Mystery wood

Re: Mystery wood

Dave Thompson

>Nice looking wood...

It doesn't look like cherry or oak to me, nor any other common primary domestic wood that I use. The grain pattern reminds me of walnut, but the color is wrong and the nice tiny medulary rays you have in the sap wood are wrong.

I give up...

Re: Mystery wood

Bjenk Ellefsen

>If its so special I feel bad thinking of making small boxes with it...

Re: Mystery wood

Dale Lenz

>Me thinks it is either mulberry or Osage orange. Put some heartwood plane shaving in hot water, if the color leaches out, I'd bet Osage orange AKA: bodark, hedge, horse-apple on and on. That tree as more names than Carter has pills, : ' >.

Hope this helps,

Dale

Re: Mystery wood

Dan Donaldson

>Why? So far, all special means is that you don't know what it is;-) If you like the grain, and it matches what you want to make out of it, why not?

One question: Is there any identifiable smell when you cut it? Sometimes that can help identify the type of wood.

Chestnut?

Adam Cherubini

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second the mulberry

john jesseph

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Honey Locust perhaps???

HC Sakman

>Hard to see the grain and sap/heartwood contrast in your photo. Is the sapwood creamy beige and heartwood is golden light brown? If so, light brown goes dark when oiled?

Chico...

help us help you

Tom Sontag - St. Louis

>I wish posts like this would provide more info, like what state they are in and where they think the wood originated. Your picture has a golden sunset cast to it so it is hard to tell about coloring. The grain does not look like osage or mulberry to me although the color sort of does. And they are both hard, especially dry osage orange. Do you have any bark? A closeup of end grain or plain sawn face? You will only be getting guesses at this stage.

Re: Mystery wood - Some sort of Elm?

John Aniano

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Re: help us help you

Bjenk Ellefsen

>Tom, you're right. Tomorrow, I will post better pictures.

Re: Honey Locust perhaps???

geppetto

>Hi to All,

I'm not an expert but that seems like lumber for my new future worbench: black locust. It's very hard to plane how you say. If you square an angle it takes a very keen and durable angle.

Re: Mystery wood - Some sort of Elm?

Jack Guzman from Maine

>Elm was my thought also.I haven't had alot of experience with it but the properties fit what I have handled.---Jack

Could it be Black locust ?

Bjenk Ellefsen

>Hmmm that hinted me to Black locust!

The sapwood of black locust is a creamy white, while the heartwood varies from a greenish yellow to dark brown. The wood turns a reddish brown when exposed to the air. The wood is often confused with osage orange (Maclura pomifera). It has a high density and decay resistance. It shows slight shrinkage and stays in place well. Black locust is very strong in bending and is one of the hardest woods in America.

I will post a clearer picture but I think thats it!!

Here`s a picture of black locust from the web :

Re: help us help you

Bjenk Ellefsen

>I took better pictures. Someone showed me pictures of Lignum vitae that looked just like that.

another shot 

Bjenk Ellefsen

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Laburnum/Locust honey/black???

HC Sakman

>Narrow piece on top of the vise was cut long ago so it is oxidized. You can see where it's oiled it goes really dark.

Wider piece in the vise is freshly planed and oiled part is honey brown/amber color.

This came from my front yard almost 10 years ago. It's locally known as "Laburnum" some say it's honey or black locust, which is a different name for the same tree.

It's some gorgeous wood.

Any similarities?

Chico...

I just saw the pictures down below

HC Sakman

>I don't think they are the same wood. Sapwood is almost looks like yellow cedar, no grain visible but in creamy color.

In your pictures sapwood's grain including modulary rays are loud & clear visible.

Chico...

Australian Pine or Casuarina Equisetifolia

Bjenk Ellefsen

>Well, I believe I may have the most probable candidate. Its name was suggested by friends on another forum. One of them makes sticks for transporting or stocking lumber. Its a very hard wood with a density at 1000 kg/m3. Well, thanks everyone!

Could be sheoak, Bjenk

Andrew F in Australia

>Our name is sheoak - the picture that you supplied in the link I'm replying to looks nothing like a casuarina, but the original photo of your wood certainly does, right down to the creamy sapwood and the darker red heartwood.

Best regards,

Andrew

Thanks Andrew!

Bjenk Ellefsen

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