Some are from shrubs or other plants that do not render wood in planks, so their use is limited to a sapling or branch for a club or staff. Guaiacum officinale lignum vitae, guaiacum, guayacan pfaf. Its durability in submerged or groundcontact applications is. Turners choice lignum vitae turning blanks turning. Above sea level, lignum vitaes remarkable hardness made it perfect for chopping blocks, blockandtackle assemblies, and casters. It is a stunning tree which produces beautiful blue flowers, either solitary or in clusters. The heartwood is very resistant to attack by decay fungi, termites, and marine borers. Magical properties of wood for wands spellsofmagic. Its also the worlds densest wood, and has such unusual properties that the uss nautilus, the worlds first nuclearpowered submarine, has its aft main shaft strut bearings made out of the stuff. Because of oily resins, requires special surface treatments for satisfactory gluing.
Lignum vitae is regarded by most to be both the heaviest and hardest wood in the world. Posted in rknives by udarkeive 56 points and 6 comments. Lignum vitae, latin for tree of life, is the national tree of the bahamas. Please refer to the catalogue or timberlines shop for uptodate prices. This portal is an active b2b website for all wood suppliers and their products like wood. Is best all that makes the wood database unique, distilled into one potent book. Click on the company names below to view their product listings and contact information. For the true woodworker, there is nothing more important than creating a project from the right wood stock. Greenish brown to brown with a tight and pronounced interlocked grain, very dense, waxy with selflubricating qualities, hard wearing in almost all the contexts in which lignum vitae guiaicum spp. Other common names include rough bark lignumvitae, guaiacwood, pockholz, and tree of life. Lignum vitae timber, exotic hardwood whitmores timber. Pieces are very seldom seen for sale, as this tree is too small to produce commercially viable lumber.
The wood is roughly three times the hardness of oak and sinks in water. Too small to be a viable timber tree, this woods colorful grain and high density. Wood is the essential ingredient in our passionate pursuit. Early woodworking tool manufacturers relied on the wood for mallets, plane soles, and bandsaw guide blocks. The trees are indigenous to the caribbean and the northern coast of south america and have been an important export crop to europe since the beginning of the 16th cen.
Lignum vitae definition of lignum vitae by merriamwebster. Find great deals on ebay for lignum vitae and lignum vitae bowls. Shopping for exotic hardwoods, like turners choice lignum vitae turning blanks is easy at craft supplies usa. From mdf to zebrawood, woodcraft carries a full selection of domestic wood and exotic wood. Not only is it extremely strong and dense, it is a selflubricating wood. Used, lignum vitae bowls a complete set of 1930s lignum vitae bowls spangle is 2 green glass tube beads, 2 wood, 2 green glass tubes, 2 wood and a wooden headbead heat etched with lignum vitae. The common name, lignum vitae tree of life or wood of life, comes from its historic medicinal use as a remedy for conditions from arthritis to coughs to syphilis. The photos in our wood library generally show the color and texture of average samples of the woods. Tree of life or lignum vitae united states botanic garden. A piece of lignum vitae is weighed on a small digital scale.
Lignum vitae is a wood, also called guayacan or guaiacum, and in parts of europe known as pockholz, from trees of the genus guaiacum. Trade of lignum vitae is restricted in cites appendix ii. Similar in colour and weight, it lacks the desirable working characteristics of real lignum. However, lignum vitae is an exceptional wood for turning on the lathe, and finishes well. It has a characteristic oily feel due to the resin content that may be as high as onefourth of the airdry weight. Some suppliers are now saying they are selling lignum vitae when they are actually selling argentine lignum vitae or even verawood. Then i trued up a wooden plane with a lignum vitae sole.
Lignum vitae definition is the very hard heavy wood of any of several tropical american guaiacums. Guaiacum sanctum lignum vitae, guaiacum, holy wood pfaf. It set me wondering if such extremely hard woods were ever used to fabricate concertina buttons. Lignum vitae is a dark green and brown heartwood, oily texture, grain visually resembles animal fur, nice floral scent, one of the most dense woods on earth, turns and polishes wellprized by shipbuilders.
The lignum vitae tree of life grow very slowly and are small in stature. See the articles wood allergies and toxicity and wood dust safety for more information. Ironwood, aka lignum vitae, aka tree of life, or, in this very specific latin case, guaiacum officinale, is quite an impressive tree. This wood represents the end of strife and the beginning of a new, positive, cycle.
Ironwood is called olea capensis and, according to the guinness book of. The greatest legend about this wood is that merlin the wizard carried a. Lignum vitae the wood database lumber identification. Lignum vitae heartwood is dark greenish brown to almost black and sharply demarcated from the pale yellow or creamcolored sapwood. Verawood the wood database lumber identification hardwood. Timberline exotic hardwoods specialist timber lignum. Bow woods from a mathematical perspective top ten hardest woods. Its unique olive green color, delicate feathered grain pattern, and otherworldly rot resistance only serves to add to its aura. Sometimes called argentine lignum vitae, this wood is a gem.
Etsy is the home to thousands of handmade, vintage, and oneofakind products and gifts related to your search. Holywood lignum vitae guaiacum sanctum, exotic florida wood rare seed 10 seeds. The wood turns and shapes well and takes a high polish. I feel honored to actually have a piece of wood that is probably a leftover piece from one of these two masterpieces you created. We are a distributor and marketer of msr as well as other lumber products for the residential and industrial building components industry. Native to the caribbean and the northern coast of south america, lignum vitae or guaiacum officinale is a small and slowgrowing tree of about 3 12 m tall and 60 cm in trunk diameter, with a. I considered lignum vitae for a joiners mallet, but ended up using ash for now, mostly due to cost. I was at a nursery last week and found some honesttogoodness ironwood trees for sale. Lumber exotic lumber lignum vitae wood lumber global.
Among commercially available hardwoods, it is widely regarded as the heaviest and hardest wood in the world. How to tell genuine lignum vitae from argentine lignum vitae. Lignum forest products is a customer focused, value added organization specializing in msr lumber and western red cedar. Skid is a razor sharp creation inspired by mother nature. Book depository books with free delivery worldwide. Alexander, i did not see these pieces prior to asking you for a small sample piece of lignum vitae. Genuine lignum vitae and argentine lignum vitae hard maple and soft maple. The little giant plank converts any of our ladders into a simple scaffolding. The trees are indigenous to the caribbean and the northern coast of south america and have been an important export crop to europe since the beginning of the 16th century. When purchasing wood, be sure to inquire about grain and figure. Reputable wood dealers should be able to provide import documents to verify the identity of the wood and that it was harvested legally. It is also the larval host plant for lyside sulphur butterflies. Click on the links below to view wood photos, descriptions and sources.
Find great deals on ebay for lignum vitae lumber and lignum vitae wood. Also known as holywood lignumvitae, holywood or guaiacum sanctum is a one of the flowering tree species that yield the valuable lignum vitae wood. Technically verawood is bulnesia arborea, and argentine lignum vitae is bulnesia sarmientoi. Woodcraft woodshop lignum vitae bulnesia sarmientoi 1. Lignum vitae will also dull cutters, and overall is considered quite difficult to work. Before polymers, alloys and composites, the wood of guaiacum officinale, also known as tree of life, was extremely important due to its combination of strength, toughness and density. These flowers have five petals and usually measure just over a centimeter across. Finger love handmade carved natural wood hair stick carp leap gift box set fish lignum vitae wood 4. Yesterday, i heard on the radio, a passing reference to lignum vitae, supposedly the hardest known wood. It is small and slow growing, reaching only about 7 m in height with a trunk diameter of 50 cm. Like the unrelated desert ironwood, black ironwood is an. Woodfinder found 34 suppliers in our database that match your search criteria. Also, due to its high oil content and density, its very difficult to get a strong and reliable glue joint. A wide variety of lignum vitae options are available to you, such as blue.
Lignum vitae is a small, slowgrowing tree, normally 6. A study of the woods of the zygophyllaceae with reference to the true lignumvitae of commerceits sources. You sent a bigger sample than i expected and requested nothing in return. There are various reasons that a wood would not be suitable for impact training.
The energies within the wood would also be excellent for divining information from far away as well as close to home. Lignum vitae has been reported to cause skin irritation. You can also choose from anniversary, engagement, and gift lignum vitae, as well as from childrens, mens, and unisex lignum vitae there are 15 suppliers who sells lignum vitae on, mainly located in south america. In this section you can find 32 lignum vitae wood suppliers registered on our portal. Not only do we offer exotic hardwoods, we also have a full range of related items for woodturners at exceptional prices. Argentine lignum vitae bulnesia sarmientoi and verawood bulnesia arborea are not lignum vitae and are not the same as lignum vitae. Abcgems premierwoodcollection rainbow combination up to 12 different exotic hardwood precisioncut 8mm handcarved smooth cube wood beads no clasp. No matter what youre looking for or where you are in the world, our global marketplace of sellers can help you find unique and affordable options.
Products, services or species listings include lignum vitae. A study of the woods of the zygophyllaceae with reference to the true lignumvitae of commerceits sources, properties, uses, and subst record, samuel j. The companies are divided into suppliers for lignum vitae beams, lignum vitae logs, lignum vitae plywoods, lignum vitae poles, lignum vitae sawdusts. Argentine lignum vitae bulnesia sarmientoi, and verawood bulnesia arborea are two very closely related wood species that are usually used interchangably. It is best known for its extremely dense and beautiful hardwood, used in woodworking. Lignum vitae provides food and shelter for birds and is a nectar source for butterflies and bees.
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