andiroba??

Chris Mire

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Southern Louisiana
anybody here ever use Andiroba, otherwise known as Royal Mahogany or so I have been told.

I got a sample door in it from my door company the other day and it's some pretty nice looking stuff.

A colleague also made a wine cellar out of it and it looked pretty good.

While watching Norm make the adirondack trio the other day on NYW, he used mahogany because he said it has could properties for moisture and outdoor use. I wasn't aware of this.

Andiroba is quite a bit cheaper than regular or african mohagany around here. close to 2 bucks a bdft.

I was thinking of making my bathroom vanity and tub surround out of it but was wondering if it also has good properties related to moisture.

thanks for any help
chris
 
not at the moment tod, it has grain very similiar to the mahogany i've seen. my friend actually said it matched the mahogany plywood he had better than the mahogany hardwood did.

i'll try to take a pic of the door and post it.
 
sounds like what we call "luan" here in the sticks:eek:.......any number of south american/rainforest trees that used to be used for filler in plywood or for flooring underlayment.....now-a-days given "high faluetin`" names and sold as dimentional lumber.
for 2$ ft. give some a try?
 
tod, we have luan here, it is mostly seen in plywood, that is what was most commonly used in cab boxes for years until the china birch made it's debut.

i guess in a way it does kinda look like luan. not really sure what luan looks like since when you ask a supplier around here for it you could get anything from luan to meranti to okoume. it basically all looks the same.

got some pics of the door but they are too big and i'm not on my home computer. i'll post them tonight.

i test stained the back with a dark walnut and it came out beautiful, i think the wife will be happy.
 
here are some pics of the back of the door stained with dark walnut and the front unfinished.

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the first and last pic is with flash, other two are without
 
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I'm certainly no expert, and definitely not as sharp on wood identification as I used to be when I was around a lot more different types than I have been in recent years, but that wood seems to have more Figure in it than the Luan that I have been used to seeing. It looks really nice and should make a good looking project for what you have in mind. Maybe you will find someone that knows about it's moisture behavior.
 
chris, to me it looks like what most houses are pushing as "mahogany" for 3-5 bucks a foot? is it heavy or light? either way for 2 bucks my vote is to jump on some!
 
thanks norman, i definitely think it looks better than luan, although i haven't seen it in solid form, just plywood

tod, the wife didn't like that stain so i gotta try something darker. unfortunately she isn't the type that appreciates wood for it's natural beauty, well with the exception of walnut which will be the kitchen cabs

we really both like modern stuff and she loves really dark stains. i hate to use a pretty wood like this and stain it really dark. but then again it's still cheaper than maple or alder. we'll have to see what a darker stain looks like.

thanks
 
tod, the wife didn't like that stain so i gotta try something darker.
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I've heard this same statement at my residence. Then when the project is completed the next statement is usually: " I think we're going to need more lighting in this area".
 
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