What woods are these? - absolute bargain at £3 whatever they are

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zambezi

zambezi

Well-Known Member
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My wife is an inveterate shopper. She always has her eye out for a bargain, highstreet, boot sale or classifieds. Wonderfully, she also looks for stuff I might like! The other day she surprised me with a haul of knifemaker's-gold: four slabs of hardwood which she snapped up for £3!

I am pretty sure the wood at the bottom is Wenge, and the smallest piece is probably ebony.

I am really not sure about the other two. They feel as dense/heavy as any hardwood I have. Any ideas?

IMG_5670.JPG
 
Finch

Finch

Well-Known Member
I was going to say, you could tell whether the top one was mahogany by smelling it as it burns. But that may defeat the object somewhat.
 
FrenchieBoy

FrenchieBoy

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If it's Lignum Vitae it should be that dense that if put in a bowl of water it will not float. Lignum Vitae is the wood that original Crown Green Bowls are made of - I have a set which are about 70 years old and have been re-modelled specially for me that I use for Match Play and they are as tough as old boots!
 
WH308

WH308

Well-Known Member
This website is handy. Even tells you any potential allergy / toxin advice with the more exotic woods.

The Wood Database

Explore the woods, break out of the ordinary. Identifying and using hundreds of woods worldwide.
www.wood-database.com www.wood-database.com
 
zambezi

zambezi

Well-Known Member
Supporter
WH308 said:
This website is handy. Even tells you any potential allergy / toxin advice with the more exotic woods.

The Wood Database

Explore the woods, break out of the ordinary. Identifying and using hundreds of woods worldwide.
www.wood-database.com www.wood-database.com
Click to expand...

Very helpful, Thanks!

I am going to bookmark this page as its photo library married to excellent catalogue of applications is exactly what I need:

Wood Finder | The Wood Database

www.wood-database.com www.wood-database.com
 
R

Rhodesianjess

Well-Known Member
FrenchieBoy said:
If it's Lignum Vitae it should be that dense that if put in a bowl of water it will not float. Lignum Vitae is the wood that original Crown Green Bowls are made of - I have a set which are about 70 years old and have been re-modelled specially for me that I use for Match Play and they are as tough as old boots!
Click to expand...
Police truncheons were as well as early baton rounds for riot control. Was used until recently as bearing blocks on lifeboat slipways too.
 
zambezi

zambezi

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Supporter
zambezi

zambezi

Well-Known Member
Supporter
Happily, this wood database has probably resolved a question I had about the wood I used in my cheese-board project. I was never sure what timber that was. It was upcycled shelving inherited from a previous home of mine. [I never throw anything away if it looks "useful"]

Working with the wood, there were a couple of stand out features: a waxy feel to the surfaces and sawdust, plus a faint smell of sweet spice. I could never put my finger on what smell, exactly.

Searching the hardwood database above with the keyword "waxy", threw up Cumaru as having a waxy texture plus vanilla/cinnamon-like odour when worked!

Cumaru | The Wood Database - Lumber Identification (Hardwood)

www.wood-database.com www.wood-database.com

Compare image there with the board and it is a damn fine match: IMG_5663.JPG
 
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