Is this Greenhart?

[oakfield]

I bought this wood which was reclaimed from local sea defenses and at the time was told it was oak.

After planing up the surface I don't think it's Oak but possably Greenhart??

Would you agree, or do you have any other sugestions?

Thanks,
Mark.

 

[woodbloke]

Yup...that's the stuff, I have some that looks like it. Careful with the splinters...toxic :shock: and it is hard to work (around 70lbs cu' ish) - Rob

 

[Philly]

I'd second that - the timber is always full of checks and splits. Are the boards pretty darn heavy?
Cheers
Philly

 

[Max Power]

Looks like it, you'll have fun when you come to rip it up as it's as hard as bell metal :lol:

 

[JoinerySolutions]

Colour wise can't tell.
Grain and shakes + the sea defence bit Screams Greenheart.
We did some for the Whitstable and Tankerton beaches a few years back.

Greenheart resists marine borers and weighs in at about 1020kg/m3,
English Oak, also used in sea defences weighs in at a mere 720kg/m3.
So a weight test would confirm one way or the other.

Rob.

 

[Froggy]

I got a lorry load of that stuff years ago free from work. They were about 6" x 3" blocks of varying lengths but noone would cut them for me. I wasn't a woodworker at the time and had no idea what I had. I tried sawing it by hand...tooo hard!! Then I borrowed a chain saw from a friend and quickly ruined the blade!! Then I took it to the DIY store and he wouldn't cut it, but gave me the number of a wood yard, who also refussed to cut it. In the end a metal worker friend cut it for me with blades for cutting metal, and he went through 2 of them. Tough stuff!!

 

[AndyT]

So what are you going to make out of it, now you know the ghastly details?

 

[PeterBassett]

If it's such tough stuff, how did you plane it? Or is (machine) planing and sawing a different matter?

 

[JoinerySolutions]

If it's such tough stuff, how did you plane it? Or is (machine) planing and sawing a different matter?

Greenheart is an indiscriminate species, she cares not what you use to try and tame her, be it a Holtey or a Felder planer, you will soon have to resharpen or replace the cutting iron/knives. Of course machines don't sweat so that is the easier/possibly more costly, approach. :wink:

Rob.

 

[OPJ]

If it is greenheart then, please, take every precaution when you are working it - the dust is lethal and could kill you (it causes cardiovascular problems). :shock:

...Otherwise, I look forward to seeing the WIP, one day.

 

[oakfield]

I'd second that - the timber is always full of checks and splits. Are the boards pretty darn heavy?
Cheers
Philly

So a weight test would confirm one way or the other.
Rob.

Weight test confirms it is blimin' heavy!

Looks like it, you'll have fun when you come to rip it up as it's as hard as bell metal :lol:

If it's such tough stuff, how did you plane it? Or is (machine) planing and sawing a different matter?

It wasn't fun planing it with my new (second hand) CT330 - I thought the machine was rubbish but it was just the wood ruining the blades.

So what are you going to make out of it, now you know the ghastly details?

I'm not actually doing alot more than I've done already - the planed side will be the bottom (I wouldn't of bothered if I knew how tough it was!) the edges will be jointed, given a light sand and it will be a very heavy rustic worktop.

If it is greenheart then, please, take every precaution when you are working it - the dust is lethal and could kill you (it causes cardiovascular problems). :shock:

...Otherwise, I look forward to seeing the WIP, one day.

Thanks for that - I've not only killed my thicknesser blades but also myself!

 

[laird]

Green heart is evil stuff, both on man and machine. You can't even eat mussels that grow on it without becoing ill. When we cut it (off old pier piles for farmers gateposts) we use an air powered chainsaw (so it can be run very slowly) and always have two blades. One preson cuts and the other spends his time re-sharpening. 3 cuts through a 2 foot pier pile is the limit for a blade before sharpening. (Although 2 cuts is more normal).

 

[devonwoody]

How on earth did they make fishing rods with the stuff. I remember having two rods in the 50's before fibreglass came in.

I suppose an M42 blade in a bandsaws would be the way I would rip this timber up?

 

[OPJ]

Yes, it does make you wonder how they felled and planked this stuff, originally... Perhaps greenheart is much 'kinder' to saws in its green state?

 

[disco_monkey79]

Apologies if this is a stupid question, but from what tree does greenheart come? Is it native? I'd never heard of it before reading this thread.

If the answer is "the native greenheart tree", I shall feel silly.

 

[Dan-K]

Greenheart comes from the species Chlorocardium rodiei, which is a tree chiefly native to Guyana. It is listed on the IUCN Red list as a vulnerable species. Wikipedia entry.

 

[devonwoody]

Apologies if this is a stupid question, but from what tree does greenheart come? Is it native? I'd never heard of it before reading this thread.

If the answer is "the native greenheart tree", I shall feel silly.

Have a look at this wiki. I have learnt something as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lignum_vitae