What is milante?

[azamiryou]

PSI's "EZ Mini Pen Blanks" bundle includes a wood they call "milante". They don't offer this wood separately, and searching the web for Milante turns up leather products and a common last name. "Milante wood" turns up pens made with it, but nothing at all about the wood. "Milante tree" turns up mainly names (in family trees, I guess).

So what is it? Is there a more common name for it? Any info on the species?

 

[azamiryou]

Mystery possibly solved?
Philippine Mahogany | The Wood Database - Lumber Identification (Hardwoods)

Philippine Mahogany is apparently also known as Meranti. There are several varieties, and what PSI sells as Milante looks quite a bit like the photos of "Light Red Meranti". (The other types seem to lack photos.)

I know in several Pacific languages, there's no distinction between consonant 'r' and 'l' sounds. Romanization of vowels is not always consistent. It's very easy to imagine that a word that sounds like "meranti" in a Pacific language may be romanized as "milante".

Later I'll see if I still have a piece to check the endgrain under magnification.

 

[NotURMailman]

I've been looking all over for a place to buy one or two Philippine Mahogany blanks without spending an arm and a leg. I've been wanting to make a pen for a coworker who is from the Philippines and is very proud of his heritage. I have tried searching for Meranti, let us know what you figure out. Perhaps I should be searching for it misspelled as "Milante".

 

[KBs Pensnmore]

If you want some Light Brown Meranti, I have some that is 3/4" thick, about 4" wide 4' long. Can cut into various lengths if required
Contact me if you want some, prepared to swap for some other pen blanks to cover postage?:biggrin:
Kryn

 

[azamiryou]

I've compared a piece of "milante" I have to the wood database's photos of light red meranti. My piece is considerably darker. The side grain structure looks similar. The light weight and working properties are as described. I haven't been able to get a good look at the end grain on my piece because it's pretty ragged, and sanding almost seems to make it worse. (According to the wood database, "some rough or ragged surfaces may be left while sanding" - so this seems to be a data point in favor of it being meranti.) What little I can tell of the end grain, it looks like it could be similar to the photos, but again, much darker.

The wood database has no photos of dark red meranti, but Exotic Wood meranti has photos of several varieties. On my piece, the end grain looks a great deal like the first four endgrain photos there, which don't seem to exactly match the "dark red meranti" sample on the same page.

I believe what I have here is one of the species called "meranti" (of which there are apparently many), and probably in the "dark red meranti" group. It's definitely not light red, white, or yellow.