African Blackwood

[jd99]

Have a guy at work that wants to sell me some african black wood for pens.

Anyone ever used this to make pens, and how expensive is it.

Thanks
Danny

 

[yorkie]

One of my favorite woods. See if he has any black/white pieces. I pay about $4-$6 per blank for good stuff.

Polishes real nice, must use MM down to 12k. BLO it and it can sometimes get a purple sheen.

Looks nice on a wall street II in black chrome for an all black pen.

 

[Fibonacci]

I agree, it is beautiful for pens and jewlery.

The low grade wood runs about $1/blank. You can get good pieces for $3/$4 a piece, but they more commonly run in the $6-ish range for high end pieces.

My personal preference is for the mixed color pieces, but a lot of people prefer the all black sections.

 

[Joe S.]

I tried it once for 1$ at woodturningz.com (it was an all dark piece), it's a nice wood and I'm going to use more soon. Im also curious about ebony and black-and-white ebony, but I heard it's hard to work.

 

[gbpens]

The highest grade of blackwood goes into musical intruments. Medium grade, (almost black), and low grade, (brown black) have a variety of uses with pens being one of them. It turns well, polishes well and takes a nice finish. Very dense and gives off a fine dust when being turned. Available in pen blanks but can be purchased in turning squares from Berea Hardwods which comes out to about $1 per pen. Quality varies so ask for the best they have.

 

[tokyotank]

I turned this Churchill from African Blackwood. First time I used it but definatley won't be the last. Turned very smooth , take small passes. I actually wet sanded this pen to 12000 and used Crystal coat. The wood is awesome. Do yourself a favor and try it , it will soon become one of your favorites.

 

[Younka]

I love african blackwood, its one of my favorite woods, I have payed anywhere from $2-$25, the $25 one would be AAA African Blackwood burl which is very hard to come across!

 

[Russianwolf]

one warning,

African Blackwood is a Dalbergia. Rosewood family. Many are or become sensitive to it. Dust mask is a must even if you have a decent DC system. I know some that break out if the dust even gets on their skin.

I love the stuff as well as other Rosewoods. Wonderful wood and I use it often, just take some precautions so your enjoyment of it isn't cut short for health reasons.

 

[Ted iin Michigan]

I, too, have turned this wood and really like it a lot. One thing not mentioned above is that it is one of those "oily" exotic woods (from Africa, no less, who would've thought?). As such, getting the finish you want can be problematic. I did some bottle stoppers last year and tried to finish with polyurethane. Bad idea - it'll never cure. Remedy? I always wipe down with DNA and apply thin CA as soon as I can after that. For larger than a pen, I'll then apply a 1# cut of shellac before any other finish. Others will suggest Acetone in lieu of the alcohol. Good luck, I betcha love it!

 

[wiset1]

I've done some segmented work earlier on with it and really liked it a lot! If you can get some i think you'll be happy with it.

 

[reiddog1]

Love the stuff

Here's a shot of some I used on a segmented piece. Wish I had more.

 

[InvisibleMan]

Last night I finished my first segmented/scalloped blank, with African Blackwood as the primary component (other than my fingertips, which I hope to grow back soon!). It's blackwood and holly, so should be a great contrast. I'll post photos when finished for further evidence if I don't blow it up.

Edit: I hope mine turns out as nice as the above!

 

[Brooks803]

It turns very easily. Sharp tools and don't build up heat while drilling and you'll be good. It is an oily wood so before finishing wipe it down with some DNA to help apply a CA finish.

Segmented with some Lignum Vitae:

 

[SCR0LL3R]

I made my first blackwood last week and dropped the damned thing and chipped the CA TWICE!!!

It does make a nice pen, but as soon as I wet and wiped it to get the oil out, I got some dark oil color into the sapwood. I guess one should be careful to avoid doing that.

Beautiful job on that one Brooks!

 

[Brooks803]

Thanks Keith! And thanks for the tip about the sapwood. Good thing to keep in mind for sure!

 

[bitshird]

A beautiful wood, and it can be a pain to CA, but some will rival Ebony, the better wood will cost 4.00 to 6.50, also it can share some of the EVIL traits of Ebony. like cracking, three months after the pen was made. and it was a gorgeous BLACK as midnight piece that had been in my shop for a couple of years, although it had been sealed in wax, so I guess the wood wasn't to blame.

 

[Chatham PenWorks]

After doing this for 2 years, the 1 blank I most wish I had back is a blackwood blank. If I'd known how beautiful the polished blank would be, I never would have let my sister pic it for her slimline. The chatoyence was simply amazing. Brings a tear to my eye every time I think about it.

 

[fred holsclaw]

all my tool handel are black wood
they take a tap very well

 

[randywa]

I love blackwood. The last piece I bought was 4 3/4"x 5 1/2"x 1 3/8" and cost $18. As was already said, the black will bleed into the lighter colors, especially when sanding. I've learned to turn it down and then soak it with thin CA to seal it before sanding. Sometimes I have to soak it 3 or 4 times. Here are a couple of pens with blackwood and holly. On the black one you can see the bleeding.

 

[keithbyrd]

I agree with others - it is a great wood to turn and finish. I have made 4-5 pens and finished with CA and have had no problems. I get a box from west penn hardwoods 10 blanks for $30 with free shipping.