Naturally Maroon Wood

[Wayne Lomman]

Jarrah, New South Wales blue gum, river red gum, Red mahogany, brush box, Tasmanian myrtle, and a whole range of Eastern Australian hardwoods collectively sold as Forest Red. The colours are often call red but that is just the general average. These are mostly eucalypt species although the myrtle is actually Antarctic Beech and the colour varies depending on which end of Tasmania it was sourced from. All are hard, tough, heavy and last forever as cutting boards. Expect to use carbide machine tooling as HSS will dull in an incredibly short space of time. Cheers

[Jim Finn]

Bubinga is what I would opt for.

[Bill Dufour]

Jarrah, New South Wales blue gum, river red gum, Red mahogany, brush box, Tasmanian myrtle, and a whole range of Eastern Australian hardwoods collectively sold as Forest Red. The colours are often call red but that is just the general average. These are mostly eucalypt species although the myrtle is actually Antarctic Beech and the colour varies depending on which end of Tasmania it was sourced from. All are hard, tough, heavy and last forever as cutting boards. Expect to use carbide machine tooling as HSS will dull in an incredibly short space of time. Cheers

That red wood color must be different from the blue gum and red gum trees we have in California. They have just a light colored wood I suppose the red gum has a slight pink tint to it. about 90% of the ecalypts introduced to California are blue gum which has gone native here. red gum is used for street trees I have not seen it in the wild at all.
Bill D.

video of first blue gum in California. tallest hardwood trees in the USA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwV_nlNoO2c

[John K Jordan]

Bubinga is what I would opt for.

Yes, some Bubinga might be just the ticket. Some has more color than others. I like the color of this handle I made from Bubinga, although it's not as "maroon" as some others I've seen although the color in person is more red than the photo shows. (Much of it is more towards brown.)

Handle_adpater_alum_IMG_6001.jpg

Don't know if anyone mentioned it in this thread, but Red Heart and some pieces of Bloodwood may have the desired color. Remember that the color of almost any species can vary widely. Look at some of the photos on http://hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/

JKJ

[Prashun Patel]

Two choices IMHO:

Sapelle or Cherry.

Cherry will take time to get maroon (more of a rust).

[Wayne Lomman]

Red gum should be a deep rich red that turns maroon with exposure to light. However, plantation grown timber will not look like this. The blue gum you have is Tasmanian blue gum which is light brown. NSW blue gum is entirely different as it is rich red to maroon in colour. You would need to purchase any of the species I listed from an importer to get decent timber. I can buy any US species if I so choose. I would assume you can do the same with Australian species? Cheers

[Bill Dufour]

Red gum should be a deep rich red that turns maroon with exposure to light. However, plantation grown timber will not look like this. The blue gum you have is Tasmanian blue gum which is light brown. NSW blue gum is entirely different as it is rich red to maroon in colour. You would need to purchase any of the species I listed from an importer to get decent timber. I can buy any US species if I so choose. I would assume you can do the same with Australian species? Cheers

I heard that the idea of planting eucalyptus in California was that it would be furniture wood. But they got the wrong kind and all it is good for is firewood. It splits and twists on the stump, more so when cut.
Bill D.

[Bill Orbine]

Somebody said bloodwood. That was my first thought.

[Dan Hahr]

What about padauk?
Dan

[Wayne Lomman]

And you have inherited the bush fires that go with eucalypt forest...

[Ben Zara]

Bubinga probably your best bet. Just hunt for a lighter colored piece.

[Jim Tobias]

Padauk(after being finished with oil finish) will turn a dark, deep reddish(Maroon) color with exposure to sunlight.

Jim