Replies

1. 
   ring | Dec 13, 2006 06:19pm | #1

   Wenge. It has a similar open texture and enough color contrast to be striking.

   David Ring

   http://www.touchwood.co.il/?id=1&lang=e

2. 
   user-196729 | Dec 13, 2006 07:41pm | #2

   Mahogany is similar to oak, but a tighter grain.  This would give you the contrast to compliment Oak.  The finish would give the Mahogany a deeper color.  I have one question though.  What are you making that you need the contrast/compliment for?  If it were for a table or bench there would be a blend of the two in the piece.  If it were for an inlay or border on a piece then go with a darker wood, like black walnut.

1. 
   rjones69 | Dec 13, 2006 08:13pm | #3

   A small basic coffee table with just a touch of inlay.  I have some scraps around the garage that I thought I may as well turn into something profitable:)

1. 
   user-196729 | Dec 13, 2006 08:59pm | #4

   Use a darker inlay for the table and you will see the contrast you are looking for. 

3. 
   mudman | Dec 13, 2006 09:08pm | #5

   Ash is the obvious choice. Remember that there are three or four common Red Oak species. They all have different tones, but the same basic grain structure. I think the heavy open grain of Oak would not look nice against the finer structure of cherry or Maple. I would try Bubinga. It has open pores, but the grain is a lot lighter.

   Pardon my spelling,

   Mike

   Make sure that your next project is beyond your skill and requires tools you don't have. You won't regret it.

4. 
   9619 | Dec 13, 2006 09:42pm | #6

   Ron,
   About 35 years ago, I bought some oak and some cherry from a farmer up by Binghamton, NY. My wife saw a dry sink in an antique shop. We went back to get it but it was gone. Via a photo, I reproduced it with the wood that I had on hand. It is still in our den. I get lots of compliments on it. For the life of me, I can't remember what stain I put on. There are two drawers and two doors. Each has fronts which came from the doors on kitchen cabinets on a house that had been torn down. I stripped them. Nice patina. The back of the dry sink is about five feet tall, so almost two feet of the back "shows". That is the cherry that I got from the farmer. The body of the dry sink is oak.

   When I have described it to woodworkers, I have gotten loud guffaws about the different grains of the two woodw not being a match. But, son of a gun, it looks good to my wife.

   I am going to post a photo of the oak and cherry dry sink in the Gallery in a few minutes. I guess I could have posted it here, but I always wanted to have a piece of my furniture in the same show as Rob Millard. (Last sentence was meant to be humorous. I will never be in the same class as Rob, as you will see from the photo.)

   Good luck,
   Mel

   Measure your output in smiles per board foot. 

5. 
   Radio Flyer | Dec 13, 2006 11:09pm | #7

   Ron, I just completed a dresser from 1/4 sawn red oak and black walnut.  I was skeptical when I started the project.  The case and drawer fronts are oak and the top and pulls are walnut.  I used Tried and True finish according to an article in FWW.

   I have many compiments on the dresser and would not hesitate to use the combination again.  The finish really compliments these two woods and brought them together nicely.

   Glenn

6. 
   BilljustBill | Dec 14, 2006 05:11am | #8

      I spent several months hunting, looking, and reading many forums and books on woodworking workbenches, plus trying to find woods that would work in form and function....

       I built mine from recycled hard Maple for the majority of the tops, but from watching David Marks'  "Woodworks", I saw one of his workbenches that had some straight lines of darker wood.  This blend helped eye appeal as well as gave a common reference line from one end to the other to help when working or gluing a project.

      I used the darker heartwood of White Oak and air dried Black Walnut for those long reference lines.  To help carry a trim line around the workbench apron and across the Veritas twin screw wooden vise jaws, I used a 3/8" thick board of Black Walnut between both the Maple and the White Oak's heartwood.  This blend became more appealing when I used Waterlox for the workbench tops' surface finish.

      Up until I added the two twin screw vises, the recycled materials for all the 2" thick Maple tops and the Oak/Walnut trim and raised panel doors, the work bench cost me $450.   The two vise kits (on sale over a period of 2 years) and the recycled Maple/Oak/Walnut for the four 2"X8"X 36" wood jaws added another $400.   I don't think I could buy this size of 12' by 36"  "T-Shaped" workbench, or its weight and mass, anywhere for a total of $850, plus the woods used blend well in color and work well together in their texture and hardness.

      Bill

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   Edited 12/13/2006 9:14 pm ET by BilljustBill

   
   

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   Edited 12/13/2006 9:20 pm ET by BilljustBill

   
1. 
   rjones69 | Dec 14, 2006 05:23pm | #9

   Is the majority of that top maple??  Sweet vise!! if you don't mind me asking how much?

1. 
   BilljustBill | Dec 14, 2006 07:17pm | #10

   Yes, tops are a majority of Maple.   The twin screw vise kits came from the local Woodcraft. I used the birthday card's 10% Off discount on one, and the other was on sale for around $125. 

   http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=3077

     The other vises (Wilton and Columbian) were found at the local monthly flea market and close out at the local HDepot).  The majority of the the Veritas jaws are Maple, but the "T" end of the workbench has White Oak heartwood, so I used some of the same Oak to blend with the workbench top's Oak lines.  Then, I used a cutoff cross section of the work bench, and inlaid it in the edges of the two vise jaws so its endgrain was facing up.  I used thin CA and soaked the engrain.  The combination of the super glue and the Oak/Walnut/Maple endgrain makes the jaw edges much more durable.

   Here's a shot showing the vise jaws and a tool tray.  The tool tray sides are of White Oak heartwood, and the bottom of the tray uses 1/2" thick cross sections of workbench endgrain bonded to 1/2" plywood.

      Bill

   Edited 12/14/2006 11:24 am ET by BilljustBill

   
2. 
   9619 | Dec 15, 2006 01:37am | #13

   Bill,
   Your workbench must have its own zip code. It is absolutely gorgeous! Great work. Thanks for showing it.
   MelMeasure your output in smiles per board foot. 

1. 
   BilljustBill | Dec 15, 2006 03:11am | #14

         '96

      Thank you for your kind words.  I built the workbench to be mobile, to have storage for the hand and small power tools you need close to your workbench, and to use one end of it as an assembly table.

      I've found that if you can watch for materials, supplies, and tools along the way, when it comes time to start a shop project or a furniture project, you have enough "inventory" and tooling to work with.  Plus, as this practice is strung-out over days,weeks, months, and even years, the costs are often small and within one's monthly workshop budget.

      One final comment.  I was so lucky to buy at a public auction, a 2X4 pine top workbench from the "Manual Arts" Dept. of the University I graduated from.  Looking at its vise, leg support, and worn top, I saw that I needed to add a thin shelf at my design's lowest point and between the locking casters.  There, I store flat sheets of Masonite to be pulled out and used as a protective cover for those heavy metal objects and greasy repairs needed around the house.  When I'm finished, I store the 1/4" Masonite out of the way and use the Maple tops for woodworking....  Hope the pictures spur your ideas and those of the original poster's needs, too.

      Season's Greetings,

      Bill

7. 
   jackplane | Dec 14, 2006 07:43pm | #11

   Oak is a neutral color, so any wood will compliment it. Where it differs from most is its pronounced ring-porous grain.

    

8. 
   Knotscott | Dec 14, 2006 07:50pm | #12

   I made a jewelry box from red oak and quartersawn lace wood trim, and we really liked the way to two woods looked together.  Not a stark contrast, but more contrasting than just a complimentary wood.