AstroDave Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Hey Guys... I responded to a Craiglist ad from a guy who is retiring and shutting down his shop. We arranged to meet at his home so I could see what he was selling. Upon arriving I was immediately taken in by the beautiful pieces of furniture he had made over the years. Entertainment centers, dining room tables, credenzas, chairs etc etc etc... I am certainly in no position as an amateur to truly judge his work but it was beautiful in my eyes. Anyway on to the point... He had a number of older Powermatic machines that I wasn't interested in but did have lots of wood that I thought I might take off his hands. The gentleman was very sweet and kind and showed me all the wood and some history behind its acquisition and some of the pieces he made in the various woods. However he had no idea how to price it per board foot and neither did I... So off to the internet we went. Walnut and Oak were no problem...Teak no issues but then we came to the Brazilian Rosewood that he's had from before the embargo. He had about 20-30bf. Given the embargo my searches for pricing came up all over the map. I could like have taken it all for a song but I wouldn't have been able to live with myself... So what's a fair price for Brazilian Rosewood these days? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 See what price he's comfortable with - If you like it, go for it! This way, you're both happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 I have no real idea what it's worth... seems that it could be valuable and I am ignorant of that true value. So although he might be comfortable with $5bf it's true value is probably much higher. I will not take advantage of his or my ignorance. I want to give him a fair price... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Genuine rosewood is hard to find and if he offers it to you at a decent price, probably hard to resist. Just as a comparison, my hardwood dealer sells bocote at $30/bf...and bocote isn't even true rosewood. I've seen cocobolo at $50/bf and up. If you have deep pockets, go for it, otherwise just accept that it's a bucket list wood to work with and pick some up later if you can. I'd put a super-expensive lumber species way down low on the priority list if I was just starting to get my shop together. IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Thanks Eric... I just wanted to be sure. I will let the seller know that he shouldn't take less than ~30-50bf so he doesn't get ripped off. I won't be buying it but hopefully someone will. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob493 Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Brazilian rosewood is worth whatever you're willing to pay. How big are the boards? Size matters a LOT when calculating board foot cost. A 2" wide blank wont be worth that much, but a 3" will double the cost (typically). That said, make damn sure its dalbergia nigra, and not some other member of the rosewood family. Not trying to insult you or the old gentleman, just a lot of people cant tell a difference (food for thought...). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Thanks Bob... the 4/4 boards average 6' and 6-8" wide. He has 2 5/4 boards that are 5' and 6" wide. No insult taken... in fact as I was raking leaves just before writing this and I thought to myself how the heck do I, of all people, even know if this is Brazilian Rosewood let alone Dalbergia nigra... I don't get the impression the seller is trying to fool me. Is there anyway of knowing for sure if it is "dalbergia nigra"? I've looked at pictures and can't discern the differences...needs a trained eye I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 I'd say, "If this is really Brazilian Rosewood, dalbergia nigra, then it's worth at least $30 a bf, and probably much more because you have nice wide boards. But, I'm not an expert, and it could be a similar looking species. In any case, I can't afford to pay that much for wood. If you need to sell it now, I'd be happy to pay you $X a board foot, but if you can afford to wait you may be able to find someone who will pay more for it." 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Thanks that's good advice Beechwood... I can call you Beechwood can't I? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted November 25, 2014 Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 I'll be in Southern Maryland, right next to DC, next week. I can bring a microscope, blacklight, ethanol, and test it to see if it's the real deal or not, if you, and he are interested. If you don't want to buy it all, I'll help out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Beechwood Chip Posted November 26, 2014 Popular Post Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 Thanks that's good advice Beechwood... I can call you Beechwood can't I? You can call me Beechwood, or you can call me Chip, or you can call me BC, or you can call me Woody, but don't ever call me Beechy cause I'm nobody's Beech. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted November 26, 2014 Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 I think Chip just got a new nick name Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob493 Posted November 26, 2014 Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 Im legit interested in this wood. If you buy it for a good price, I'll gladly give you a profit (pending your costs of course). The easiest way to tell, is .... looking at indian rosewood. It's MUCH more porous and usually far less colored. I have no doubt the sellers intentions may be pure as virgin snow. However, if he was sold "rosewood" and has no idea the differences between rosewoods, then... it may not be obvious for him either. Feel out his price, probably can get a good deal out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted November 26, 2014 Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 I can also bring some genuine for side by side comparison. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 Tom let me give him a call tomorrow and see if he is up for that. Thank you for the offer... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBag09 Posted November 27, 2014 Report Share Posted November 27, 2014 Hey gang, I have been in the acoustic guitar production for over 20 years. If you can come across Brazilian. Rosewood, by all means do what you have to do to get it. Yes you don't want to totally "rip the guy off". But I can say this, we CANNOT get this type of wood anymore, so what we do have only goes on customs, and the up charge for a set of book matched back and sides is over $10,000, and the total material in the is about 3/4 of BF. So go for it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwacker Posted November 28, 2014 Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 Using it for commercial purposes is a crime unless you can provide import paper work, good luck with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 I have called the guy and he hasn't returned my call. I can only assume someone else got it... Hopefully he got a fair price. edit: Just found out the guy sold all his walnut that I was interested in so no good deed goes unpunished. The rosewood is still available for anyone who's interested...Here's his CL listing... http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/mat/4778820600.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted November 28, 2014 Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 Something doesn't look quite right, but it may be just the pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted November 28, 2014 Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 Looks like rosewood to me, but impossible to say with certainty without close inspection. The two boards on the left belong in my shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted November 28, 2014 Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 Middle one looks good to me. I don't like the ones with grain in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodbutcher74 Posted November 28, 2014 Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 I understand wanting to be honest and not take advantage of the guy, but if he's going to sell it cheap to the next guy that comes along with the cash I'd jump on it. I might feel a little guilty but if he's going to sell it to some clod anyway why not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2014 I really can't see myself using a wood like this for a long time...and 200 bucks right now is better spent on other woods and sandpaper. I am a noob at this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted November 29, 2014 Report Share Posted November 29, 2014 I really can't see myself using a wood like this for a long time...and 200 bucks right now is better spent on other woods and sandpaper. I am a noob at this point. You could always sell it on to buy more wood and sandpaper. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDave Posted November 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2014 FYI the 2nd board in from the right is a glue up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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