{"id":2221,"date":"2017-03-13T04:00:15","date_gmt":"2017-03-13T08:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/?p=2221"},"modified":"2017-01-22T19:20:12","modified_gmt":"2017-01-23T00:20:12","slug":"bloodwood-revisted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/bloodwood-revisted\/","title":{"rendered":"Bloodwood – Revisted"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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

The wood known to wood workers as Bloodwood, or in some cases as Satine, or Satine Bloodwood, is more properly known as Brosimum rubescens<\/em>, although some sources may refer to B. paraense<\/em>.  As best as I can tell, the two are considered synonymous with neither having preferential use scientifically, although B. paraense, <\/em>being the older designation, yields more references .<\/p>\n

Of academic interest only, perhaps, is the inclusion in the Brosimum<\/em> genus of B. guianese<\/em>, otherwise known as Snakewood, one of the most perennially popular and incredibly expensive hardwoods on the market today.<\/p>\n

B. rubescens<\/em> is native to the tropical areas of the Americas, although most commercially exploited stocks that are exported to the United States tend to originate in Guyana, Suriname, Brazil, and to some extent, Peru.<\/p>\n

For the sake of simplicity and common understanding, I will refer to B. rubescens<\/em> from this point forward as Bloodwood.<\/p>\n

I have written about Bloodwood twice in the past, in both a very early post<\/a> from 2009 and a later post from 2012<\/a>.  This post will serve to update the information to the most current as of 2017 and to standardize the format to be consistent with other posts about specific turning woods.<\/p>\n

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Bloodwood<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

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

As the name would imply, and indeed it is no doubt the origin of the common name, the heartwood of Bloodwood is almost always a bright and vivid red hue.  Sadly, as is often true in the case of brightly colored hardwoods, this color will darken to a brownish color over time, but there are steps that can be taken to help slow, if not entirely prevent, this color transition.  Protection from ultraviolet light is essential and this is best accomplished by keeping Bloodwood out of direct light and by using UV protective finishes.  Additional details about slowing color shifts in tropical woods can be found from this resource<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The sapwood of Bloodwood is very well defined and is of a pale yellow color.  Given that Bloodwood trees are between 4 and 7 feet in diameter, it is extremely uncommon to ever see this sapwood, although I think that the contrast between the deep red and the pale yellow would be stunning to see in a finished piece.<\/p>\n

The grain of Bloodwood is almost always straight although some slight interlocking can occur.<\/p>\n

When properly surfaced, Bloodwood has a fine texture with a good natural luster.  In some cases, Bloodwood will display chatoyancy<\/a>, or the “cat’s eye” effect.<\/p>\n

The endgrain appearance of Bloodwood is diffuse and porous with large pores being few in number.  Be aware that mineral deposits are common.<\/p>\n

Although I shouldn’t imagine it is terribly important for the end uses of Bloodwood in the developed world, it is reported to be very durable in its resistance to fungal rot as well as resistant to most insect attacks.<\/p>\n

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Bloodwood Plank<\/p><\/div>\n

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

While Bloodwood is unquestionably a beautiful material, there is a price to pay when working with it.  The primary difficulty is that Bloodwood is extremely dense and this causes a pronounced blunting effect on cutting surfaces.  Always remember to sharpen your tools frequently when working with Bloodwood.<\/p>\n

Also, Bloodwood tends to be brittle, a characteristic for which its close relative Snakewood is infamous, so it can splinter easily when being worked.<\/p>\n

However, if you are persistent and patient, Bloodwood does finish beautifully, featuring an exceptionally deep red and lustrous surface, provided that you have taken the time and care to prepare the surface properly.<\/p>\n

And, also on the plus side, Bloodwood does have a pleasantly mild scent when freshly cut or turned.<\/p>\n

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

As might be expected for a wood as lovely and highly desirable as Bloodwood, prices will be in the moderate to moderately high range when compared to other imported exotic hardwoods, but perhaps not as expensive as one might expect.<\/p>\n

Bloodwood should be readily and widely available in both lumber formats as well as turning blanks of a wide range of sizes.  However, while Bloodwood is technically available from many vendors, the color is often only of a dull reddish tone whereas deeply blood red pieces are what we all strive to find.  So, if you at all have the ability to shop for Bloodwood in person to ensure that you receive the most vividly red pieces you can find, then by all means do so.  Some exotic wood dealers will take color requests with on-line orders, but most will not, which means that you will get what they decide to send you, which sadly may not be the best stock they have available because that may be reserved to appeal to those customers who come in person.  A few vendors offer specifically numbered blanks that you choose on-line so you have a better idea of what you will receive as opposed to the widespread use of stock photos taken of a piece of wood long ago sold and shipped.  Perhaps your best plan if you can’t choose your Bloodwood pieces personally is to be well aware of what your wood vendor’s return policy is in the event you are not bowled over by the redness of the Bloodwood pieces you receive.  Perhaps that is a wise policy when dealing with any vendor regardless of species.<\/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, all of them but Got Wood?, which specializes in domestic hardwoods, offer Bloodwood in various sizes and for varying prices.  In general, pen blanks range from $0.95 to $1.40 each while the largest bowl blank offered by any vendor is a relatively small 6”x6”x3” which sells for between $17 and $20.  As to which vendor would be best I can’t say, but I would suggest that an interested buyer look at all the options, consider shipping distances and prices, as well as other items that might be of interest for purchase from any one seller before selecting a vendor.  I’ve had excellent experiences will all of these vendors and would feel confident purchasing Bloodwood from any of them.<\/p>\n

Woodfinder<\/a> is an excellent website that is dedicated to advertising wood dealers.  In your search for Bloodwood, 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

Perhaps because of its intense red color, Bloodwood is usually used in small pieces as an accent material, especially for extremely high end jewelry boxes as well as for billiard cue butts.  Bloodwood also finds favor for musical applications including drum sticks, xylophone keys, guitar panels, and organ pipes.  More generalized uses of Bloodwood include, but certainly are not limited to: carvings, trim, inlays, furniture accents, knife handles, and turned objects such as pens, vases, and bowls.<\/p>\n

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

Bloodwood 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, due to the ongoing popularity of Bloodwood, I would keep a close eye on its conservation status in the future.<\/p>\n

To the best of my knowledge, Bloodwood 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 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

While Bloodwood is not well known for causing severe allergic or other negative health reactions, Bloodwood dust has been reported as occasionally causing thirst and excess salivation.  Some users have also reported nausea and skin irritation.<\/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

Also bear in mind that many of the negative health effects, although certainly not all of them, are associated with high volume industrial users working in mills and other processing facilities where the amount of contact with dust and wood is much higher than would ever be realistic for a hobbyist user.  That said, turning a 6”x6”x3” block of Timborana almost killed me through respiratory distress, so caution is ALWAYS warranted.<\/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 Bloodwood.<\/p>\n

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

As noted, I have worked with Bloodwood before but always in small pieces and that remains true today, although I do look forward to using some of the several bowl blank sized pieces that I have in my extensive shop stores.  Because I have only worked with small pieces my experience and any wisdom I can lay claim to is limited.<\/p>\n

I certainly noticed that Bloodwood is extremely dense and hard, so I was quite cautious when drilling the center bores for the pens.  Slow advance and regular retreats to remove debris is key when drilling any dense wood.<\/p>\n

Personally, I prefer to turn really hard woods on the lathe because it is usually simple to achieve a very nice cut and finish without the need for a great deal of sanding as happens with softer woods.  With Bloodwood, the cut was extremely fine and I didn’t really need any sanding at all to speak of and probably did it more out of habit than out of need.<\/p>\n

For a finish I chose to apply cyanoacrylate because that is my go-to choice for a high gloss and durable finish on a pen that needs to withstand frequent handling and being tossed in a drawer and\/or a purse.  The plus to using cyanoacrylate on Bloodwood is that it greatly intensifies that deep red color of the wood which leaves it quite beautiful indeed.<\/p>\n

I enjoyed my repeated experiences with Bloodwood and I look forward to using it again in the future for more desk tools as well as in larger applications.<\/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":"

Bloodwood should be readily and widely available in both lumber formats as well as turning blanks of a wide range of sizes. However, while Bloodwood is technically available from many vendors, the color is often only of a dull reddish tone whereas deeply blood red pieces are what we all strive to find. So, if you at all have the avility to shop for Bloodwood in person to ensure that you receive the most vividly red pieces you can find, then by all means do so. Some exotic wood dealers will take color requests with on-line orders, but most will not, which means that you will get what they decide to send you, which sadly may not be the best stock they have available because that may be reserved to appeal to those customers who come in person. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":2189,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[141,138,130],"tags":[171,180,183,188,200,214,217,221,226,239,240,247,249],"yoast_head":"\nBloodwood - Revisted - Wood Turning Pens ..<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Bloodwood, as the name implies, is an intensely reddish colored wood that is native to the tropical Americas, hard and dense, and easy to turn on the lathe.\" \/>\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\/bloodwood-revisted\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bloodwood - 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