![]() ![]() Where the wood comes fromĪs mentioned earlier, there are a number of tree species around the world that can produce lumber that resembles and is locally called zebrawood. Because of its hardness, it has been fashioned into skis and tool handles. In the not too distant past, it clad the dashboards of Cadillac and Mercedes-Benz vehicles. It’s also seen in handgun grips and exotic guitars. History in woodworkingĪs a decorative wood, zebrawood has been used in a limited way for veneer, wall paneling, custom furniture, inlay bandings, marquetry, specialty items, boxes, and turned objects. Quartersawing the logs always adds to the striped appearance. Some zebrawood has highly variable stripes with some lines much thicker than others. The stripes may be relatively consistent in some pieces but not others. The lighter background generally ranges from cream to soft golden yellow. ![]() Zebrawood’s dark stripes can range from shades of brown to black. These have thick bark and produce heavy, hard, coarse-textured heartwood of wonderful color and luster that’s also resistant to termites and other insects. It wasn’t until the early 1920s that the “zebrawood” term used in North America applied to Microberlinia brazzavillensis, a tree from West Africa, which today is the only source.Īfrican zebrawood comes from trees that grow up to 150' tall with trunk diameters of 4' to 5' feet. Still, European and American furnituremakers called it zebrawood until about 1860. The wood here, however, proved to be a species we now call goncalo alves. The wood became an immediate hit with English cabinetmakers, and it continued to be imported until 1786, when the British settlers could no longer supply the wood.īecause of the demand for this wood, another source had to be found, and one was in Brazil. At that time, it came from the Caribbean coastal region of what is now Honduras and Nicaragua and may have been a different species than the zebrawood we know today. So-called “zebrawood” was first mentioned in international trade in 1773 when it showed up in British customs records. Scans/Pictures: A special thanks to Steve Earis for providing the turned photo of this wood species.You can’t always tell a wood by its stripes. However, the wood is much more frequently used for its bold and unique striping. Other uses include: tool handles, furniture, boatbuilding, and skis.Ĭomments: Sometimes called Zebrano, the wood is strong and stiff, with a fairly high density. (A closely-related, lesser-used species in Cameroon, Microberlinia bisulcata, is also listed as critically endangered.)Ĭommon Uses: Zebrawood is frequently quartersawn and used as veneer. It is listed as vulnerable due to a population reduction of over 20% in the past three generations, caused by a decline in its natural range. Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices, but is on the IUCN Red List. Pricing/Availability: Zebrawood tends to be fairly expensive, though usually not as prohibitively expensive as other exotics such as Ebony or Rosewood. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information. Usually most common reactions simply include eye and skin irritation. ![]() Odor:Has a characteristic, unpleasant smell when being worked.Īllergies/Toxicity: Although severe reactions are quite uncommon, Zebrawood has been reported as a sensitizer. Zebrawood glues and finishes well, though a transparent pore filler may be necessary for the large open pores which occur on both dark and light surfaces. Workability: The wood saws well, but can be very difficult to plane or surface due to the prevalence of interlocking grain. Rot Resistance:Heartwood is rated as durable and is also resistant to insect damage. Grain is usually wavy or interlocked.Įndgrain: Diffuse-porous large to very large pores in no specific arrangement, few to very few solitary and radial multiples of 2-3 heartwood deposits (brown) occasionally present narrow rays not visible without lens, normal to close spacing parenchyma diffuse-in-aggregates, unilateral, vasicentric, winged, lozenge, and confluent, and banded (marginal). Grain/Texture:Has a fairly coarse texture and open pores. Depending on whether the wood is flatsawn or quartersawn, the stripes can be either chaotic and wavy (flatsawn), or somewhat uniform (quartersawn). Shrinkage: Radial: 7.6%, Tangential: 10.8%, Volumetric: 17.8%, T/R Ratio: 1.4Ĭolor/Appearance: Heartwood is a light brown or cream color with dark blackish brown streaks vaguely resembling a zebra’s stripes. Scientific Name:Microberlinia brazzavillensis Zebrawood (Microberlinia brazzavillensis) ![]()
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