Replies

1. 
   JimV | Oct 16, 2006 06:35am | #1

   Most original Greene & Greene furniture would have been made from Cuban mahogany, which is almost impossible to get. The closest you can get is Honduran mahogany. African Mahogany is a an unrelated species that looks similar.

   To get the color, there's really 3 ways of doing it.
   1) treat the wood with potassium dichromate. Works wonderfully, but dichromate is a HAZMAT.

   2) Treat the wood with a weak lye solution. Also works well and is slightly less harmful to the environment.

   3) Use wood dye. Allows you to get the exact color you want without any danger to yourself or anyone else.

   Jim

   "There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery, and the other is that heat comes from the furnace." - Aldo Leopold
1. 
   SgianDubh | Oct 16, 2006 03:34pm | #3

   Jim, Swietenia spp., (American mahoganies) and Khaya spp., (west African mahoganies)  are both related genera of the Meliaceae family. So too are the he Entandrophragma's. Sapele is one of eleven names within this latter genus.

   To say that African mahoganies and American mahoganies are unrelated is just plain wrong. They are most definitely related botanically. Slainte.

   Richard Jones Furniture

   Edited 10/16/2006 8:35 am by SgianDubh

1. 
   JimV | Oct 16, 2006 05:52pm | #4

   I submit to your accuracy. From a taxonomic point of view, they are of the same family, different genus. I guess that makes them second cousins.Carl Linnaeus did have some interesting ideas.Jim
   "There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery, and the other is that heat comes from the furnace." - Aldo Leopold

2. 
   rog | Oct 17, 2006 02:00am | #7

   Jim

   Thanks for the info. I will pick up a bit of the African Mahogony tomorrow and try to make a small table and see how it goes.

   I find that materiel selection is where I often make bad decisions. My small table will only involve perhaps 6 bf so the cost is not that important.

   It seems to me that there was some Honduras Mahogony there also. I will check it out

   Thanks

   Roger

2. 
   hammer1 | Oct 16, 2006 03:17pm | #2

   South American mahogany has worm holes, African doesn't.

   Beat it to fit / Paint it to match

1. 
   user-211435 | Oct 16, 2006 07:04pm | #5

   I have some African Mahogany in my shop right now with worm holes.  Huge ones!

   I have even gotten some Jatoba recently with worm holes.  Those are some tough worms.

   There is quite a difference between the two species you are asking about.  But even with Honduran (or "Genuine Mahogany" if you prefer) there can be a big difference between the qualities of two boards. 

   Hal

   http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com

    

   Edited 10/16/2006 12:12 pm ET by Hal J

1. 
   rog | Oct 17, 2006 02:02am | #8

   Hal

   What do you do with Jatoba? I have a bunch of small pieces in my shop. About 30, 2 inch by 2 inch by 36 inches long. I must have bought it years ago on sale. Must be dry by now.

   Any ideas what I could use it for

   Roger

1. 
   user-211435 | Oct 17, 2006 02:32am | #9

   I build high quality cabinets and furniture out of it. 

   It is hard, durable, and really beautiful if you get the red stuff.

   I think Jatoba makes the perfect family room coffee table.  Your kids won't dent it.  It will dent them.

   Hal

   http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com

    

1. 
   dherzig | Oct 17, 2006 05:10am | #10

   I started to make an entertainment center with jatoba (also called Brazilian cherry). I ended up sharpening all my planes every 5 min. It is incredibly hard on sharp edges. I understand it is loaded with silica, but worse even than teak. I switched to American cherry. Much more fun to work with.

2. 
   user-211435 | Oct 17, 2006 06:36am | #11

   My personal experience, since I just finished a large teak project making a Greene & Greene bench, is that teak is the worst for killing tools.  Oh sure, someone will disagree with me, but teak is pretty bad.

   The thing about jatoba is that it breaks the points right off of good saw blades.  Teak is pretty soft so it fools a good woodworker into thinking it is easy to work with, but jatoba establishes who is boss from the first touch.  Jatoba is probably tied for first with purple heart as being the easiest to break router bits in.

   Okay, jatoba is worse.   But just because it is so hard.  The only thing that is bad about teak is the silica.  Luckily I have solid carbide jointer knives which are better than any hand plane in a situation like this.  They allowed me to flatten and edge joint the boards easily, which gave me time to do everything else by hand.

   Actually I hand planed the surfaces of the entire bench project and it wasn't so bad.  In fact, I loved it.  It is by far the easiest wood I have ever cut mortise and tenon joints in.  To bad it is so friggin expensive!

   Hal

   http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com

    

    

3. 
   user-211435 | Oct 17, 2006 06:37am | #12

   I also just finished a small jatoba and ash cabinet with curved ash inlays.  I love working with it because it is so hard.

   Hal

   http://www.rivercitywoodworks.com

    

3. 
   cadiddlehopper | Oct 17, 2006 12:55am | #6

   I have a bit of African mahogany at present. I have made only one item -- a turned bowl -- which I pore-filled with pumice then sprayed with Deft. I amvery pleased with the appearance of the wood, moreso than with some Honduras I have used. It seemed to me that Honduras was better behaved as it was machined & turned, however. Just MHO.

   Cadiddlehopper