nwhomesteader Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 *edited my confusing wording. I bought it from a guy selling a lot of Malaysian mahogany. He had two boards seperate from the mahogany which he called iron wood and said he used it for rails on his boat. He also mentioned he thinks it comes from eucalyptus, I don't think he's right. What I do know is that it's incredibly dense, heavy, and hard. I cut this piece off an 8 foot board so I could joint and plane it. The pictures don't do it justice but it's a deep chocolate brown. The piece is 2"x5.5"x 11" and weighs over 5 lbs. It's like picking up a chunk of aluminum. Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosephThomas Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 Never heard of 'malaysian mahogany.' I'm not an expert but reminds me of Khaya (african mahogany), and if I were a betting man, I'd bet it is probably some type of 'non-geniune' mahogany (not from cuba or honduras). Regardless, it sure is beautiful, and seems like you have nice big dimensions with good straight grain. Let us know what you build with it! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwhomesteader Posted April 14, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 Sorry I made that sound confusing. There was primarily what he called "Malaysian mahogany" and the two pieces of this "iron wood" which was seperate from the mahogany (and much much heavier). The mahogany was stenciled stating it was a Malaysian export. The iron wood I imagine was an export from the same area. Here's a picture with the iron wood on top compared to the mahogany. Thanks for any info! My camera did a much better job showing the color of the "iron wood" next to the mahogany. Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dknapp34 Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 Ipe? When you cut it, is the dust yellowish brown and it stains everything? If so, my bet would be ipe. That stuff is dense and the dust is nasty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 Ipe was my initial thought as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 "Iron wood" is another name for ipe. Does it sink in water? I think ipe is the only wood that is more dense than water. [ edit - there are other species that are also called "ironwood" ] 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minnesota Steve Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 I think it is Borneo Ironwood, also known as Ulin or Belian. http://www.vmark.com.sg/pdf/ironwood.pdf It kind of looks like it, there's that ironwood name... and it has a weight of around 70 lbs/ft3 which is what your sample of .07 ft3 at 5 lbs works out to(well 71.4, but close enough). So the island of Borneo is mostly Indonesia, where this wood is prohibited from export because it's endangered.... but Malaysia is also on Borneo, where they continue to export it from the Sabah region. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwhomesteader Posted April 14, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 "Iron wood" is another name for ipe. Does it sink in water? I think ipe is the only wood that is more dense than water. [ edit - there are other species that are also called "ironwood" ] He said it will sink. Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 5 hours ago, Beechwood Chip said: "Iron wood" is another name for ipe. Does it sink in water? I think ipe is the only wood that is more dense than water. [ edit - there are other species that are also called "ironwood" ] There are dozens of other woods that sink in water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwhomesteader Posted April 14, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 Also I found out the "Malaysian mahogany" is a misnomer. It's actually Meranti from the shorea tree (aka Philippine mahogany, luan, tangile, almon, etc). Anybody ever work with this stuff? I could only find one retailer selling it. http://www.edensaw.com/MainSite/Store1/StoreProducts/ProductList/1130 They have it listed at $5.43 bd/ft. I got it for $1.00 bd/ft. All the stuff I bought is 8/4 by 6, 8, and 10 inches. About 20 feet long. Was it worth it or did I get hosed? Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 I wouldn't call $1/bf "hosed", not by a long shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klappco Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 "Iron wood" is another name for ipe. Does it sink in water? I think ipe is the only wood that is more dense than water. [ edit - there are other species that are also called "ironwood" ] He said it will sink. Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk Then why did he put it on his boat? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwhomesteader Posted April 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 "Iron wood" is another name for ipe. Does it sink in water? I think ipe is the only wood that is more dense than water. [ edit - there are other species that are also called "ironwood" ] He said it will sink. Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk Then why did he put it on his boat? Hahaha, I thought the same thing. I know floatation is more about water displacement than the floatiness of the wood but it is fairly IRONic....see what I did there?.... Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosephThomas Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 2 hours ago, nwhomesteader said: They have it listed at $5.43 bd/ft. I got it for $1.00 bd/ft. All the stuff I bought is 8/4 by 6, 8, and 10 inches. About 20 feet long. Was it worth it or did I get hosed? It's pretty hard to get hosed at $1/bdft. I'd be willing to pay that price for almost any hardwood, especially stuff that looks as nice as yours does. Species is important to know, could change how you use it, but at $1, I wouldn't be worried, worst case, use it for indoor stuff or really really nice shop furniture. I can't get anything for $1. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwhomesteader Posted April 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 Well I'm glad to hear that because I bought...a uh, a lot.... I figure I won't need wood for projects for a while . Trying out some BLO and poly finishes. Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosephThomas Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 1 hour ago, nwhomesteader said: Well I'm glad to hear that because I bought...a uh, a lot.... I figure I won't need wood for projects for a while . Trying out some BLO and poly finishes. Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk So...you paid more in gas than you did for the lumber? Nice haul. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted May 3, 2016 Report Share Posted May 3, 2016 On 4/14/2016 at 7:53 PM, nwhomesteader said: Also I found out the "Malaysian mahogany" is a misnomer. It's actually Meranti from the shorea tree (aka Philippine mahogany, luan, tangile, almon, etc). Anybody ever work with this stuff? I could only find one retailer selling it. You can find out more about meranti on my site. There are a ton of woods going under that name. I have not found any of them (of those that I've handled) to be particularly worth having but that's just my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwhomesteader Posted May 3, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2016 Meh, live and learn. It's good project wood I think. I might make some outdoor furniture and sell it to recoup some cost. Sent from my SM-T800 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 3, 2016 Report Share Posted May 3, 2016 Here is an article from Shannon Rogers on meranti. http://www.mcilvain.com/yesterdays-philippine-mahogany-is-todays-meranti/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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