Wood ID??

[obxdiver]

Storm did a number ont the cabin sole (that's boat talk for the floor). Turned out they went cheap and glued thin slats to plywood, rather than planking it, and it didn't like getting wet very much. It all had to be ripped out and replaced.

Anyway, I never paid much attention to it and had just assumed it was teak and holly. After bringing out in the daylight and running it through a planer, though, I'm not so sure. Boatyard guy insisted it wasn't teak but didn't know what it was. Wondering if anyone can look at these pictures and tell me what this is. It's a heavy, dense hardwood.

 

[Danagawa]

I think ipe

 

[AllanD]

Are the darker strips the same wood as the lighter ones but not planed yet? Or are the lighter ones the wood you thought was the holly?
The lighter is definitely not holly.
My best guess may be that the darker wood looks like Sapele.

 

[Bill Clemmons]

Here is a link that might help: Hobbit House. My first thought was Sapele, but I'm no expert.

Here is another source: Wood Database.

 

[Robb Parker]

Commonly refered to as Luan. Generic for phillipine mahogany, african mahogony or sapele. Sapele being the best. Other two fairly soft. Diffentately not teak or holly. Ipe hard as a rock and typically browner, my experience.

 

[obxdiver]

Are the darker strips the same wood as the lighter ones but not planed yet? Or are the lighter ones the wood you thought was the holly?
The lighter is definitely not holly.
My best guess may be that the darker wood looks like Sapele.

It's all been planed and the same wood, or at least used in the same role. The holly is not in the picture. It was just narrow strips between the wider, darker boards.

 

[Jeff]

I'm grasping at straws here but a little Sherlock wood detective work is always fun and challenging. How old is the boat and where was it built?

1. The lighter colored "holly" wood may be a type of white oak, like live oak (Quercus virginiana). Common to coastal NC and often used for boatbuilding.

http://www.wood-database.com/live-oak/

2. The other wood is a mystery too with votes for ipe and sapele. Ipe is a much darker brown while sapele may be closer with that reddish color in your pics.

Can you weigh some pieces of specific dimensions (i.e., lbs/cubic foot).

	lbs/cubic foot, dry weight
Live Oak	63
White Oak	47
Sapele	42
Ipe	69

Do you want to replace the cabin sole with solid planks of the same species?

 

[CrealBilly]

Luan



http://www.popularwoodworking.com/projects/mahogany-and-its-look-alikes

 

[Skymaster]

toss it all and just go back with white oak

 

[obxdiver]

I'm grasping at straws here but a little Sherlock wood detective work is always fun and challenging. How old is the boat and where was it built?

The boat build info won't help: The original sole was still underneath and turned out to be non-skidded fiberglass. The full extent of my info is that the wood was put in in the neighborhood of 10 years ago by a cabinet maker in Florida. I guess if I wanted to know bad enough, I could track down the owner of the boat at that time, find out who did the work, and contact them for an answer, if they're still in business.

1. The lighter colored "holly" wood may be a type of white oak, like live oak (Quercus virginiana). Common to coastal NC and often used for boatbuilding.

http://www.wood-database.com/live-oak

The holly is not in the pic and I'm reasonably sure it's been properly identified. It was just narrow strips that will probably end up in the trash at any rate.

2. The other wood is a mystery too with votes for ipe and sapele. Ipe is a much darker brown while sapele may be closer with that reddish color in your pics.

Can you weigh some pieces of specific dimensions (i.e., lbs/cubic foot).

	lbs/cubic foot, dry weight
Live Oak	63
White Oak	47
Sapele	42
Ipe	69

I'll try to remember my calipers and postal scale next time I head to the boatyard and see if I can come up with a density measurement.

Do you want to replace the cabin sole with solid planks of the same species?

I wanted to go back with teak and holly, but have you seen the price of teak lately? Too bad what was pulled out isn't teak. I'd be sitting on a small fortune in wood. Anyway, after paying for a Cummins 370, installation, etc., and a paint job, it was already over budget before the flooding turned the sole into a wavy, warped mess. Who would have thought you needed the bilge pumps on and the garboard drain plugged while it was sitting on land? Anyway, it's already been replaced with that new fangled plastic stuff that looks like teak and holly planking.

 

[obxdiver]

Luan

View attachment 21701

http://www.popularwoodworking.com/projects/mahogany-and-its-look-alikes

Definitely looks like lauan, but according to the article lauan is softer and I should be able to dent it with a fingernail. This stuff is hard as a rock and a fingernail won't leave any impression at all. A Penn 80 once fell about 4 feet and landed on it without leaving a mark.

 

[Jeff]

Who would have thought you needed the bilge pumps on and the garboard drain plugged while it was sitting on land?

Shiver me timbers matey this landlubber got lost with the garboard drain and had to look it up. :tinysmile_cry_t:

Wouldn't the garboard drain plug(s) be removed while it was sitting on land so there'd be no need to run the pumps?

http://www.sailmagazine.com/diy/keep-your-bilge-dry-with-a-garboard-drain-plug/

 

[obxdiver]

Wouldn't the garboard drain plug(s) be removed while it was sitting on land so there'd be no need to run the pumps?

Exactly what I was getting at. Drain open to let out the rainwater and pumps off is perfect for sitting on dry land. However, when the floodwaters come up and the boat starts floating where dry land is suppose to be, it leads to disaster. Instead of a drain to let water out, it became a hole to let water in.

 

[Rick M]

Ipe

 

[Jeff]

Gotcha! My SIL's father lives right on Hwy 12 in Frisco and this birthplace house was built about 3-4 feet off of the ground on stone/concrete pilings. As Matthew exited, the backside storm surge came across the sound and whammo! He's in the process of replacing his pickup truck and all of the appliances in the house.

Exactly what I was getting at. Drain open to let out the rainwater and pumps off is perfect for sitting on dry land. However, when the floodwaters come up and the boat starts floating where dry land is suppose to be, it leads to disaster. Instead of a drain to let water out, it became a hole to let water in.

 

[Dreuxgrad]

my first impression was "cumaru", no vote for ipe from this woodworker:wink_smil
Ed