NOTE: this is a very coarse wood with strong blunting effect on cutting tools and is usually unattractive compared to many woods. I recommend against using it. The only reason I have so many samples is that I got a lot of them in mixed lots where they are thrown in readily because it's not a popular wood. The one plank I bought (my first sample below) ended up getting used entirely for shop jigs and firewood. As you can see from the bowl at the bottom of this page, this wood CAN be attractive in use, but it's a bear to turn (I think it has silica in it) --- my own experience is more severe in this regard than most reports, so perhaps I have obtained pieces that were unusually fibrous and silicaceous.
my samples
small piece cut off the end of a thick plank, and the end grain of the same piece
end grain closeup of a pure heartwood section of the piece directly above
end grain closeup of the piece directly above --- a section that has some sapwood. Note how the grain pattern in the sapwood is identical to that in the heartwood; only the color is different.
a couple of small sticks that give excellent examples of the two main forms of side grain pattern characteristic of this wood.
a plank with closeup and end grain
small sticks
plank
stick and end grain
two views of a small plank that has been fine-sanded; the 2nd pic gives an excellent view of the blotchy-flake side grain pattern that can help identify this wood
the same piece as directly above but moistened with water
web pics
flat cut planks
planks
wawabima segment on a laminated bowl. On the left is how it looked fresh off the lathe and on the right is after one coat of natural stain to block moisture absorbtion until I get around to putting on a few coats of polyurethane. This is the bottom of the bowl, so you don't even see this unless you turn the bowl upside down, which is a shame because this piece of wawabima looks unusually nice.
