Padauk?

[poolhound]

Has anybody worked much with Padauk? I belive it is similar to mahogany.

ANybody have any experience with this wood? Is it easy to work, does it have more interesting figure than mahogany, does grain need filling, how does it finish etc?

thanks

[tseavoy]

I bought a piece of Padouk from Edensaw in Port Townsend sometime back. It is very red, looks like Luan heartwood that you used to be able to get. It works similar to mohogany. It sort of clashes with the teak in my boat, a better choice for me would probably have been Iroko or Sapele. Teak is priced out of sight.

Tom on Marrowstone

[scmhogg]

Padauk will be a reddish orange when it is fresh cut. This will eventually darken to a reddish brown. It is quite hard and finishes beautifully.

I found that I was particularly sensitive to the dust. It made my nose burn.

Steve

[BigguyZ]

I love the smell of Padauk! (probably not a good thing to know)

I've turned a lot with it, and I'll concur with my fellow BT3ers and say that it machines very nicely. The color will change, though now rapidly will vary depending on how much sunlight it gets. (Like mahagony).

Also, Padauk has a very open grain structure, so be mindful of that if you're going to a glass smooth finish (like for a table top).

[smorris]

I've made several projects from Padauk including a conference table for LOMLs office. I really like how it looks, but keep the finished projects out of direct sunlight lest it start fading to brown.

It is hard and generates a fine red dust when worked. Be sure to wear a respirator as the dust is very irritating, i ended up getting a Triton powered respirator as the dust was causing me to have swollen eyes, sinus infections, etc. A jointed edge can have a corner you can cut yourself on.

It has a nice interlocked grain pattern that will tear out on the planer if you feed it wrong or take off too much. The grain does need to be filled. I've done it with colored grain filler (didn't like it), and shellac. The pores are deep so it usually takes me about 8-12 coats of 2 lb shellac to get it filled but it was worth it. With a clear varnish over the surface the the wood looks almost iridescent.

That dust gets everywhere, you'll be finding it a year later. Also make sure you wash the clothes you sanded the Padauk in by themselves unless you want everything to be pink, LOML really liked that. I HAD a black tshirt I did a lot of sanding while wearing it...it is now purple.

[bthere]

Agree with all that has been said. Another caution is that the fine dust does creep and will be impossible to get out of the grain of light color woods. So, take care, especially if mixing with an accent wood like maple.

[Russianwolf]

I work with lots of types of Padauk (yes, I said types)

1) Everything above is true.
2) here are the types I know about (there are likely many more varieties).
African Padauk - the most common in woodworking. very little figure, but can have ribbon figure when quartersawn.
Andaman Padauk - very similar in appearance to African Padauk, less common.
Narra - Similar in appearance to the above.
Amboyna burl - the burl of the Narra tree. Awesome figure. But you won't find huge pieces.
Zitan - much darker in color than the others. Can even be purplish. Used in Ming dynasty furniture for the Imperial family and one of the rarest and most expensive woods in the world. How does $2500/bf sound to you guys? Pen blanks in this wood can run $100.

you can see sample of all but the Andaman here.... http://www.russianwolfstudios.com/Pa...erocarpus).php

[Tom Miller]

I use it for contrast, or as an accent in small projects (a little goes a long way). But, then it's even more important to control the dust, as it can "smear" in your finish across lighter colored wood.

This is a small box made of padauk and maple that I use to hold portafilter parts and tamper for espresso. It was going to be a knock-box (for grounds), but that's what a garbage can is for.





Regards,
Tom
[edit: Uh, in other words, exactly what "bthere" pointed out not more than two posts above Well, I showed an example, does that count?]

[poolhound]

Thanks folks, I have the possibility to pick some up along with some other varieties e.g. Mahgonay, Maple and Pecan for what seems like a pretty good price.

I have never bought Padauk before so not sure what a good price is. I see woodworkers source (who are usually expensive) are $10-$11 bd/ft and I have seen other online pricelists at around th $7-$8 mark. I wont know how much of each stock he has until I go look and measure but if my guess is right about how much he has it could be $3 something. Does that sound like a good deal?

[ragswl4]

Thanks folks, I have the possibility to pick some up along with some other varieties e.g. Mahgonay, Maple and Pecan for what seems like a pretty good price.

I have never bought Padauk before so not sure what a good price is. I see woodworkers source (who are usually expensive) are $10-$11 bd/ft and I have seen other online pricelists at around th $7-$8 mark. I wont know how much of each stock he has until I go look and measure but if my guess is right about how much he has it could be $3 something. Does that sound like a good deal?

$3 BF for Padauk is a great price. I bought some 2 years ago for $6 which is about average for that species (I think).

[poolhound]

Well I went and got it along with a bunch of other stuff - total $220. I just unloaded the truck so not sure exactly how much of what. The largest part is the Padauk which when I stacked it all together looks to be around 50-55 Bd/ft, the majority is 8/4 6" x 6'.

Along with this haul of wood is a blade he "didnt like" - A Woodworker II!!!

[Uncle Cracker]

I love Padauk. Careful of the dust, though...