Dodging the knots

Timbuck

Timbuck

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I just received delivery of this board of African Mahogany/Khaya. ..it has quite a few knots but with a bit of juggling around them I recon I can get 10 sopranos out of it , Maybe more If I can get more than 4 slices out of it ..it’s 22.5mm thick so we’ll see.
B93C8353-AD76-44B4-B81A-F8171E4D0C78 by Ken Timms, on Flickr
 
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Nice score Ken. Nothing dodgy about that... For those that are curious about Khaya here is something:

Comments: Comprised of a handful of species from the Khaya genus, all of which are native to Africa. Sometimes lacks the deeper reddish brown color and durability that is common for true mahogany in the Swietenia genus. Botanically, Khaya is a part of the Meliace
 
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Second board arrive today...solid one piece reclaimed dark Cuban table top leaf , 18 lnch x 43 inch x 3/4 inch...Hardly any knots (I spotted two small ones) and no other visible defects...Just a few screw holes where the hinges and gate leg fitted, I’m pleased with this one it will turn out quite a few ukes.:cheers:
F2B4748F-AFDC-4AEE-874F-303E57487C43 by Ken Timms, on Flickr
 
Hi Ken, please don't take this the wrong way and I'm not disputing at all that it is Cuban Mahogany. I have often wondered how you know or how anybody would be able to tell from old brown furniture what it is or where it originated.
Do you rely on what the seller says, or is it that you can identify it (or any wood)by looking at it, based on your experience? I don't have much experience with such woods other than my latest instrument building hobby going back about 5 years, and at my age I'm not likely to get much more!
Thanks Mike
 
mikeyb2 said:
Hi Ken, please don't take this the wrong way and I'm not disputing at all that it is Cuban Mahogany. I have often wondered how you know or how anybody would be able to tell from old brown furniture what it is or where it originated.
Do you rely on what the seller says, or is it that you can identify it (or any wood)by looking at it, based on your experience? I don't have much experience with such woods other than my latest instrument building hobby going back about 5 years, and at my age I'm not likely to get much more!
Thanks Mike
Click to expand...
Yes I can tell when I get a close look at it ..if you take small piece and set it on fire it gives off a distinctive scent that is easily remembered...lots of this old dark mahogany was used a lot in the old days in furniture factories...but it didn’t necessarily come from Cuba.
 
Timbuck said:
Yes I can tell when I get a close look at it ..if you take small piece and set it on fire it gives off a distinctive scent that is easily remembered...lots of this old dark mahogany was used a lot in the old days in furniture factories...but it didn’t necessarily come from Cuba.
Click to expand...

That's interesting, I'll have to start burning my scraps and then the hard part is remembering the smell! I suppose it's just an acquired knowledge, which I admire. I've seen many comments on forums, YT etc. where people have talked about Brazilian this or Honduran that or Cuban whatever, and it's always puzzled me how they know, unless they bought it directly from the said country. I have tried looking into this on the wood database and internet, but without too much confidence.
thanks Mike
 
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mikeyb2 said:
I've seen many comments on forums, YT etc. where people have talked about Brazilian this or Honduran that or Cuban whatever, and it's always puzzled me how they know, unless they bought it directly from the said country.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that many place names have been incorporated into common names or even scientific names for specific species of wood. These species have characteristics that make them identifiable regardless of the actual specific place of origin. For example, Brazilian Rosewood is a specific species, regardless of where you buy it from, it's not "Rosewood that happens to be from Brazil." You can correctly identify it based on its characteristics without knowing specifically where the tree grew up.
 
Yes, "Cuban Mahogany" (Swietenia mahogani) is actually native to Southern Florida as well as Cuba which could make it "Florida Mahogany"... Cuban mahogany was extensively used to make furniture back in the day and that is probably what Ken has scored. Lovely stuff. Here is what the Wood Database has to say about it:

Comments: Historically, perhaps the most celebrated and revered cabinet and furniture wood in the world. Cuban Mahogany has been used extensively in cabinetry and furniture-making for centuries in Europe and the United States, being harvested to the point of complete depletion. Nearly 100 years ago, H.O. Neville wrote of the wood
 
dwizum said:
Keep in mind that many place names have been incorporated into common names or even scientific names for specific species of wood. These species have characteristics that make them identifiable regardless of the actual specific place of origin. For example, Brazilian Rosewood is a specific species, regardless of where you buy it from, it's not "Rosewood that happens to be from Brazil." You can correctly identify it based on its characteristics without knowing specifically where the tree grew up.
Click to expand...

I didn’t ask the question but the same one was certainly in my thoughts so thank you for your answer. In broader context if one has any piece of wood in ones hand what is the process of identification and what data sources are used?
 
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I love a nice Barnsley Chop. It doesn't have to come from Barnsley. No need to conduct tests on its DNA. Best bought from a proper Butcher's shop, but the supermarket ones are AOK (not KOA).

John Colter
 
Graham Greenbag said:
I didn’t ask the question but the same one was certainly in my thoughts so thank you for your answer. In broader context if one has any piece of wood in ones hand what is the process of identification and what data sources are used?
Click to expand...

I think the answer to that is really "it depends."

I've been around wood my whole life and am comfortable identifying some species just from memory - as a child, my father was an antiques dealer and I spent many weekends loading and unloading early American furniture for shows - so, relevant to this thread, I can spot a piece of "Cuban mahogany" without hesitation since it was in such heavy use for so long. Same for any of my local hardwoods - walnut, cherry, silver maple, black locust, box elder, and so on...

In other cases there may be less certainty. Appearance and density are probably the easiest points of reference - the online wood database is a great reference:

https://www.wood-database.com/

Ultimately, most of the species used for instruments are pretty hard to confuse once you've gotten used to them - even among similar sounding varieties (i.e. the different rosewoods) or lookalikes (i.e. mahogany vs the "African mahoganies" like khaya sp.).
 
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