# Wood buy



## fredito (Feb 1, 2015)

I came across and ad on craigslist regarding some wood a gentleman was trying to sell about an hour and a half from me. After talking with him on the phone I decided that it would probably be worth the trip. He was a very nice gentleman and gave me a some blanks along with a DVD on wood turning as well as a book on wood turning. I have heard about mountain mahogany in my area, but had no idea what it looked like. He was kind enough to take me out on his property and show me some standing. Attached is also a pic of some mountain mahogany for some eye candy if anyone wanted to see what it looks like. Its rough cut, but should turn awesome. He had a couple of boards that he did not know what they were but was willing to sell them as well. He thought one board he had was cocobolo that matched one of the boards I bought (the larger one). We visited and I said it doesn't really look like coco to me. The smaller board has more of a reddish/purple hue to it with almost a shimmer that you see in curly wood. All that he knew was that he got them in the 80's and they are from the Caribbean. To my they almost look like some time of rosewood. They are pretty dense, I tried to plane the end grain and it was fighting my block plane pretty good. They are pretty dang heavy as well. Board A is the larger board and is 1 ¾ x 9 ¼ x21 ¼. The smaller board is 1 ½ x 5 ¾ x 19 ¾. I tried to make a fair offer, but it was hard since I had no idea what I was buying. Regardless, he was happy with what I paid and so was I. Thanks for your help guys!
Mountain Mahogany:



Board A:


 

 

 


Board B:


 


BFF's


----------



## Schroedc (Feb 1, 2015)

Board A looks like Goncalo Alves, I've also heard it referred to as Tiger Wood.

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Agree 1


----------



## phinds (Feb 1, 2015)

I second the opinion of goncalo alves for board A & give that a very high probability of being right. The end grain is consistent, the color is consistent, but more importantly, the black streak on the left pretty much nails it.

I KNOW what board 2 is in the sense that I've seen one exactly like it and am pretty sure it's on my site but I am drawing a blank on remembering the name. Maybe if you sanded the end grain and got a better shot of it that would point me in the right direction. It's diffuse porous, near as I can see from that pic, and unfortunately, so are most of the other woods of the world.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


----------



## fredito (Feb 1, 2015)

@phinds would you recommend 220 on a ROS or some other way?
Thanks!


----------



## phinds (Feb 1, 2015)

fredito said:


> @phinds would you recommend 220 on a ROS or some other way?
> Thanks!


Yeah, I'd work up from 80 or 100 to a full sanding at 150, then a brief whack at 180, then a full go at 220 or 240, and definitely with a ROS. The 80 or 100 might not be necessary if the surface is pretty good off the planer.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


----------



## fredito (Feb 1, 2015)

@phinds here is a another picture after working from 100 up to 220. For what its worth, the dust was about the same color as rust


----------



## phinds (Feb 1, 2015)

Good job. It's padauk. What threw me was that the face grain is showing a patina that makes it not look like fresh padauk (because it ISN'T fresh padauk) but fresh is the way I always think of padauk.

You can be sure by sanding it ... it should sand down to a bright red-orange color under the patina.

Reactions: Like 1 | Thank You! 1


----------



## fredito (Feb 1, 2015)

Goncola Alves, padauk, mountain mahogany and some education, can't complain about that....pretty good day if you ask me....still working on my wood id so I appreciate it. Quick question, does padauk usually have that shimmer that looks almost like curly wood? I haven't seen that before...but that doesn't mean much since I've only seen small pieces


----------



## phinds (Feb 1, 2015)

I have seen it on padauk but as I recall it sands off. It's part of the age patina and even at that it doesn't happen all the time. Makes the padauk look a lot like ribbon stripe African mahogany that has a finish on it.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


----------

