Hawaiian Wood ID - What do I have here?

[Doug Herzberg]

I found this by the road in a resort area near Kapaa on Kauai. There were two projects going on, one a trimming operation, the other a clearing for construction. The sapwood that is showing because the bark was split off looks a lot like white oak, but it is split, not sanded, so appearances can be deceptive. Obviously, it isn't oak. The piece is 6-8" diameter and about 15" long, so it's fairly young and the bark probably isn't developed yet.

My hands smelled funny after handling the wood, but I am at a loss for words to describe the smell. Smelling the wood now, I don't detect an odor. The leaves are from some brush that was cleared in the area and one of them may or may not relate to the wood in question.

SWMBO is thinking we should take it home for me to turn a souvenir. I Googled state laws and found a prohibition on poaching Koa, but it isn't that. The Department of Agriculture website says wood, "including driftwood," can be taken to the mainland after inspection.


281428281426281427281429

[Paul Engle]

I for sure would bring back to the mainland. You may be able to ID the wood from other examples . I tried to get some salvage from near the same area but the tree guys could not release any as it goes to some outfit that does wood working . You might try calling the wood turners group president , as he may be able to ID it for you. sure looks like monkey pod or banyan. I just got an 11 x 10x 5 inch thick half round of big leaf mahogany from one of the plantations thru Rooster , his shop is up by Princeville.

Kauai club president Robin Clark at 808-332-5449 .

[robert baccus]

Like Cathy says--if it"s wood turn it. Anything in the islands should be pretty wood.

[alex grams]

Its been a few years since I was on the islands, but I remember some macadamia wood that looked similar to that. The guy said that it was the most warp prone wood hes ever seen, and that when you milled a board, it would turn into a potato chip almost when it dried.

Here is a picture of some macadamia bowls from Mike Mahoney's website:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_l_Ehl-Jcx3g/TTDl9Yb67YI/AAAAAAAAAJc/VFcvUic0gL8/s1600/macadamian.jpg

[Kyle Iwamoto]

Do the leaves have sharp points? If they do, then it's Macadamia. Good luck turning it, it cracks a LOT, but as you can see, it's pretty spectacular, if it is Macadamia. Does not look like it though. I looks more like a shower tree. I don't think it's Monkeypod, the bark is smooth. Could be a type of Banyan also. The little leaf on the right looks like a Banyan.

[Doug Herzberg]

Thanks, guys. After reading Paul's post, I decided maybe I stole the wood, maybe from another woodworker, so I put it back. Just didn't feel right. I did find a place in Kapaa called Specialty Hardwoods. He had four partial pallets of Koa, up to 16/4, including some nice large slabs, priced from $20+ to $50+ per BF, depending on how much curl. I spent a lot of time looking and finally found a piece I could fit in my luggage. It was 8/4 and still only measured .8 BF. I though it looked pretty nice, but he only charged me $26 for it, including tax. I was wearing my Broncos cap and I think he felt sorry for me.

[Paul Engle]

Thanks, guys. After reading Paul's post, I decided maybe I stole the wood, maybe from another woodworker, so I put it back. Just didn't feel right. I did find a place in Kapaa called Specialty Hardwoods. He had four partial pallets of Koa, up to 16/4, including some nice large slabs, priced from $20+ to $50+ per BF, depending on how much curl. I spent a lot of time looking and finally found a piece I could fit in my luggage. It was 8/4 and still only measured .8 BF. I though it looked pretty nice, but he only charged me $26 for it, including tax. I was wearing my Broncos cap and I think he felt sorry for me.

Doug ... ROFL .....

[George Guadiane]

I'd bet serious money that the wood is Mac Nut Wood

VERY hard when it gets dry.