{"id":2211,"date":"2017-02-26T04:00:45","date_gmt":"2017-02-26T09:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/?p=2211"},"modified":"2017-01-18T17:30:09","modified_gmt":"2017-01-18T22:30:09","slug":"kingwood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/kingwood\/","title":{"rendered":"Kingwood"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Geographic Distribution<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The wood most commonly known as Kingwood is known to botanists and other scientists as Dalbergia cearensis<\/em>.  As those readers who are familiar with my series of articles about wood species are likely to recognize, so called “kingwood” is true rosewood of the Dalbergia<\/em> genus, and thus, is highly desired, increasingly rare, and accordingly expensive.<\/p>\n

D. cearensis<\/em> is native to the “horn” of northeastern Brazil, found only in the states of Bahia, Ceará, Paraíba, Pernambuco, and Piauí. The D. cearensis<\/em> tree is small and often features crooked trunks, so large sizes of lumber are quite rare.<\/p>\n

Of course we wouldn’t be talking about exotic hardwoods if there wasn’t a potential complication to discuss, and in this case that complication is Dalbergia congestiflora<\/em>.  D. congestiflora<\/em> is native to the small Mexican state of Morelos, a lush green area to the immediate south of Mexico City.  The high fertility of the soil in Morelos is due, in part, to rich volcanic activity in the past, yielding the same types of soil found in other volcanic locales such as Hawai’i.<\/p>\n

D. congestiflora<\/em>, also true Dalbergia<\/em> genus rosewood, is visually practically identical to D. cearensis<\/em>. Therefore, some exotic wood dealers will sell both materials interchangeably as “Kingwood” while other dealers will specify D. congestiflora<\/em> as “Mexican Kingwood” or “Camatillo” while reserving plain “Kingwood” for D. cearensis<\/em>. Still other dealers may further qualify D. cearensis<\/em> as “Brazilian Kingwood.”<\/p>\n

In the end, given the similarity between the two species in terms of appearance, fragrance, and workability, it probably doesn’t matter a great deal which wood is which, unless, like me, you just care about that sort of thing. In this case, I was working with the Brazilian variety although I do have the Mexican version in my shop stocks as well.<\/p>\n

And, for the sake of simplicity, from this point forward I will be referring to D. cearensis<\/em> simply as Kingwood.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Kingwood Twist Pen and Letter Opener<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

General Characteristics<\/strong><\/h2>\n

As is almost always true in the case of exotic tropical hardwoods, it is only the heartwood of Kingwood that is of interest, and what a beautiful heartwood it is.  Kingwood heartwood is a stunning dark purplish or reddish brown with darker black streaks running throughout.  By contrast, the Kingwood sapwood is a pale yellow material that looks like dozens of other woods.  However, in turned pieces that retain some of the sapwood to show contrast with the highly colored heartwood, the visual effect can be quite stunning.<\/p>\n

The grain of Kingwood is usually straight.  However, on occasion, instances of interlocked grain can occur.<\/p>\n

Kingwood is well known for its very fine and uniform texture coupled with an amazingly high natural luster when finely finished with micro-abrasives.<\/p>\n

The endgrain of Kingwood appears as diffuse and porous with the small pores in no specific arrangement.  Occasionally heartwood deposits will be present.<\/p>\n

While it wouldn’t seem relevant for the most common uses of Kingwood today, it is reported to be very durable in terms of its resistance to rot and decay due to fungus as well as resistant to termites.<\/p>\n

Working Characteristics<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Given the very high density and hardness of Kingwood it tends to be one of the more difficult woods with which to work.  Due to its hardness, Kingwood has a moderate blunting effect on cutters making frequent sharpening and patience essential tools when working with Kingwood.<\/p>\n

In the event that twisted, interlocked, or otherwise irregular grain is present in Kingwood, tearing, especially during plane operations, can occur.  Authorities greater than I have addressed the issue of tearout with interlocked grain<\/a>, so I will only add that razor sharp cutters, slower feed speeds, and carefully adjusted cutter head angles will all contribute to success.<\/p>\n

As is true of many of the Dalbergia genus rosewoods, Kingwood has very high natural oil content.  This high oil content can cause difficulties when drilling or sanding Kingwood due to the oil overheating causing drills to seize and abrasives to gum up quickly.  In addition, the high oil content coupled with the high density can create difficulties in gluing Kingwood.<\/p>\n

Patience in drilling coupled with frequent cleaning of the shavings from the bore is essential.  The use of open weave abrasives, such as Abranet<\/a>, can be of great assistance in sanding.  And finally, using a solvent such as acetone or paint\/lacquer thinner on surfaces to be glued immediately prior to gluing can be immensely helpful in achieving success.<\/p>\n

Foreknowledge is often your best tool when working with a new exotic hardwood, so once aware of the potential pitfalls you can be prepared to deal with them before they occur.<\/p>\n

And, on the plus side with Kingwood, it makes an excellent turning wood, which is of the greatest relevance for our purposes.  And that high natural oil content means that your finished turned Kingwood piece will easily take on a very high natural polish.<\/p>\n

A final plus to working with Kingwood, and one of my favorite characteristics of the wood, is the delightful rosy odor when the wood is freshly cut, turned, or otherwise worked.<\/p>\n

Pricing and Availability<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Simply put, Kingwood is very expensive and one should expect to pay among the highest prices for any exotic hardwood to obtain it.  In addition, Kingwood is almost never available in lumber format due to the small size of the tree, so expect to find only smallish turning blank sizes, especially spindle pieces as opposed to bowl blanks.<\/p>\n

In this blog, I almost always recommend several vendors with whom I have done considerable business and in whom I have great confidence.  These vendors are: West Penn Hardwoods<\/a>, Bell Forest Products<\/a>, NC Wood<\/a>, Got Wood?<\/a>, and WoodTurningz<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Of these fine vendors, only West Penn Hardwoods and Bell Forest Products are currently offering Kingwood.<\/p>\n

Bell Forest Products offers both Brazilian and Mexican Kingwood, with the later sold as “Camatillo.”  In both cases only small spindle sizes are being offered with the Mexican variety commanding extremely high prices, up to $100 for a 3 foot length of 1.5” square.<\/p>\n

By contrast, West Penn Hardwoods is offering Brazilian Kingwood in sizes ranging from pen blank through to a 6”x6”x2” bowl blank.  The bowl blank is selling for $45.<\/p>\n

Woodfinder <\/a>is an excellent website that is dedicated to advertising wood dealers.  In your search for Kingwood, this can be an invaluable resource provided you use multiple search terms to capture all the possible listings.  I can’t speak to the quality of any of the listed dealers, but Woodfinder does have the advantage of allowing searches to be performed based on location which might allow an interested buyer to visit a listed wood dealer in person to hand pick pieces at a comfortable price.<\/p>\n

A significant problem with using Woodfinder is that many vendors are listed for woods that, upon further investigation, they do not offer.  I don’t know if perhaps once they did and they didn’t update their listings or if some vendors use a standardized list of woods that include most everything conceivable with the idea that once you land on their page you will find something you want to buy even if you didn’t know it beforehand.  It happens to me all the time!<\/p>\n

Uses<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Given the rarity and expense of Kingwood, its most common uses involve only small pieces of the wood.  Inlay and veneer uses are common uses of Kingwood, while other specialty uses include tool handles for very high end turning and carving tools, as well as other small specialty items turned on a wood lathe that take advantage of Kingwood’s hardness and high natural luster when properly surfaced, such as fine writing implements.<\/p>\n

Once upon a time, Kingwood was used to manufacture extremely high end furniture.  In fact it is believed that the common name of Kingwood is a reference to the fondness for the wood expressed by the French Kings Louis XIV and Louis XV.<\/p>\n

Sustainability<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Kingwood is not listed as being in any way threatened or endangered by the Convention in International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendices<\/a> nor does it appear on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List<\/a>.  However, I would not be at all surprised if this were to change in the near future as Brazil moves more and more to protect its natural species which have been heavily exploited for centuries.<\/p>\n

To the best of my knowledge, Kingwood is not subject to any special restrictions by any United States government agency.<\/p>\n

I realize that inherent in working with wood is the killing of a part of the natural world that may be slow to return and if I become deeply concerned about this fact, I will have to find a new hobby.  I hope that such a time does not come to pass or at least not any time soon.  In part because I am concerned about legally and responsibly obtained wood, I am reluctant to buy from sellers outside of well-established and known vendors.  I am highly unlikely, for example, to purchase any wood from auction sites, such as Ebay<\/a>, because of uncertain sourcing and documentation, as well as the potential, even likelihood, of material being misidentified in order to achieve a higher selling price.<\/p>\n

However, due to the commercial scarcity of some domestic woods, resorting to auction sites such as Ebay<\/a> or Etsy <\/a>may be the only way to obtain some desirable domestic, or in some cases exotic imported, species that are not routinely commercially harvested.  The potential risks of buying in these marketplaces have to be balanced against the desire to work with a specific species of wood.  That is inherently an individual decision.<\/p>\n

I also realize that many, if not most, wood workers do not have endangered species lists memorized, therefore I think it worthwhile and important to do even a small amount of research before purchasing any lumber, domestic as well as imported, to be certain of the potential impact you are having, even in a small way, on threatened or endangered populations.  This information is easy to come by and takes only minutes to locate through any Internet search engine, including those you can access on your phone as you are standing in the lumber yard or store.  Unfortunately, you simply cannot count on a vendor to tell you a product they are selling is endangered.<\/p>\n

Health Hazards<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Kingwood is not known to commonly cause any severe allergic or other adverse health reactions, but it can act as a sensitizer, such that the more one works with Kingwood the more sensitive to the wood one becomes.  That said, the most common sensitivity reactions are relatively mild and consist of simple eye and skin irritation as well as the occasional case of pink-eye.<\/p>\n

In addition, the long-term negative effects of exposure to sawdust of any species are well documented.<\/p>\n

It is important to remember that although many people may, or may not, be sensitive to any given wood the only experience that truly counts is your own, so use reported side effects as guidance but not as a substitute for cautious and safe practices.<\/p>\n

Appropriate protective equipment is therefore always recommended when working with this, or any other, wood, exotic or domestic, unless you have worked with the species before and are certain you are not sensitive to it.<\/p>\n

Complete information about health hazards<\/a> associated with a wide variety of exotic hardwoods is available from The Wood Database<\/a>.  Additional information about how to best use a dust collection system and personal protective equipment, such as respirators, can also be found through this excellent and comprehensive resource<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, I experienced no negative side effects when working with Kingwood.<\/p>\n

My Personal Experiences                        <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Unfortunately I was only working with small pen blank sized pieces of Kingwood so my experience is accordingly very limited.  However, that said, I had a great time working with the small pieces that I had available to me.  The wood was beautiful to look at; it was a dream to turn because it is so hard that it takes a lovely fine cut edge with very sharp tools.  I was aware of the high oil content so I was cautious when drilling the bores but I encountered no problems because I conscientiously cleared away the debris regularly.  I used Abranet to sand the blanks to avoid problems with gumming up regular paper backed abrasives.  To minimize difficulties in gluing the brass inserts I swabbed the bores with acetone prior to gluing.  As a finish, I used cyanoacrylate because of its high shine and its durability for desk tools, but for any other application I would have simply buffed the natural oils, or at most added a light coat of wax.<\/p>\n

I found Kingwood to be a dream to work with and I only wish that I could afford to buy larger pieces of the material, perhaps a bowl blank, to really experience the true joys and complexities of the material.<\/p>\n

As always, I wish all my readers a great experience in whatever their wood working interests happen to be and to those who like working with lathes especially, do a good turn today!<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Unfortunately I was only working with small pen blank sized pieces of Kingwood so my experience is accordingly very limited. However, that said, I had a great time working with the small pieces that I had available to me. The wood was beautiful to look at; it was a dream to turn because it is so hard that it takes a lovely fine cut edge with very sharp tools. I was aware of the high oil content so I was cautious when drilling the bores but I encountered no problems because I conscientiously cleared away the debris regularly. I used Abranet to sand the blanks to avoid problems with gumming up regular paper backed abrasives. To minimize difficulties in gluing the brass inserts I swabbed the bores with acetone prior to gluing. As a finish, I used cyanoacrylate because of its high shine and its durability for desk tools, but for any other application I would have simply buffed the natural oils, or at most added a light coat of wax.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":2193,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[141,138],"tags":[171,180,188,200,214,217,264,226,239,240,247],"yoast_head":"\nKingwood - Wood Turning Pens ..<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Kingwood, from Brazil, is a highly sought after and hard to find, and fragrant, rosewood featuring a lovely purplish color, once preferred by French kings.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/kingwood\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Kingwood - 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