Rubbertree Wood

James_Roberts | Posted in Finishing on January 4, 2000 11:43am

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I have a relative who is about to purchase an unfinished table made of Rubbertree wood. I know nothing about this wood,is it hard to finish? Is it stainable? Should I recommend he seal it with shellac before topcoating with spar varnish? Also if someone knows, is the wood very durable?
JCR

Replies

PaulFirst_Finish | Nov 23, 1999 07:02am | #1
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James;

I've been finishing this wood almost daily for the past three years in the form of dining tables, chairs, coffee and end tables, hutch and buffets, etc. The wood is also called Parawood and comes from Malasia. It's a durable hard wood with fairly large open pores. It stains unevenly with dye stains (penetrating stains) but takes pigment stains in oil nicely. The coat of shellac is not necessary.

James_Roberts | Nov 25, 1999 08:27am | #2
*Thanks very much for the reply on the rubberwood.I'll pass on the info. JR
sk2tobin | May 21, 2008 06:07am | #3
Paul,

I am trying to find rubberwood to make an entertainment center. I need it to match existing furniture that is made of rubberwood. I am having an extremely hard time finding anyone who sells rubberwood. Do you know where I can get some rubberwood for a decent price or a wood that wood look close?

Thanks,

Nick

Jimurock | May 21, 2008 03:47pm | #4
Is the existing furniture unstained? I've used hard white maple finished with blonde shellac to match unstained rubberwood .

Jim

sk2tobin | May 22, 2008 04:05am | #6
No, unfortunately it is stained with a "oak color finish" (The items I am trying to match were bought at target and there is no information as to the finish other than "oak color").

Nick

SARGEgrinder47 | May 22, 2008 07:51pm | #8
Have to agree wtih Howie.. if you just want to see it, you can go to any un-finished furniture store and see all you want. If you want to see it finished.. go to any furniture store including Bassett.. etc. etc. as you see parking lots that used to filled with cars in furniture country now filled with Conex containers of para-wood ready made from over there.

I did recover some from the runners on pallets at my former work where we got imported parts. From what I read they use it for furniture and about everything else over there as it is abundant. The rubber tree has only about a 30 year cycle before it quits producing sap. The trees are cut and new one have already been planted to produce the sap. But instead of fire-wood, they use it for about everything.

Here is a picture (not a good picture.. but a picture) of my little accumulation and what I decided to do with the para-wood. After 34 years of wood butchering at that time.. it became my first set of chairs to go with a white oak in-formal break-fast nook table.

I had to go two stains darker with the oak to get a similar match. Un fortunately going on memory and could have been the para I had to to darker on. Sorry....

A match but not a match made in heaven. It works through. Also.. I found it relatively easy to work with.. just a bit tricky matching when using the two species. And I had to tinker to get the match that I did.

Good luck...

Sarge..

Edited 5/22/2008 12:54 pm ET by SARGEgrinder47
joinerswork | May 23, 2008 03:57pm | #9
Hi Sarge,

It's a-para-nt that you know your way around para-wood. Did you find it necessary to build para-wood chairs a para-t a time, or did you do all 4 at once? Is the wood fairly stable, or is it a challenge to make two surfaces para-llel?

Hope sk2 finds some of that stuff, as it sounds like he's getting a little des-para-te. Be a shame to get all bent out of shape, over some rubber tree wood...

Got your book yet?

ray
saschafer | May 23, 2008 05:28pm | #10
How does your wife tolerate you?

-Steve
joinerswork | May 24, 2008 01:33am | #12
steve,

It ap-para-ntly helps that she works away from home, and I stay here. (That was nice when the kids were young, as I helped with some of the para-nting tasks. )

But, when she's home, it's hard to ignore her dis-para-ging remarks about what I attempt to pass off as humor. It's enough to make one a little para-noid.

Ray
WillGeorge | May 24, 2008 07:30pm | #15
How does your wife tolerate you? My wife was a Saint.. She put up with me and the four children and all the neighbor kids! I think she just like US 'children!

Edited 5/24/2008 12:30 pm by WillGeorge
SARGEgrinder47 | May 23, 2008 10:39pm | #11
Very hard wood.. easy to work IMO. Built one and the rest were not difficult to follow suit. I will say that I now respect chair-makers immensely and they will have no competition from me. I will buy theirs and pay the price as it would not be my cup of tea on a day to day. The finish alone on nooks.. crannies.. slats.. etc. is enormous.

Natural evolution to para-wood. Got a para-chute at 15 with a fake drivers license and used it many times until my mid 20"s. Just got interviewed for a para-military job with the police department as a 911 dispatch as I fall within the para-meter of qualifications. I was terribly para-noid I would get the job so I retreated inside the para-pet that surrounds my shop to work on a wooden para-gon all over-seen by my para-keet.

If I cannot eventually derive at that destination.. I may seek work in Para-guay as I hear they are hiring. But the likely scenario is I will stay put and pop a few para-graphs on Knots even though that might qualify for para-site. The decision remains para-mount.

Got the book today.. but I probably didn't mention that I can't read... yet!

Regards...

Sarge..

Edited 5/23/2008 3:41 pm ET by SARGEgrinder47

Edited 5/23/2008 3:42 pm ET by SARGEgrinder47
joinerswork | May 24, 2008 01:41am | #13
Sarge,

Groan! You're worse than I am, and I mean that in the best possible way. It's im-para-tive that you be crowned the heir ap-para-nt to the throne of pundom. But I will not des-par, a-nother time, I will be better pre-para-d for another para-wood battle of wits- call it a rubber match?

Cheers,

Ray
SARGEgrinder47 | May 24, 2008 02:12am | #14
Patiently waiting in a 3 point stance to strike.... :>)

Sarge..

cherryjohn | May 26, 2008 05:31am | #16
WalMart sells it ............. usually assembled and painted and stained. But you can work around that

Wicked Decent Woodworks

(oldest woodworking shop in NH)

Rochester NH

" If the women dont find you handsome, they should at least find you handy........yessa!"

HowardAcheson | May 22, 2008 06:53pm | #7
You will have a tough time finding "parawood" (the real name of rubberwood). Most is made into furniture at the place of origin and the furniture in what is imported.I few years ago I got some boards from a custom furniture maker who had bought it to use in a project. He had to take a large quantity so he had excess to sell.Howie.........