Anyone worked Goncalo Alves?

[Dale Morris]

I just bought a piece of Goncalo Alves, 17 & 1/4 " wide and 4/4 and flat as glass. It is beautiful and I want to do something nice. How easy is it to work with and what are the things I need to know about it. I would really hate to screw up on this beauty? Any expierence anyone can share with this wood. This is the first time I've ever even seen it.


Dale Morris

[Steve H Graham]

No, but when I first started seeing the phrase "Goncalo Alves," I thought, "Man, that guy makes a lot of pistol grips."

Later I found out it was the name of the wood.

[George Beck]

Dale

I love Goncalo Alves (sometimes called kingwood or tigerwood) for plane soles! It is flat and works reasonably well and it stays very stable. One thing to be aware of in milling Goncalo is it is a very "waxy" wood (that is why it makes great plane soles like lignum). It will really gum up and blunt your tools in particular band saw blades, planer knives and table saw blades. The problem with this waxy build up is that it over heats the steel and dulls the cutting edges quickly. This is a problem with most Brazilian hardwoods. A trick I learned to use is clean the blades well and then coat with a silicone spray or just PAM. This helps with the build up. It is also a good idea to test finishes, as some finishes do not dry well over the naturally resistant wood. Teak Oil finishes work pretty well. It is a member of the cashew family and sands to a mirror finish. Good woodworking!

George