Hardwood Species We Have Used
We choose certain hardwood species for each decorative music box based upon several factors.
Do we want a domestic hardwood species or an exotic hardwood species?
Not all hardwoods are the same in density as seen in the descriptions below about the Janka hardwood scale.
Some species of hardwood are harder to work with than others. So if there is to be a lot of intricate carving we may rule out a certain hardwood species due to the open grain.
Many hardwoods have beautiful and distinct wood patterns.
Cherry American, Black
Cherry is a hardwood grown in Eastern North America. It has a fine grain and even texture. The color is light to reddish-brown. It has a janka hardness rating of 950.
Jatoba
Brazilian Cherry
Jatoba or Brazilian Cherry is a tropical hardwood grown in Central and South America. It has a medium to course texture and varies in color from salmon-red to orange-brown. It has a janka hardness rating of 2,690
Mahogany
African
African Mahogany is an exotic tropical hardwood found in Central and East Africa. It is deep reddish brown in color with a straight grain and coarse texture. True Mahogany has a natural luster with light refracting optics known as chatoyancy. It has a janka hardness rating of 1,070.
Maple - Hard
Hard Maple is a temperate hardwood grown in Northeastern North America. The color is cream, almost white. It has a straight grain and even texture. Patterns found in Hard Maple are known as figured, birdseye, curly, and quilted. The janka hardness rating is 1,450.
Osage Orange
Osage Orange is a temperate hardwood grown in Northwest and Northeast America and Argentina. It has a medium texture and straight grain pattern and varies in color from orange to yellow. It has a janka hardness rating of 2,620.
Purpleheart
Purpleheart is an exotic tropical hardwood grown in Central and South America. It has a moderate texture and a straight sometimes wavy grain pattern. The color is purple. It has a janka hardness rating of 2,520.
Oak - Red
Red Oak is a hardwood grown in Northeastern USA and Southeast Canada. It has a straight grain and coarse uneven texture. The color is light to medium brown with reddish tones. It has a janka hardness rating of 1,220.
Sycamore
Sycamore is also known as American Plane and is grown in Eastern United States. It has a fine even texture. The color is white to light tan. When quartersawn it displays distinct ray flecks giving it a speckled appearance. It is also called lacewood when quartersawn. It has a Janka hardness rating of 770.
Walnut - Black
Walnut - Black is a temperate hardwood grown in North America. It has an even, slightly course texture and straight sometimes wavy grain pattern. The color is light to dark brown with lighter streaks. It has a janka hardness rating of 1,010
Sapeli Mahogany
Sapeli Mahogany is a tropical hardwood grown in Africa. The grain is mostly straight but sometimes wavy with a fine uniform texture . The color is golden to dark reddish brown. It has a janka hardness rating of 1,410.
Zebrawood
Zebrawood is an exotic tropical hardwood from Western African countries of Cameroon and Gabon. It has a medium to coarse texture with alternating light brown and dark brown stripes. It has a janka hardness rating of 2,690.
