Replies

1. 
   oldusty | Jul 28, 2007 05:38pm | #1

   Jim ,

           The African is another species type all together , it's called Mahogany but maybe not actually a true Mahogany such as Honduran . The basic grain patterns can be similar but the African has a lot of broom grain and obviously there is a color difference in this and many cases .

      Try and find more Honduran if you can , it looks like a beautiful piece you are making don't let a few pieces of wood stop perfection.

                good        luck                  dusty

1. 
   noviceneil | Jul 30, 2007 05:31pm | #6

   Thanks for the info on African mahogony...I bought a  board locally, not knowing anything about mahogony. I then ran across some plans for a footstool that had through tenon joinery and legs at a 10 degree angle...more challenging than it looked. The mahogony was a lot softer than I envisioned, closer to cedar than walnut, and chipped out badly on the backside when I chopped out the mortises...thankfully the chip out is hidden by the tenon shoulders...overall I can't say that I like African mahogony much.

   Neil

1. 
   Talma | Jul 30, 2007 08:01pm | #7

   African Mahogany is not worth the cost in my opinon. I would get more honduran. Just remove the apron and re veneer with honduran.

   If you dye the apron and not the legs they will color differently. The honduran will be a lot darker than the african in about 1 year. And they will continue to change at not only different rates, but to different colors.

   Check out irion lumber. http://www.irionlumber.com give them a call, let them know what you are making and they will get you the right piece(s) of lumber.

   Also I made a Demilune table at the Olde mill cabinet shop in a class with Steve Latta. He used the table from FWW 180 as the demo for the class. And he buys his wood from there and trusts them to pick his wood so they are familier with the wood needed for the tables.

   And not to be critical, but the flower in the oval at the top of the leg is upside down.

1. 
   weathergeek | Jul 31, 2007 03:12am | #8

   Well...I'm not sure if I want to strip off the African mahogany
   and replace it with Honduran. I really like the bolder grain in
   the African...but...maybe. It probably would be a challenge to
   get the stain on the African and Honduran to the point that
   the coloration would be very close.I didn't realize that the oval emblem was upside down. I just
   assumed that the acorns were supposed to hang down below the
   leaves on the plant in the emblem?This is my 2nd table of this type. The first was a copy of the
   table that Steve Latta built in the Nov/2005 issue of FWW. It
   turned out so-so. I had trouble morticing in the hinges on the
   table top that folds up/over. So I decide to follow the same
   basic plan this time, but just build a demilune type table.
   That means no folding top and the legs attach differently since
   there is no gate leg in the back. I also used ebony feet for
   the legs instead of using a black(dark) stain on mahogany.
   Gives a bit more contrast. At any rate, I enjoy sort of making
   it up as I go along. The thing I like about this table is that
   it involves a number of different woodworking skills.Jim

1. 
   jimbell | Aug 01, 2007 10:07am | #9

   Just to clarify a few points about mahogany and mahogany:

   1. "African mahogany" is not a completely different wood than "Honduras Mahogany." They are not exactly the same species but in the same family.

   2. "African mahogany" is not softer than "Honduras mahogany." Actually, "African mahogany" is comprised of four related species, two from the jungles and two from the drier areas of west Africa. The two from the drier areas are harder than Honduras mahogany. The two from the rain forest, well, it depends. Generally, they are harder than plantation mahogany but softer than the traditional honduras mahogany.

   3. Yes, chip out is a big problem with African mahogany because the grain is quite different from Honduras mahogany. While the honduras mahogany usually has a wonderful, easy grain to work with, the African has a lot of interlocked grain--that is, one year the tree grows in a spiral to the right and the next year it may reverse and grow in a spiral to the left. Thus whether planing or chiselling, you're often getting tear out.

   4. I don't know whether the African is generally lighter than the Honduras. I have some smaller pieces that dyed identical. But I do know that the African is much more variable, sometimes having streaks that are almost a light tan/grey colour.

2. 
   Sean2112 | Jul 29, 2007 04:00am | #2

   Jim-

   African mahogany is nothing like Honduran, it is much lighter and color and  quite a bit softer.  Some of it smells like a monkey cage when you cut it. You will also find a prisma of colors and inconsistencies in grain.

   By the way, your plane irons will stay sharper longer if you don't lay them down on a cast iron top. IMHO.

   Regards,

   Sean

3. 
   tinkerer2 | Jul 29, 2007 05:47am | #3

   Can you reword ####significance?

1. 
   weathergeek | Jul 29, 2007 09:44pm | #4

   Not sure what happened on the "xxxx" deal. Some sort of fat fingered
   problem I guess.Well...I dug up a can of "colonial oak" gel stain from the shelf and
   applied it to the african mahogany on the table skirt. The color of the
   table leg and the skirt are now closer. I think I can get them even
   closer by additional judicious application of this stain to the skirt
   and legs. New pic attached.Jim

   
1. 
   tinkerer2 | Jul 29, 2007 11:43pm | #5

   Sometimes the system will insert #### in place of a bad word or what it falsely perceives to be a bad word.  This seems to be neither.  My wife is very good at matching colors.  I am not and unfortunately  she is not a woodworker but it seems that a little more grey or black is in order.  Have fun

4. 
   wooddood | Aug 04, 2007 06:34am | #10

   I guess the ultimate solution is to get all the wood you need for a project at the beginning to make sure it all matches. Even then you have to carefully compare each piece to the next to make sure they're compatible. If you have to go back and get more, make sure you take a sample with you. Better yet, if the dealer will let you, take some mineral spirits or alcohol (not Jack Daniels) with you and wipe a little on each piece to approximate how they'll look with a finish on them and compare them. 

   Staining the piece could even things out, I suppose, but if the woods are too dissimilar to begin with, it still won't look right.