus that then grows in the channels bored out by the beetle. The beetle eats this fungus. The fungus also spreads
up and down in the tree and causes discoloring of the wood in streaks. It is these streaks that cause discoloration that produces
a beautiful pattern in the wood.
BLACK PALM
The growth range of Black Palm is reported to be mostly in Myanmar, but also can be found in South Africa, South America, Australia, and
Southeast Asia. Black Palm represents a monotypic genus (only species in the genus) from northern Australia. The common name comes from
the hard black "wood" at the center of the trunk that was (and maybe still is) used to make spears by the aborigines. With heartwood that
is dark brownish black in color with toothpick-like series of brown, black and white streaks, or checks.
BLACK/WHITE EBONY
Black/White Ebony is considered to be a rare find and is one of the more expensive timbers on the commercial market. It is found mainly
in Southeast Asia, Myanmar, Burma and Laos. With heartwood that is creamy yellow/white with a striking contrast of distinct black veins.
This wood has a fine texture with mostly straight grain and is a rare and unusual species of the ebony.
BOCOTE
Bocote is native to Central American countries and is frequently found in Colombia, Cuba, Honduras, Mexico and Nicaragua. Bocote is also
known as Canalete, Cupane, Laurel, and Mexican Rosewood. Its grain varies from straight to roey and its texture is fine to medium with an
oily appearance. The Bocote tree varies in height to a maximum of 100 feet. The wood is noted to be a very heavy hard wood; it resists
marring and denting and is very resistant to decay.
COCOBOLA
This beautiful dark grained hardwood comes from Central America. Typically found in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico,
Nicaragua and Panama. Cocobolo is also known as Caviuna, Nambar, Pau preto and Funera. The oil in the wood gives it a fine natural
polish. It is a favorite species for the manufacture of cutlery handles because of its attractive color, texture, durability and
waterproof characteristics. The Colobolo tree is a medium sized tree that grows to a height of 45 to 60 ft.
DAKOTA BURL
Dakota Burl is a unique material made from crushed sunflower seed hulls that have been impregnated with formulated resins. These
impregnated seed hulls are then bonded together under very high temperatures and tremendous pressure to form a totally homogenous
product that is easy to turn and finish. The unique pattern created by the seed hulls is beautiful, distinctly different from wood
and makes a great conversation piece.
DESERT IRONWOOD
Desert Ironwood grows predominantly in the deserts of Arizona and California, USA. It is one of the hardest and densest woods in
the world, with a specific gravity around 1.2 or more. The color may be like the picture above or any variation of light to very
dark browns, with or without lighter areas. Burls have high figure. These trees are harvested legally from a reputable source in
Arizona.
KINGWOOD
This rich dark wood has a luxurious straight grain and fine texture. It is found primarily in Brazil as well as other areas in
South America. Although very strong and tough in all wood strength categories, Kingwood is mostly used for decorative purposes
since its use is restricted by the small sizes available. Today the wood is chiefly used in a veneer form for inlays and marquetry.
PADUK
Paduak ranges from bright orange red, often with dark stripes. The wood, when freshly cut, is bright orange red, becomes reddish
brown. It is moderately hard and heavy with medium texture, but with large pores. Harvested from West Africa.
PINK IVORY
The wood is uniformly bright pink or pale red. The luster is low, and odor and taste are not distinct. It is hard and heavy; when
air-dried the weight is 62 lb/ft3 (993 kg/m3). The grain is straight to irregular, while the texture is very fine. The sapwood is
almost white, and the pink heartwood, after long exposure, tends to become orange-colored or orange-brown.
PURPLEHEART
This wood is best known for its unusual purple color. Purpleheart is found most common in the Amazon basin, and frequently grows
in Colombia, Guyana, Surinam and Venezuela. This wood has exceptional bending strength (far stronger than Maple, Oak or Teak) with
a high tolerance to shock loading. It is highly desired by hobbyists and craftsmen who use this hard heavy wood in small projects.
The trees are tall and grow to 150 ft. with trunk diameters up to 48 inches.
THUYA BURL
In Morocco near Essaouira, thuya wood (and roots) are much-used for wood-work. It has been used since the days of Solomon and David
when it was called thyine wood. The Greeks named it thuya, meaning sacrifice, because they used an oil distilled from it as incense
in their religious ceremonies. The wood is as beautiful as it is fragrant and the Greeks and Romans vied with each other over furniture
made from thuya. In those days, Thuya Burl wood was traded "straight across", weight for weight with gold. Today Moroccan artisans use
the beautiful burled root wood to create distinctive handcrafted items.
TULIPWOOD
This unusual and attractive wood is found in Central and Latin America primarily in Brazil, Colombia, Guyana, and Venezuela.
Tulipwood is hard and dense with elegant pink-yellow heartwood with a pronounced stripe of pink to deep red. The wood is so
hard that it dulls the cutting edges of cutting tools. Because of the striking grain and luster, the wood is a favorite with
craftsmen who use it for decorative pieces.
ZEBRA WOOD
Zebrawood is a distinctive hardwood that is native to Africa and is found primarily in Cameroon, the Congo, and Gabon. It is
sometimes found in pure stands along riverbanks, but growing sites are reported to be quite inaccessible. Although abundant,
it is an expensive wood because of its difficulty to harvest and preparation necessary to bring it to market. The heartwood
is a light golden-yellow with narrow veining streaks of dark brown to black rendering its zebra stripe appearance.
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