Cutting 1/8" ebony

[Dee Gallo]

Has anyone cut 1/8" gaboon ebony? I have a request for 150 pieces to be cut but I don't want to tell them I can do it if ebony is one of "those" woods that don't cut well. These would be very small pieces, like 1" x 3/4" max.

I can get it from Rockler for $40 per square foot - does that sound like a good price? I've never gotten this wood before. Is there a better source? Is there a Creeker source?

Thanks everyone, dee

[Gary Hair]

It cuts like butter - with my cnc router... not so great with the laser. I tried several settings and multiple passes, all I ever ended up with was a charred mess. I have a customer that uses a pretty fair amount of it, I'll ask him where he gets his from and let you know.

Gary

edit: a quick bing search for "gaboon ebony" brought up lots of sources and most of them are way cheaper than Rockler. I found one that sold 3" x 24" for $30. Here is the link to my bing search:
http://www.bing.com/search?q=gaboon+...t=11&FORM=PORE

[Dee Gallo]

Thanks, Gary, that's what I was worried about. These are so small, I would not want to cut them with a saw and then have to sand edges. If I can't use my laser, I'll pass on the job.

[Jarami Reid]

Hi Dee,

I actually cut some on Wednesday - it was about 2.5mm thick and it took me four passes with my 60 watt laser (extreme charring). If I were you I would acquire some and give it a try - but I think your instinct to test before committing to the job is the right thing to do.

[Gary Hair]

Send them to me if you like, I'd be happy to either cnc them or cut on my saw. I have a crosscut sled that allows me to clamp pretty small pieces and these would be no problem at all.

Gary

[Larry Bratton]

Dee,
I bought some wood called Jatoba (Brazilian Cherry). I had a heck of a time cutting it as it had a hardness value of 2350. Ebony has a hardness value of 3220. I can't imagine trying to cut that many little bitty pieces of that. I think you would be advised to pass on that one unless you can prove otherwise by doing some testing on the exact wood you would be working with.

[Dee Gallo]

Send them to me if you like, I'd be happy to either cnc them or cut on my saw. I have a crosscut sled that allows me to clamp pretty small pieces and these would be no problem at all.

Gary

Gary, this sounds like a possible solution for me - but one more monkey wrench: the corners are rounded... still interested? If so, PM me with a price and we'll talk!

[Lee DeRaud]

IMHO, that Rockler price ain't bad at all.

a quick bing search for "gaboon ebony" brought up lots of sources and most of them are way cheaper than Rockler. I found one that sold 3" x 24" for $30.

That works out to $60/sqft, or 50% higher than Rockler's price.

[Gary Hair]

IMHO, that Rockler price ain't bad at all.That works out to $60/sqft, or 50% higher than Rockler's price.

Well now don't I feel stupid... When I saw that my mind calculated it to be 3 square feet so it would have been $10/sq ft. - absolutly no idea how I thought that though... I wish I could blame it on a lack of coffee but I don't drink it, I'll have to blame it on my schooling - it's daytime and I went to night school.

Gary

[Neil Pabia]

Gaboon ebony and ebony are two very different woods so the hardness of ebony should not be confused with the hardness of gaboon ebony. I have some in my shop, if you can hold off until monday, I will try cutting some and see how it goes.

[Neil Pabia]

Dee, I just took a shot at it with some gaboon ebony sliced to .15" and got through it at 35 speed, 100 power, 500 freq and a whole lot of charring.

[Dee Gallo]

Dee, I just took a shot at it with some gaboon ebony sliced to .15" and got through it at 35 speed, 100 power, 500 freq and a whole lot of charring.

So Neil, with the color of the wood being almost black, does the charring show a lot? Does it get all over the place (and fingers)? Thanks for running this test, you just happened to have some of this wood? That's amazing. I'm lucky!

dee

[Neil Pabia]

I do some work with ebony and gaboon ebony. Gaboon ebony has some brown striation running through it, the charring is messy and I would not give it to a customer this way. True ebony is pitch black but is very sensitive to heat and tends to crack when heat is applied to it.

[Chuck Stone]

True ebony is pitch black but is very sensitive to heat and tends to crack when heat is applied to it.

.. and sometimes, a year or more later.
Alton brings his sawmill to an importer who does a lot of ebony. They have to cut it under
a tarp because if the sun hits it they get about 50% waste from cracking.

You might consider Aftican Blackwood as a substitute. Likely to be less expensive, more stable,
just as attractive and far less frustrating. And it lasers well enough..

[Dee Gallo]

.. and sometimes, a year or more later.
Alton brings his sawmill to an importer who does a lot of ebony. They have to cut it under
a tarp because if the sun hits it they get about 50% waste from cracking.

You might consider Aftican Blackwood as a substitute. Likely to be less expensive, more stable,
just as attractive and far less frustrating. And it lasers well enough..

Hmmmm. thanks, Chuck, I'll have to look into that.