Is this oak?

[devonwoody]

Doing a timber deal some years ago I picked up a scrap of 8x2 (300mm long) and bunged it on my wood purchase as a freebie.

Cut it to these three lengths yesterday and prepared on the planer, it appears to be oak but not the usual colour I expected, do you agree?

 

[Dangermouse]

Don't look like oak to me.

 

[marcros]

it isnt a light American Black Walnut us it?

 

[devonwoody]

it isnt a light American Black Walnut us it?

No its quite heavy, perhaps its iroko? it has an oak grain tho.

 

[Racers]

Hi Devonwoody

Iroko? is the sawdust yellow?

Pete

 

[RogerP]

I have some of that too. Very dense and very hard. Despite much searching I've really identified it for sure. I just put it down to one of the many varieties of tropical hardwood.

 

[Richard T]

If it has Oak grain, and is brown, could it be brown Oak?

http://www.wood-database.com/lumber-ide ... brown-oak/

 

[maltrout512]

A suggestion. Put some of the saw dust into a small pot add some water. If it water/sawdust turns blackish more likely to be oak because of the tanning properties in oak.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I'd go for iroko.

 

[Chrispy]

Iroko

 

[devonwoody]

Thanks all, I will try the water trick.

Otherwise I shall name it kook.

 

[imageel]

I agree with the previous replies- Iroko - you can see where you have planed the initial surface smooth it is darker towards the edges where the light/exposure has darkened it. I bet if you saw up into boards you will get bright orange/yellow shavings which would confirm this.
Initially slightly worrying if you like the dark look, however the boards will darken quite quickly
Ed

 

[Nick Gibbs]

Isn't it amazing how much one can sense from the photo of a piece of wood. I'd say it's exotic and probably iroko, but ask me how to clarify that and I'd be stumped. You can feel it to be so!!!

Nick

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Strange! amazing what you sense from photo's - I see one of Beyonce, and I know instantly that it's not Hilda Baker!

 

[Dangermouse]

Hilda Baker has smaller........................................................ grain :shock:

 

[Neil Lawton]

I've worked with Iroko quite a lot, and this certainly looks like it.
It's a very oily wood, and when planed, has a "greasy" feel to the surface.
It also has a very distinctive smell when sawing. In the green, sawyers refer to Iroko as "Dog s##t wood".
It can contain calcium deposits, which show up as small white flecks, in the grain, which will happily take the edge of your tools, or a chunk out of your planer cutters.
It is also a well known sensitiser, and can cause asthma attacks, and allergies to wood in general.
Regards,
Neil

 

[Matt@]

As. In previous post , sand it and take a whiff of the wood dust that the sanding produces.....

Yes it's iroko

 

[Dangermouse]

if your prone to allergies, like hay fever, I don't think its a good idea to sniff the sanding dust !

 

[marcros]

personally, John, if the sanding of other timbers is starting to cause you some issues, i would give this piece a miss completely.

 

[Benchwayze]

Iroko

+ 1.