# ID Quiz



## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Was cleaning up the shop today and found this piece of wood. Never seen this color before in stuff I have worked, but know that it occurs. I do know what it is, but thought it would be fun to see if anyone else could figure it out and what caused it. The pieces aren't sanded quite to Paul's standards, but I think they are good enough. They measured at 17% moisture with my pin meter.

Reactions: Like 1 | Way Cool 1


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## Barb (Apr 7, 2021)

This is a wild stab because most everything I've learned about identifying wood has been because of this site but it looks like bog soaked osage orange.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Good guess, but nope. The color made me think of that also, but I've never cut or turned any OO for woodworking projects, only for fence posts.


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## Bigdrowdy1 (Apr 7, 2021)

I would have thought the same as @Barb . Mineralized green osage

Reactions: Like 1


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## Eric Rorabaugh (Apr 7, 2021)

I agree on the color but those growth rings are huge. Looks like ailanthus I've seen before with wide growth rings but the bark I can see doesn't look like it and never saw that color

Reactions: Like 1


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## phinds (Apr 7, 2021)

trc65 said:


> Was cleaning up the shop today and found this piece of wood. Never seen this color before in stuff I have worked, but know that it occurs. I do know what it is, but thought it would be fun to see if anyone else could figure it out and what caused it. The pieces aren't sanded quite to Paul's standards, but I think they are good enough. They measured at 17% moisture with my pin meter.


Color says verawood but end grain says nope
End grain says black locust (maybe) but color says nope
Color says maybe poplar, end grain says nope.
Color could be staghorn sumac, end grain says nope.

I checked out numerous others and I have it. It's "nopewood"

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 7


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Not alianthus, and not nope wood.


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## 2feathers Creative Making (Apr 7, 2021)

My best guess is black or green ash. As to why? I would guess mineralization. Most other reasons affect sapwood adversely. But... just a wag

Reactions: Creative 1


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Not ash.


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## DLJeffs (Apr 7, 2021)

I think that's the piece of wood I lost, must have left it in your shop or something. Thanks for finding it. I'll turn you a reel seat spacer from it.

Reactions: Funny 2


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## ripjack13 (Apr 7, 2021)

Hackberry or elm?

Reactions: Like 1


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## Wildthings (Apr 7, 2021)

Wayward olive

Reactions: Like 1


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Not hackberry, elm or olive.

This was from a tree I harvested about a year ago.


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## Jonkou (Apr 7, 2021)

Looks like sumac

Reactions: Like 1


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Not sumac either.


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## Nature Man (Apr 7, 2021)

Oak of some variety? Chuck

Reactions: Like 1


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Not oak.


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## Barb (Apr 7, 2021)

This is a good one. I expected someone to guess correctly by now. :)

Reactions: Like 1


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## Jonkou (Apr 7, 2021)

Standing here looking at my shelves and it looks similar to locust but don’t know why it’s green.

Reactions: Like 1 | EyeCandy! 1


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## DKMD (Apr 7, 2021)

Looks like it could be Chinese pistache

Reactions: Like 2


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## Barb (Apr 7, 2021)

Jonkou said:


> Standing here looking at my shelves and it looks similar to locust but don’t know why it’s green.
> 
> View attachment 206845


I'm drooling at all the other bowl blanks behind your example.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Not pistache.

Let me show you one more picture which should confirm it.

With UV light.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Eric Rorabaugh (Apr 7, 2021)

Mulberry


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Not mulberry.


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## Mr. Peet (Apr 7, 2021)

I thought it was 'honey locust'....

Reactions: Like 1


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## phinds (Apr 7, 2021)

Under UV it also looks like black locust

Reactions: Like 1


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## trc65 (Apr 7, 2021)

Black locust it is.

Paul had it right with his first post, as did John. It was the color that threw everybody off.

Now, as to how it turned green.

My "shop" is in a corner of my machine shed with dirt floors. When I'm cutting blanks, turning or whatever, waste falls to the floor, and stays there getting walked on until the pile gets too high and I start getting a sore back from bending over while working. In addition, the shed serves as a haven for the farm cats to get away from the coyotes at night. While I wish they wouldn't, the cats also use the savings as a litter box. It's an attractive nusience, but as long as they cover their mess, I don't step in it, and it doesn't bother me. 

When I started shoveling the mess from the last year or so, I started seeing dark green shavings. Then up came the piece of locust. It was probably eight inches deep in compacted shavings that were starting to look more like peat in than shavings. 

My best guess the color is a combination of ammonia fumigation along with some anaerobic conditions. It was a year ago in January - February when I cut down a black locust and was processing blanks. 

I'm certainly open to any other ideas as to how this occurred, and I may try some experiments to see if I can reproduce the color.

Reactions: Like 1 | Way Cool 1


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## DLJeffs (Apr 7, 2021)

Oh yeah, I wasn't completely sure but now that I see it under the black light, that's my wood for sure.

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 2


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## phinds (Apr 7, 2021)

trc65 said:


> My best guess the color is a combination of ammonia fumigation along with some anaerobic conditions.


Seems like a good possiblity

Reactions: Like 1


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## Mr. Peet (Apr 8, 2021)

I recalled you had cut the Black Locust and Mulberry about a year ago, and did those cool long bowls. But when I saw John posted 'Black Locus't in post 19 without a confirmation, Honey was the only other I thought of that you could get you hands on in your area. Then I realized there was another page and saw the black-light pic and knew only really 2 choices. I took the bait, nice quiz.

Reactions: Like 1


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## barry richardson (Apr 8, 2021)

trc65 said:


> Black locust it is.
> 
> Paul had it right with his first post, as did John. It was the color that threw everybody off.
> 
> ...


You might be onto an interesting process there! Is it green throughout? Perhaps the same process that causes hedge post to turn green under ground....

Reactions: Like 1


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## Lou Currier (Apr 8, 2021)

So what you’re say is that it is urine wood

Reactions: Funny 2


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## trc65 (Apr 8, 2021)

barry richardson said:


> You might be onto an interesting process there! Is it green throughout? Perhaps the same process that causes hedge post to turn green under ground....


The piece was the cutoff from a bowl blank. Variable thickness in the original piece up to about an inch thick and green throughout.

I'm going to try some experiments and see what I can come up with. I still have a lot of wood from that tree, although it is much drier now.


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## trc65 (Apr 8, 2021)

Lou Currier said:


> So what you’re say is that it is urine wood


Yep, it's actually a new color just discovered, I call it cat piss green.

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 5


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## Eric Rorabaugh (Apr 8, 2021)

Talk about a bad smell before and while turning


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## trc65 (Apr 8, 2021)

Eric Rorabaugh said:


> Talk about a bad smell before and while turning


Potentially yes, but no odor in this piece, nor in the shavings I'm scooping up. Definitely some interesting chemical reactions occurring.


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## trc65 (Apr 8, 2021)

Mr. Peet said:


> I recalled you had cut the Black Locust and Mulberry about a year ago, and did those cool long bowls. But when I saw John posted 'Black Locus't in post 19 without a confirmation, Honey was the only other I thought of that you could get you hands on in your area. Then I realized there was another page and saw the black-light pic and knew only really 2 choices. I took the bait, nice quiz.


Had to use a tiny bit of misdirection to give everybody time to guess. Paul had it right away, so had to ignore his analysis and just say it wasn't "nope wood". I was getting ready to take and post the UV light picture right when John guessed correctly, so had to ignore his reply to see if the UV pic would be a help for others.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Gonzalodqa (Apr 8, 2021)

That was fun i had no idea until the final reveal. The color was definitely a ghe most difficult factor to get. 
how deep into the wood the staining goes?

Reactions: Like 1


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## Joker9 (Apr 8, 2021)

Gee, I thought it was FOG wood

Reactions: Funny 1


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## trc65 (Apr 8, 2021)

Gonzalodqa said:


> That was fun i had no idea until the final reveal. The color was definitely a ghe most difficult factor to get.
> how deep into the wood the staining goes?


The color went all the way through, but this was just a cut off from a bowl blank, so maximum thickness was only about an inch.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Mr. Peet (Apr 8, 2021)

trc65 said:


> Yep, it's actually a new color just discovered, I call it cat piss green.


Better than calf scourers yellow....

Reactions: Agree 1 | Funny 2


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## Byron Barker (Apr 20, 2021)

DKMD said:


> Looks like it could be Chinese pistache


That's actually what I was thinking. I have a few pieces that are almost green like that and have heard from others it can be green at times

Reactions: Like 1


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