Looks Like Pecky Bolivian Walnut Won The Day

[Julie Moriarty]

Pecky Bolivian Walnut - Cariniana pyriformis. Has anyone here worked with this wood before? And pecky wood, what challenges does that bring?

Never even heard of it until it appeared on the hardwood supplier's website. It's pretty rustic looking, which will work with the old boat house look we're going for here. It has a Janka hardness of 1020 so it should be fine for tops and shelves for the entertainment center. And yes, we are now open to darker woods.


Should I be concerned with using wood stored outside as furniture wood? I called and it is stored outside, but maybe under roof.

[Jim Becker]

Not familiar, but it looks like it will provide a really nice, unique and rustic look for your project!

[Jamie Buxton]

Never heard of it either, but here's an article about it. https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/a...157014565.html

[Mike Wilkins]

Never heard of it either. You should store it in your shop for a few weeks to let it acclimate to indoor conditions and the moisture level to stabilize before machining the lumber. I know from first hand experience what happens when you don't do this.
Looks like some interesting stock.

[Julie Moriarty]

Thank you, guys. Looks like I'll be stepping into uncharted waters.

According to the US Forest Service other common names for this wood are Abarco (Colombia), Bacu (Venezuela), Ceru, and Tauary (Brazil). A genus of about 10 species distributed from eastern Peru and northern Bolivia through central Brazil to Venezuela and Colombia. Very common in forests of northern Colombia growing on lower slopes and well-watered valleys.

The supplier I use is primarily a wood flooring company with a processing mill in Ananindeua, State of Pará, Brazil. That's a bit of a hike from Bolivia. Maybe it is from Bolivia, maybe not.

USFS says it air-dries rapidly with only a slight tendency to warp or check and is reported to have good dimensional stability after manufacture. A little peace of mind considering they store it outside.

Other comments:

Working Properties: Generally satisfactory with only a slight blunting effect on cutting edges; but species in this grouping are also reported to cause rapid dulling of cutters.

Durability: Heartwood reported to be durable, particularly deeply colored material; has good resistance to dry-wood termite attack.

Preservation: Heartwood is reported to be extremely resistant to preservative treatment; sapwood is permeable.

Uses: General construction and carpentry, furniture components, shipbuilding, flooring, veneer for plywood, and turnery.

Another website, IUCN Red List, calls it Colombian mahogany.

Probably more than anything is what does pecky wood introduce to milling and finishing? Can I expect to be able to make frame and panel doors out of it? Is pecky wood more prone to splintering, splitting and cracking? With the voids present, it makes me curious.

[Van Huskey]

Can't speak to that wood but pecky cypress mills pretty well but it is more tearout prone, then again cypress is soft in comparison, plus this is more what I think of when I think of pecky, lots more peck, again cypress is known for its peckyness.

contemporary-kitchen.jpg

I used a 5 pc door construction picture to address the frame and panel door question (again only with cypress). I see a lot of pecky cypress cabinets in Louisiana and the one thing I have noted is I never see raised panels just flat, which I am guessing is due to the difficulty to get a nice surface on a raised panel. On the same token I usually see the highly pecked wood on the panel and clear or nearly clear wood used for the rails and stiles, just makes sense.

Good luck, looks like it will make gorgeous cabinets. Pics during and after completion plz.

[Julie Moriarty]

Van, that pecky cypress is pretty cool! Nice job!

We drove to Sarasota this morning (an hour away) to pick up something, anything, so I can keep going on the project. They are only open from 8-12 on Saturdays and were running a skeleton crew but I cornered a sales rep and asked her where I could find the pecky Bolivian walnut. She couldn't find any. She said they had a lot there but it must have all been sold. One of the yard workers told her they hadn't been able to replenish what was sold and the bulk was still in a tent out back.

She took us back to the tent where the wood was stacked over 12' high, all bundled and no way to sort through it. So we have to go back during the week. She did say if I left the cut list and drawings their hardwood expert could put everything together and have it ready for pickup. None of their hardwoods are planed or jointed so maybe I'll take them up on that offer and have them plane the wood and joint one edge.

HOWEVER..... My SO saw a table sized slab of flamewood and was ecstatic over it. That's never happened! We brought it home to become a coffee table top.

[Julie Moriarty]

Spent the better part of the day driving to Sarasota, getting the guys to pull a bundle of 4/4 out of the tent, picking through the wood piles, l and driving back. It was worth it.

I brought home 65 bd/ft of 4/4 and 48 bd/ft of 6/4 pecky Bolivian walnut. Sure is pretty!



And at less than $4 bd/ft, including tax, the price was right too.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

Gum Pockets like American Cherry. I like.

[Julie Moriarty]

Gum Pockets like American Cherry. I like.

Is that what that is? Gum pockets?

[Jim Becker]

That's really pretty stock, Julie! Definitely unique and I bet your project is going to stand out because of it!