randyrls
Member
I came across a term "Janka Rating" this morning. When I searched on the net, I found this article from Wikipedia. It makes for some interesting comparisons.
Janka Wood Hardness rating
- Thread starter randyrls
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mark james
IAP Collection, Curator
I used this to explain to my son why he was having more trouble than usual - He was using Lignum Vitae. Dude, sharpen your tool!
dartman
Member
Thanks.That is an interesting list.
robutacion
Member
I very aware of that hardness rating scale and I get requests constantly to supply the Bull-Oak or Buloke, as it is known also for and the #1 wood in that scale, a long way up to its next contender. People see me advertise the She/Bull-Oak and think that is the same thing.
While it has the same resemblance in colour, rays etc., these one of mine was man made (generically blent but a local nursery) many years ago, and experiment that was looking a success for the first 15 years and then, all of a certain, the trees started to die, anyway long story that I told many times before.
While it has the resemblance, it hasn't the hardness, I would say, about 3 times softer while still being a very heavy and dense wood so, an ideal candidate to be sold as the real thing, as I see some fellow trying but, I have done a lot of work to inform people of the differences, hoping that they don't get ripped-off.
Its availability is very scars as this is a desert type wood, and a quite small tree in size, one of the reasons to its extreme hardness (I have 1 piece of the real thing that is not for sale). Was the crazy prices people were/are prepared to pay for it that, made every man and their dogs going out and cut any they found, today the few left are in national parks, reserves, and in a few limited private properties own by "naturalist"/greenies so, they won't cut them but, get cut anyway by poachers, the same with national parks and reserves.
The internet world as indeed worked against these species, and this same phenomenon applies to thousands of other things that can very easily now be searched on the web, how they look like, ideal habitat and areas of its presence disclosed for anyone to see, that takes these poachers right to the areas disclosed, regardless of who owns them.
Like so many other "things" that are either extinct or almost reaching that status, are all the result of putting a high price on their "heads" is always someone prepared to take the risk, when good money is offered however, in this particular case, that I know deeply, is all unnecessary if people realised that, 90% of those curious about the Buloke and going to any extremes to get some, aren't going to be able to do anything with it, as they don't have the tools/equipment to handle it and in fact, that hardness becomes a nightmare and tools destroyer that results is most cases, for the wood to be put aside and never touched again, serving no purpose to anyone.
Was all that trouble and expense, really necessary...??? I keep asking this question, no one has had the guts to answer it to me...!
Some people will be wondering, what in the hell, am I going on about..??? lets see how long it takes before the #1 wood species in the Janka rating list, to be mentioned...!
Well, I'm going ahead from experience, and answer the questions I know will come up, been there, done that...!:wink::biggrin:
Interesting hardness/density list, though...!
Cheers
George
While it has the same resemblance in colour, rays etc., these one of mine was man made (generically blent but a local nursery) many years ago, and experiment that was looking a success for the first 15 years and then, all of a certain, the trees started to die, anyway long story that I told many times before.
While it has the resemblance, it hasn't the hardness, I would say, about 3 times softer while still being a very heavy and dense wood so, an ideal candidate to be sold as the real thing, as I see some fellow trying but, I have done a lot of work to inform people of the differences, hoping that they don't get ripped-off.
Its availability is very scars as this is a desert type wood, and a quite small tree in size, one of the reasons to its extreme hardness (I have 1 piece of the real thing that is not for sale). Was the crazy prices people were/are prepared to pay for it that, made every man and their dogs going out and cut any they found, today the few left are in national parks, reserves, and in a few limited private properties own by "naturalist"/greenies so, they won't cut them but, get cut anyway by poachers, the same with national parks and reserves.
The internet world as indeed worked against these species, and this same phenomenon applies to thousands of other things that can very easily now be searched on the web, how they look like, ideal habitat and areas of its presence disclosed for anyone to see, that takes these poachers right to the areas disclosed, regardless of who owns them.
Like so many other "things" that are either extinct or almost reaching that status, are all the result of putting a high price on their "heads" is always someone prepared to take the risk, when good money is offered however, in this particular case, that I know deeply, is all unnecessary if people realised that, 90% of those curious about the Buloke and going to any extremes to get some, aren't going to be able to do anything with it, as they don't have the tools/equipment to handle it and in fact, that hardness becomes a nightmare and tools destroyer that results is most cases, for the wood to be put aside and never touched again, serving no purpose to anyone.
Was all that trouble and expense, really necessary...??? I keep asking this question, no one has had the guts to answer it to me...!
Some people will be wondering, what in the hell, am I going on about..??? lets see how long it takes before the #1 wood species in the Janka rating list, to be mentioned...!
Well, I'm going ahead from experience, and answer the questions I know will come up, been there, done that...!:wink::biggrin:
Interesting hardness/density list, though...!
Cheers
George