Which mahogany species?

[Dan Mitchell]

I'm considering making a small table like the one in the picture, using mahogany. A local supplier carries African, Philippine, and Honduran varieties. How do these vary, in terms of workability, finishing, typical cost, etc., etc? I haven't checked out the supplier's stock yet, have only spoken to them on the phone. Haven't worked mahogany before, any input appreciated.

TIA

Dan

table.jpg

[Justin Bukoski]

Honduran or African. African has a wilder grain so if you are looking for little variation in color then stick with Honduran.

[Jeff Monson]

Looks like honduras to me, I like working with it, routes and mills nicely, just a little prone to tearout, light passes with a planer or hand plane. Beutiful when finished and easy to finish also.

[Dan Mitchell]

Honduran or African. African has a wilder grain so if you are looking for little variation in color then stick with Honduran.

Thanks, Justin. I see you're in the Seattle area, I wonder if you're familiar with this supplier http://maps.google.com/maps/place?hl...68427626584320 ? I've used Crosscuts & Compton in the past, but since I live in Edmonds, they're a bit south for me. Do you have any favorite suppliers in the area?

TIA

Dan

[Dan Mitchell]

Looks like honduras to me, I like working with it, routes and mills nicely, just a little prone to tearout, light passes with a planer or hand plane. Beutiful when finished and easy to finish also.

Jeff - What finish do you recommend? I'm getting pretty good at the woodworking, still not so great on the finishing...

[Justin Bukoski]

Dan,

Just about the best wood supplier I've ever found is Edensaw in Port Townsend (I think they have a warehouse in Seattle now too). Great selection and very helpful guys. Maybe not always the best price but usually pretty good and they will give you good advice. They have some wonderful natural edge slabs. They also deliver for free if you order $300 or more from them.

One thing you might want to think about is Alowood http://www.alowood.com/ . Very interesting stuff and something I plan to build with soon.

As far as finish goes, I like to oil Mahogany and then seal it with shellac once the oil dries. Then I usually topcoat with lacquer but you can use a rub on poly. Personally, I don't think the water based finishes do mahogany justice. I put sikkens water poly on a bookcase for my girls and I'm not super pleased with it.

[Frank Drew]

Dan,

Forgetting price for the moment, in order of preference I'd rank good quality Honduras mahogany ahead of African, which is a cousin to what are considered the true mahoganies of the Swietenia family.

Of all the woods that have misappropriated the name Mahogany, Lauan, or Philippine "mahogany", is the most galling, IMO. It bears no relation whatsoever to the real thing; cigar box mahogany is its nickname, and that's its highest calling.

[Dan Mitchell]

Thanks for all the input, I'll definitely check into the Honduras variety.

Dan

[george wilson]

Cigar boxes were mostly made of Spanish cedar,which looks like cheap mahogany with long pores. It is the best wood for classical guitar necks. Was used in racing hulls like the colleges row as it has a high strength to weight ratio.

[Tony Bilello]

I use honduras mahogany quite a bit. It machines easily and takes on a nice red mahogany color with just a clear coat so stain is usually not necessary.
Phillipine Mahogany is actually a cedar. If using red mahogany stain, it will look pretty good but not as good as Honduran.
My limited experience with african mahogany was not very good. In most cases I found it hard and brittle with a tendency of chipping out when routed and difficult to machine.
All things considered, such as stain, unusuable sections, etc. Honduras mahogany will turn out the most economical.

[Peter Quinn]

I'll take honduran in a heart beat for furniture projects or almost anything else where the budget allows. It looks great if you are selective, it machines nicely, and generally ages to an even reddish brown hue I find attractive. When I pull SA mahogany for a project I can almost do so with my eyes closed!

African is such a varied product that I can't universally suggest it if you haven't had a lot of experience with it. I work in a millwork shop and have had tons of experience with it at this point, from making windows and doors to moldings and flooring from it. I can tell you that there is a wide variety of different trees with vastly different working properties sold under the "African mahogany" trade name. Maybe its all the same species, but it sure doesn't behave the same. Some is so close to Honduran, its hard to notice the difference except in price, I am just finishing up an entry way made mostly of African mahogany, and it was a pleasure to mill. Even some very fine bars with 3/32" flats stayed very true and shaped without tearing at all.

Other material can have interlocked grain full of tension, be very unstable, brittle, prone to chipping, tearing and twisting. It can be pale almost like butternut or as dark as sapele verging on IPE. It can be soft like cedar or nearly as hard as maple. So it took me a while to learn the "look" of a good African mahogany board, and the look of a "wild" african board. There are uses for it all, but for some applications you really need a very stable easy milling product. The learning curve in picking better material and the chances that even a well educated guess can turn out badly will certainly add to its actual total cost. So use it, but keep both eyes wide open and buy a bit extra!

Philippine? I have never seen that as lumber, only as underlayment or pallets!. I'm told its garbage and secondary wood at best, but I have never worked it. I'd reject it on grain alone. Almost any domestic species is more attractive to my eyes.

[Dan Mitchell]

Peter - Thanks for the very informative & interesting reply!

Dan

[Dan Karachio]

Does Sapelle fit in here? It is "the other African mahogany", but works better, right?

[Jim King]

True Mahogany grows from the Carribian to Bolivia as does Spanish Cedar.

So called African Mahogany "Khaya" and others sold as African Mahogany have nothing to do with Mahagany but everyone uses Mahogany as a marketing name.

Phillipine Mahogany and Meranti also are falsly named only for marketing purposes. They are not in the Mahogany family.

Spanish Cedar has been the preferred wood for cigar boxes for a couple of hundred years.

[Karl Card]

Does Sapelle fit in here? It is "the other African mahogany", but works better, right?

not sure where it fits into the scheme of woods but I really like the looks of sapelle.