Walnut looking type wood

[Craig D Peltier]

Hi, there was similiar named post here but not the same.

My client may not like the look of all the natural imperfections of walnut i.e. knots Can you suggest another dark wood that has wide availability thats fairly dark or brown. Its needs to be available in 8/4 minimum.
I know I can order clear walnut but at a heavy cost on a table that needs 145bd ft total.

Thanks

[Jamie Buxton]

Most dark woods are more expensive than the light North American woods. In my lumberyards, red oak runs $4 bdft or so. Walnut runs $8 or so. There are a few dark-ish options which are slightly less expensive, like jatoba which is $7 or so. That'd save you only a hundred bucks or so. Basically you may as well just bite the bullet and use the wood you want.

[scott spencer]

Butternut is considered a good substitute for walnut, though it may require some staining to get it as dark as black walnut.

[Doug Shepard]

Dont know if you've got any in your area, but Makore is a pretty rich dark brown like walnut.

[Jim Becker]

Butternut, in essence, "is" walnut...it's sometimes called "white walnut" and is in the same family. Slightly softer and lighter in color, but certainly could substitute if dyed.

You can source "super-duper, clear" walnut, but it's going to be costly, especially in 8/4. You may need to buy larger slabs and cut out what you need, but the end result is what you need to weigh on. FAS for walnut is handled differently than most other species simply because the trees tend not to be straight...part of the reason that shorter clear lengths are allowed.

[Craig D Peltier]

Butternut is considered a good substitute for walnut, though it may require some staining to get it as dark as black walnut.
I saw the pic of butternut on the other post.It had a big swirly knot right in picture.I was looking for something much clearer.
I will look at makore.I think they have it here.
Also maybe staining something will work also.
Thanks

[Barry Beech]

What about mahogany?

[julie Graf]

i love working with walnut - i've made many tabletops that have knots on the bottom, but the top is clear, and you never know what is underneath.

it might just be a matter of getting a bit extra to play with (or see if you can "help" pick your boards and weed out some knots) Plus you can always use boards that are not clear for legs or supports (cut out the defect, these pieces are generally shorter) depending on your table design.

my opinion is, if you want to use walnut, there are ways around the knots.

[Montgomery Scott]

Try sapele or you could always veneer the project.

[Chris Padilla]

I wonder if some nice clear straight-grained fir (amply available in the Pac NW) appropriately dyed would work? There is always dyed poplar as well. These are all relatively cheap but then again, we've no clue what you are making so no clue if they would work.

[Mark Stutz]

Not sure if it's "widely availabe" but our local "exotic" supplier has T'zalam, also called Mexican walnut, or so I was told. Has a nice rich dark color often with bits of almost black streaks. I have used it a little...machines nicely, and IIRC 8/4 was about $6.40/bf. but is almost all clear.

[Jamie Buxton]

145 bd ft? Are you sure about the math? This would be a huge table.

Consider a table which is 7 feet long by 42" wide. The top is 1 1/2" thick everyplace. For simplicity, lets say this table has slab ends for support. They'd be 42" by 30" tall, and let's say they're 2" thick. This table would take about 80 bd ft.

Another way to think about this is that if you're building a table which is so big that it does involve 145 bd ft, yes, you're going to be spending a fair amount on lumber.

[Tom Cowie]

What about mahogany?


Another vote for mahogany. Use a stain to match what your looking for . The Butternut pic proves that it has branches like all the other trees.:D

Tom

[Gary Keedwell]

I've had these butternut boards hanging around for 15 years and decided to use one to make a box for my 4' straight edge. After I put some varnish on it I was pleasantly surprised how dark and beautiful the wood became. Not real dark...but a nice light brown.
Gary

[Danny Thompson]

Another vote for Makore.

[Dixon Peer]

Just bite the bullet and get the walnut. I have used quite a bit lately, and the FAS I get here in New Jersey is beautiful stuff...no knots at all. Costly, yes; it's running up there with genuine mahogany and maybe a little more.

If you want a substitute, I think the Sapele suggestion is good.

[Craig D Peltier]

Thanks, I have told the clieant we can also use Bubinga or Mahogany Sapele. Walnut out here is outrageous in cost.

[Craig D Peltier]

I wonder if some nice clear straight-grained fir (amply available in the Pac NW) appropriately dyed would work? There is always dyed poplar as well. These are all relatively cheap but then again, we've no clue what you are making so no clue if they would work.

48x96 dining room table 2.5 thick (maybe 1.75) Arced sides and ends .75 inch per foot. Jatoba inlay to match Jatoba floor table sits on. Inlay 2 inches wide all the way around table following arch.Center inlay shaped like table about 8x16 inch.
I think Polar is way too soft as well as fir. Thanks

[Craig D Peltier]

145 bd ft? Are you sure about the math? This would be a huge table.

Consider a table which is 7 feet long by 42" wide. The top is 1 1/2" thick everyplace. For simplicity, lets say this table has slab ends for support. They'd be 42" by 30" tall, and let's say they're 2" thick. This table would take about 80 bd ft.

Another way to think about this is that if you're building a table which is so big that it does involve 145 bd ft, yes, you're going to be spending a fair amount on lumber.

52x96x3= 104 bd ft Plus another 25-30 for legs. Plus some waste.
Legs are 16/4.

[Craig D Peltier]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I told him if we buy enough you can have a real nice table.Plus have enoigh to build that console table in LR:D Im already doing it for cheap for him. If you were too 2.5x the materials it would of been alot more. I was already 1500 over his budget.

[Josiah Bartlett]

Dang, I've got 300 bf of absolutely clear walnut in my garage- my neighbor gave me a tree that was 35" across and I slabbed it up into boards that are 9/4 and 16" wide. Not for sale, though, its not quite dry yet and I'm planning using it for my own table.

There is lots of good Walnut in Oregon if you know where to look, the Willamette Valley is full of Walnut orchards.