Amboya Burl

[hsingyihsingyi]

Does anyone know who might have the best price on amboyna burl? That stuff is super high its costing me about 5.00/ blank. I may just have to go up on my olivewood and amboyna if I can't find a less expensive source.[:0]

 

[ilikewood]

I didn't know "best price" and "amboyna burl" could be used in the same sentence![8D]

Good amboyna is going to cost you no matter where you go, but I'm sure you might be able to find some under $5 per blank. You might try Dario or Rob.

 

[gerryr]

If you think Amboyna is expensive, don't even look at the price of Snakewood.[:0] Good Amboyna burl isn't inexpensive, but it's worth it.[]

 

[wudwrkr]

Jay,
How much Amboyna are you looking for. I may have some I can let go of.

 

[DCBluesman]

You can probably get some amboyna "swirl" for under $5 a blank, but the heavily eyed stuff can get very pricey. $7-8 a blank is not uncommon. As for olive, unstabilized you can find it for $3 a blank, stabilized about $5. If you have demand for pens in these woods, don't be afraid to mark them up. Fine wood, like fine wine, is an acquired taste. Once you acquire it, going back seems pointless. [8D]

 

[alamocdc]

From what I've found, Dario has the best prices when he has it. However, Woodturningz also has some nice Amboyna burl and they price match.

 

[Fangar]

I have had great luck with Lee Tree works:

http://www.leetreewoodworks.com/pen_blanks_2.htm

A super great guy to deal with and top notch wood. He charges 4 dollars a blank for his.

Fangar

 

[terrymiller]

Jay you may want to try this post I dont know if he has any left but I got 10 of each off of him and they are fantastic.
http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=12769

 

[chigdon]

There are so many degrees of quality and color in Amboyna. This is partially due to the fact that there are 2 totally different species of plants whose burls are called Amboyna [:0] (Narra & Padauk). The best way to get this (or any wood) for cheaper is find a good source for blocks and resaw it yourself. This CAN save you a lot as long as you get the right dimensions and don't have a lot of waste.

 

[hsingyihsingyi]

Great Dave. I'd like to get between 5-10 blanks if possible. What's the cost? Please advise.
thanks,

 

[hsingyihsingyi]

Thanks for the links and contacts. I'm going to check them out tonight when I get home.

 

[Rudy Vey]

They are actually not too far from being very near relatives!!
Narra = Pterocarpus indicus, is the tree where the burl form is what call "Amboyna Burl"

Praduak or Pradoo = Pterocarpus macrocarpus is also an Asian species and is sometimes also called Asian Padauk. As a matter of fact, when you turn this wood, it smells very similar to "Amboyna" burl. I have turned both the burl form and what is called "Tiger Stripe Praduak", which comes in different colors variations (like Amboyna), gold, orange and red.

I think the above two species are very often mixed up, I have turned pens from both, and very often it is hard to tell them apart, but the Pradoo Burl that I had was very deep red.

The African Padauk (Pterocarpus soyauxii) is also a relative form the same genus. Never seen any African Paduak burl, though.

Originally posted by chigdon
<br />There are so many degrees of quality and color in Amboyna. This is partially due to the fact that there are 2 totally different species of plants whose burls are called Amboyna [:0] (Narra & Padauk). The best way to get this (or any wood) for cheaper is find a good source for blocks and resaw it yourself. This CAN save you a lot as long as you get the right dimensions and don't have a lot of waste.

"