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What are people's thoughts and experiences with this stuff. Is it a true mahogany? Anyone used it for back and sides? Necks?

I did a bit of digging and found this...Would still like to hear others thoughts.....
http://hobbithouseinc.com/personal/wood ... 20wild.htm

I have not built with it, but have sawed some. It does look like a lot like mahogany, only a shade or two darker. It feels harder(glassier), and is a little stringy(I would say) cutting. I would think it acceptable, esp quartered properly. Its harder on the edges of your tools compared to mahogany(but nothing cuts as soft as real mahogany). It has a nice sheen. Under a finish, it would probably be hard to tell from hoinduras, except the darker color- but then mahogany is changing over time.

Cojoba arborea

Maybe the scientific name will jog someone's knowledge.
I've never heard of it, but that doesn't mean I don't have a chunk of it in the shop somewhere.

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Royal Mahogany on eBay. http://www.ebay.com/itm/ZT10-Royal-Maho ... 336d548534


Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

This is the info from the E-pay listing
Royal Mahogany (Pithecellobium arboreum), or wild tambrane.

There are no references to this wood in my copy of "Useful Woods of the World" but it appears that that nomenclature is outdated. it appears to be a member of the Legume Family. Looks a lot like Ebenopsis ebano or " Ebony Blackbead" from the Mimosa group. If that is in fact that species, it looks good on paper. 63 pcf. puts it in the same range of density as Rosewoods and Ebonies. Reported to be oily/waxy so it will need due care during glue up. Not a lot of info on it as it is not commercially harvested.

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Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

It is not 'real' mahogany, though I have mistakenly bought some on Ebay. The pieces I have are considerably harder and denser than mahogany, and the smell when sawing it is disagreeable (to me, at least). I think it would make a decent guitar, probably closer to rosewood than true mahogany.
This is yet another example of what happens when the flooring industry puts a relatively unknown species on the market. Other examples are 'Caribbean walnut', 'Brazilian cherry', and 'Bolivian rosewood'.

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John

From what I can tell - the properties of the wood are fairly similar to Jatoba/Brazilian cherry... but the color and grain of the wood more closely resembles African mahogany....

If that is the case - then it will probably make a fine instrument wood....

Thanks

I have a quartered piece that would make back and sides if anybody wanted to try. I think it looks nice enough, but I don't really see why not just use known speices.

Thanks all for chiming in on this. The sets on ebay are what originally got me wondering about it and I had seen it advertised a couple other places. Maybe in the future I will give it a go, and if I do I will report back. Hopefully others will do the same

Well... I suppose one simple answer is that there are 10,000+ species of wood... and about 10 of those are traditionally accepted in Guitars....

Another simple answer is that it's not on CITES appendix 1 or 2.... unlike our favorite rosewoods, ebonies, and mahoganies....

The last is curiosity.... The stuff is fairly inexpensive, looks good, and seems to have good enough properties... Why not use it?

Thanks