# What kind of rosewood?



## agnoeo (Aug 12, 2017)

Hi,

I am pretty sure this is a rosewood, but I can't seem to be able to narrow it down. It's a piece of about 2-3' x 4" x 2" and finished on one side with some heavy lacquer. It was given to me after having been found during cleaning out a shed or so, it might have been laying there for a couple of decades.

I considered Brazilian Rosewood, (East) Indian Rosewood, Sissoo, Bolivian Rosewood, Cocobolo, Amazonas Rosewood (http://delta-intkey.com/citesw/images/ama.jpg).

A few end grain (sorry for the imperfect finish, I didn't spend a whole lot of time on it) and long grain (same section, different lighting position) photos:

















I'd really appreciated knowing which wood this is. Thanks.

- David

Reactions: EyeCandy! 1


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## Schroedc (Aug 12, 2017)

@phinds


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## Schroedc (Aug 12, 2017)

@agnoeo - do please take the time to read the rules and do an introductory post telling us a bit about yourself and what types of woodworking you do.

https://woodbarter.com/pages/RulesPage/


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## Ray D (Aug 12, 2017)

Looking at the face grain I would of said African Mahogany...ribbon striped. I'll let the end grain master make the call. Lol.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## phinds (Aug 12, 2017)

The face grain does not look even remotely like any rosewood I'm familiar with. It looks like something in the Mahogany family (probably ribbon stripe African) but the end grain does not. The end grain does not rule out rosewood but given that face grain, I'd bet against it. The end grain (based on the 3rd pic) looks moderately distinctive but I'm not able to place it so far.

Can you get a cleaner end grain closeup?

Can you identify as species name for your Amazonas Rosewood (http://delta-intkey.com/citesw/images/ama.jpg). From what I can see, that can't be your wood because it has banded parenchyma whereas yours has confluent parenchyma and diffuse in aggregate parenchyma (although I need a better pic to be sure)

EDIT: I see Ray already beat me to the punch on the African mahogany


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## Ray D (Aug 12, 2017)

> EDIT: I see Ray already beat me to the punch on the African mahogany



Lol...I don't like guessing because I'm frequently wrong. I often visit your website Paul but it's a lot to take in. So many end grains look very similar to my untrained eyes.


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## barry richardson (Aug 12, 2017)

Face grain looks like African mahogany to me too. I have seen sapele look like that too, is that a possibility Paul?


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## phinds (Aug 12, 2017)

barry richardson said:


> Face grain looks like African mahogany to me too. I have seen sapele look like that too, is that a possibility Paul?


Possibly but I doubt it. The end grain looks more like sapele than Swetenia spp. or Khaya spp., but it still doesn't really look like sapele.


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## agnoeo (Aug 13, 2017)

Schroedc said:


> @agnoeo - do please take the time to read the rules and do an introductory post telling us a bit about yourself and what types of woodworking you do.



Sure, sorry for missing that. Done.



phinds said:


> Can you get a cleaner end grain closeup?
> 
> Can you identify as species name for your Amazonas Rosewood (http://delta-intkey.com/citesw/images/ama.jpg). From what I can see, that can't be your wood because it has banded parenchyma whereas yours has confluent parenchyma and diffuse in aggregate parenchyma (although I need a better pic to be sure)



I will get a better end grain picture and maybe one from non-finished face grain later, but I have to prepare the wood a bit.

The linked image is from http://delta-intkey.com/citesw/en/www/fabdasp.htm which is identified as _Dalbergia spruceana._

Reactions: Like 1


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## Lou Currier (Aug 13, 2017)

It looks like dark wood to me @Ray D

Reactions: Agree 1 | Funny 2


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## agnoeo (Aug 13, 2017)

Next try for the end grain, the plane iron is not freshly sharpened, so there are a few lines from that.



 

 

 

 

And one face grain shot.



 

It might be some kind of mahogany, I'm not very familiar with that. It's pretty dense and hard. The grain is reversing, making planing a bit of a challenge. The only time I worked Rosewood was at a saw handle and this wood does not seem to be as oily.

Reactions: Like 1


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## ripjack13 (Aug 13, 2017)

agnoeo said:


> The linked image is from http://delta-intkey.com/citesw/en/www/fabdasp.htm which is identified as _Dalbergia spruceana._



David, for future reference , check out Paul's site.
hobbithouse 

It's filled with a ridiculous amount of info on wood....


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## agnoeo (Aug 13, 2017)

ripjack13 said:


> David, for future reference , check out Paul's site.
> hobbithouse
> 
> It's filled with a ridiculous amount of info on wood....



I actually did for a full hour or so, but it wasn't sufficient in this case :-)


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## phinds (Aug 13, 2017)

I still can't place it but I stand by my previous statement (even more so based on the new end grain pics) and I can add, based on the new end grains that it appears to have marginal parenchyma which adds to the conclusion that it is something in the Mahogany family (and definitely not a rosewood). Also your statement that is has interlocked grain (what you call reversing grain) is another indication of mahogany.

None of this says conclusively that it is a mahogany-family wood, but taken all together it certainly leans that way.


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## Palaswood (Aug 18, 2017)

Regardlesss, it's a gorgeous piece of lumber. Have any plans on what to make with it?


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## phinds (Aug 18, 2017)

And by the way, I should have added, if it is something in the Mahogany family, it is NOT either of the American mahoganies (Honduran / Cuban)


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## Blueglass (Aug 18, 2017)

I LOVE endgrain shots. Frame them up they could be art.


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## phinds (Aug 18, 2017)

Blueglass said:


> I LOVE endgrain shots. Frame them up they could be art.


Whadayamean COULD be ?

Reactions: Agree 1 | Way Cool 4 | Sincere 1


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## agnoeo (Aug 18, 2017)

Palaswood said:


> Regardlesss, it's a gorgeous piece of lumber. Have any plans on what to make with it?



Not really. It' not large enough for anything other than small items like a box or a chessboard or in decorative features of some larger piece. I think I may have it cut to around 12mm boards and use it for a decorative box of some kind.



phinds said:


> And by the way, I should have added, if it is something in the Mahogany family, it is NOT either of the American mahoganies (Honduran / Cuban)



It does look quite similar to one of the African Mahogany boards on your site: http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/mahogany, african/mahogany, african 6b s100 plh.htm but there's no end grain picture of this particular piece if I'm not mistaken.


- David


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## Mr. Peet (Aug 22, 2017)

@phinds @agnoeo 

I'm going with _Mora excela_ or _Mora gonggrijpii_, also called Faveira, Morabukea. It is often used in guitar necks...


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## pinky (Aug 22, 2017)

monkeypod?


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## phinds (Aug 22, 2017)

Good call Mark. The end grain is certainly consistent with the one sample of _Mora gonggrijpii _that I have (I have none of _Mora excela)_. I don't see either of them on Inside Wood and Eric lumps them together and has only one small laminated sample and his end grain doesn't look too much like mine or this mystery wood (his has no confluence). The interlocked grain of the Mora species is consistent with this mystery wood.


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## phinds (Aug 22, 2017)

pinky said:


> monkeypod?


Not a bad guess based on both face and end grains but both are actually a bit off for monkey pod so I'd say extremely unlikely.


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## agnoeo (Aug 23, 2017)

Mr. Peet said:


> I'm going with _Mora excela_ or _Mora gonggrijpii_, also called Faveira, Morabukea. It is often used in guitar necks...



Compared to the pictures and description here (http://www.wood-database.com/mora/) I find the color and especially end grain to be different. It does have a slight odor when being worked, though. Perhaps I can determine the density as another datum. The photos of Guatemalan Mora here (http://www.wood-database.com/guatemalan-mora/) seem to be a better match, but the end grain still appears to be different to my untrained eye.

- David


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## phinds (Aug 23, 2017)

agnoeo said:


> Compared to the pictures and description here (http://www.wood-database.com/mora/) I find the color and especially end grain to be different.


Yes, that's exactly what I just said. ("Eric" => The Wood Database)



> It does have a slight odor when being worked, though. Perhaps I can determine the density as another datum. The photos of Guatemalan Mora here (http://www.wood-database.com/guatemalan-mora/) seem to be a better match, but the end grain still appears to be different to my untrained eye.
> 
> - David


Yeah, I didn't even bother to comment on that one from Eric since it also totally lacks confluence

As I said above, your sample is quite consistent with my own sample of _Mora gonggrijpii



_


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## Mr. Peet (Aug 23, 2017)

phinds said:


> Good call Mark. The end grain is certainly consistent with the one sample of _Mora gonggrijpii _that I have (I have none of _Mora excela)_. I don't see either of them on Inside Wood and Eric lumps them together and has only one small laminated sample and his end grain doesn't look too much like mine or this mystery wood (his has no confluence). The interlocked grain of the Mora species is consistent with this mystery wood.



Look again, they are both on *Inside Wood*, just listed under about 5 or 6 other woods. Some of the pictures look like maybe, but a few look very good. As for Eric's sample, it does not look correct.


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## phinds (Aug 23, 2017)

Mr. Peet said:


> Look again, they are both on *Inside Wood*, just listed under about 5 or 6 other woods. Some of the pictures look like maybe, but a few look very good. As for Eric's sample, it does not look correct.


I'll be darned, I DID find _Mora gonggrijpii _but Mora excela isn't there. What link are you using? I'm looking at:


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## Mr. Peet (Aug 24, 2017)

phinds said:


> I'll be darned, I DID find _Mora gonggrijpii _but Mora excela isn't there. What link are you using? I'm looking at:
> 
> View attachment 133076



I just clicked on the desktop icon and typed the name 'Mora' in, and there they were...5th and 6th down.


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## Arn213 (Aug 24, 2017)

The surface with the light and dark ribbon stripping that has orange to medium orange heartwood could fall along the spectrum of Cuban mahogany and dense Honduran mahogany. It could also be Khaya. 

Is the wood oily and can you describe what kind of smell it has?


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## phinds (Aug 24, 2017)

Mr. Peet said:


> I just clicked on the desktop icon and typed the name 'Mora' in, and there they were...5th and 6th down.


WHAT desktop. That's what I'm asking you. What link did you use? I just go directly to the page I show above and type in the botanical name and it gives me the micro shots.


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## phinds (Aug 24, 2017)

Arn213 said:


> The surface with the light and dark ribbon stripping that has orange to medium orange heartwood could fall along the spectrum of Cuban mahogany and dense Honduran mahogany.


As I have already noted, the end grain rules out both of those. It's a good idea to read the posts in a thread before you reply.


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## Arn213 (Aug 25, 2017)

phinds said:


> As I have already noted, the end grain rules out both of those. It's a good idea to read the posts in a thread before you reply.



Sorry, I have overlooked that Paul. Carry on....


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## Mr. Peet (Aug 25, 2017)

phinds said:


> WHAT desktop. That's what I'm asking you. What link did you use? I just go directly to the page I show above and type in the botanical name and it gives me the micro shots.



Sorry Paul, follow you now. My desktop icon you installed for me, takes me to the Inside Wood home page. I use the search box on the right (versus the wood detail search box on the left) and enter Mora. The results page list 9 selections. I picked the 5th and 6th down. Click on the link and it takes you to the LUNA pictures.

So I guess from the Luna link it does not work directly....


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## phinds (Aug 25, 2017)

Mr. Peet said:


> Sorry Paul, follow you now. My desktop icon you installed for me, takes me to the Inside Wood home page. I use the search box on the right (versus the wood detail search box on the left) and enter Mora. The results page list 9 selections. I picked the 5th and 6th down. Click on the link and it takes you to the LUNA pictures.
> 
> So I guess from the Luna link it does not work directly....


Thanks Mark. Exceedingly weird behavior on that site. I get what you get now that I know how you did it, but it's even more weird than just not getting to one of the species from the page I normally use. It too long to type in but I'll poke around and see if I can formulate a coherent description of the site behavior. If I think it matters, I'll explain it, but right now it looks like just using the home page the way you do it better than using that page that I normally use.


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## phinds (Aug 25, 2017)

OOPS. Turns out it's not so weird after all if you just spell things correctly. As stated above, I was asking it to find _Mora excela _which is not the same as_ Mora excelsa_


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