B. javanica<\/em> is native to a wide range encompassing south and southeast Asia as well as parts of China and Taiwan. B. javanica <\/em>has been widely planted as an ornamental tree throughout the tropics and sub-tropics. My B. javanica <\/em>came from an ornamental specimen in Florida that had to be removed following a strong storm.<\/p>\n Because it was sold to me as such, I will use the name Bischofia <\/em>from here forward.<\/p>\n There is no data available from my usual sources so I will report my own experience.<\/p>\n Bischofia Small Interior<\/p><\/div>\n Bischofia <\/em>heartwood is a deep reddish brown in color.<\/p>\n The grain in my pieces of Bischofia <\/em>is fairly wild displaying a nice degree of ribbon figure.<\/p>\n As Bischofia <\/em>is not commonly considered timber wood there is no data regarding workability from my usual sources. In my experience, Bischofia <\/em>was easy to work with on the lathe. It cut fairly clean and didn’t require heavy sanding to achieve a nice smooth finish that displayed some chatoyance and ribbon or flame figure. The color and figure are highlighted rather than obliterated by the final finish.<\/p>\n Bischofia <\/em>is not frequently imported or available. The best bet is to consult tree service vendors in the areas where Bischofia <\/em>has been planted ornamentally and may be occasionally removed.<\/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>, WoodTurningz<\/a>, Amazon Exotic Hardwoods<\/a>, Griffin Exotic Wood<\/a>, Exotic Woods USA<\/a>, Got Wood?<\/a>, and Wood Turning Blanks 4U<\/a>.<\/p>\n There is no vendor that I know of who is offering Bischofia <\/em>at this time. I sourced mine from Wood Turning Blanks 4U some years ago and they no longer stock Bischofia.<\/em><\/p>\n Bischofia Large Interior<\/p><\/div>\n Woodfinder<\/a> is an excellent website that is dedicated to advertising wood dealers. In your search for Bischofia <\/em>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 In its native areas, Bischofia <\/em>is commonly used in the following ways:<\/p>\n Bischofia <\/em>is NOT listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendices<\/a> nor is it listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature<\/a> Red List.<\/p>\n To the best of my knowledge, the United States government does not place any restrictions on Bischofia <\/em>.<\/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, 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 woods, resorting to auction sites such as Ebay or Etsy 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 Besides the standard health risks associated with any type of wood dust, no further health reactions have been associated with Bischofia. <\/em>As always, caution is essential until you are certain you are not sensitive to Bischofia <\/em>.<\/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 difficulties while working with Bischofia <\/em>.<\/p>\n I enjoyed working with Bischofia. <\/em>It is moderately dense and it turned beautifully with very little end grain tear out so on reasonably light sanding was required. Bischofia <\/em>took the final finish evenly and it provides a nice enhancement to the natural color. My pieces of Bischofia, <\/em>likely both pieces were from the same tree, featured ribbon figure and some degree of chatoyance which is always a plus with any wood you work with.<\/p>\n Bischofia Bowls<\/p><\/div>\n As I indicated, my Bischofia <\/em>was sourced from a downed ornamental tree so that seems to me to be an environmentally responsible recycling of the resource that otherwise would have gone for compost or just to landfill.<\/p>\n With so many more woods to experiment with, I don’t intend to go searching for more Bischofia, <\/em>but that is a reflection of amount of wood I already have as opposed to Bischofia <\/em>being a bad choice. If you can find this wood, then I would heartily recommend it to any wood turner, or worker of another sort, who was to try something new.<\/p>\n All cuts were made using the Easy Wood Tool<\/a> system on my Robust American Beauty<\/a> lathe. Forward chucking was in a Nova Chuck<\/a>, while reverse chucking was done using a Nova Chuck with Cole Jaws. Sanding was with Gold and Green Wave sanding discs from Packard Woodworks<\/a>. Final finish is Shellawax.<\/a><\/p>\n As always, I wish all my readers a great experience in whatever your 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":" I enjoyed working with Bischofia.\u00a0\u00a0It is moderately dense and it turned beautifully with very little end grain tear out so on reasonably light sanding was required.\u00a0 Bischofia\u00a0took the final finish evenly and it provides a nice enhancement to the natural color.\u00a0 My pieces of Bischofia,\u00a0likely both pieces were from the same tree, featured ribbon figure and some degree of chatoyance which is always a plus with any wood you work with.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":3331,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[135,128,136,137,129,138,139,130],"tags":[148,154,168,171,181,183,188,200,221,230,239,240,241],"yoast_head":"\nGeneral Characteristics:<\/h2>\n
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