Replies

1. 
   UncleDunc | Jan 17, 2003 01:25am | #1

   Why aren't you going to be able to buy any more? This is the first I've heard of wenge becoming unobtainable, or Cuban mahogany or ebony, for that matter.

   If you want ebony for the uniform black color, you'll probably have to dye or stain something else. There used to be a product available in the US called EbonX or something like that. It was a dyed hardwood. I couldn't find it the last time I looked.

   If it's the high shine of ebony you're looking for, Macassar ebony and African blackwood are two that I have sanded to a very high gloss.

   For rosewood, I see variety of Latin American, African, and Asian rosewoods for sale. There was even a short article in a fairly recent FWW about Brazilian rosewood turning blocks harvested from the stumps of tree felled before the ban. 2"x2"x12" IIRC. Cocobolo and mesquite are also possibilities.

1. 
   macalex | Jan 17, 2003 02:54am | #2

   Thanks Unc

   I'm in New Zealand, is part of the answer. 3.8m people at the edge of the world? We're a pretty small and distant market!

   Also I'm a small user, and privately importing parcels of exotics won't be economicallly feasible. Maybe some Kiwis on the forum know different?

   Also, I've been out of the business for a long time, and my networks are non-existant. Once, I had a complete set of FWW from issue 1 through sometime in the mid 80s. Gone, haven't seen a hard copy for a decade. I used to edit the New Zealand Woodworker, and I knew or knew of (or thought I did) all the serious players downunder. Not any more.