Bloodwood

The Sapwood, which is clearly defined from the heartwood, is grey or yellow. The heartwood can have a wide range of colors, from golden-brown through chocolate-brown to purple-brown, with dark irregular reddish streaks. The grain can range from straight to interlocked, with a medium to coarse texture. It can have attractive striped, wavy or mottled figure, but lacks lustre. Small white spots sometime occur in the wood.

Properties:

This is a heavy, dense wood which resists wear. It has a very low stiffness, low resistance to shock loads, high crushing strength and medium bending strength. Steam-bending qualities are rated as moderate. Bloodwood works well with hand and machine tools, but does not have a moderate blunting effect on cutting edges. A reduced planing angle is advised for stock with interlocked grain, and pre-boring is recommended for nailing. The wood turns, moulds, carves, glues and sands well, responds well to stain and polishes.

Seasoning:

The wood is easy to dry, and shows very little degrade. It has exceptional stability in service.

Durability:

The heartwood is highly durable, is resistant to decay, and has a moderate to high resistance to attack by termites and marine borers. The sapwood is vunerable to the powder-post beetle. The heartwood is resistant to preservative treatment, but the sapwood is adequately permeable.

Typical Uses:

Furniture including office furniture, quality joinery and turnery, boatbuilding, domestic flooring and parquet. Choice logs are sliced for decorative and architectural veneers.

Pterocarpus angolensis (Leguminosae)

Also called:

mninga, muninga, brown African paduak, mukwa, kiaat, kajat, ambila

Grows:

Anagola, Botswana, Congo, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Weight per Board Foot:

3.3 lbs

Typical dry weight:

39lb/ft3 (620kg/m3)

Specific Gravity:

.62Typical Height: 40-60 ft (12-18m)

Trunk Diameter:

1ft 4 in - 2ft-6in (0.4-0.75m)