"ok" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 15 Apr 2005 10:06:59 +0100, "Tim W"
wrote:


Jatoba aka Courbaril aka Locust:

Are you sure about this? I heard locust grows in Eastern Washington,
Wa state, usa. They used it for fence posts 60 years ago and it's
still good, they just flip it over and plant it for another 60. The
stuff I saw represented as Locust varnished to a honey blond and is
supposed to darken after exposure to sunlight. It didn't have much
personality at all but is supposed to be durable and strong.



World Woods in Colour, William A Lincoln, 1986:

Courbaril, Bot name - Hymenaea courbaril

Distribution - Central and South America, West Indies.

"The heartwood is salmon red to orange brown marked with dark brown and
russet brown streaks. The wood has a golden lustre"

It doesn't sound like what you are describing and doesn't grow in the US but
he doesn't list any other timber known as Locust.

Tim W

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 06:54:29 GMT, ok wrote:



"Joe Bleau" wrote in message
. ..
With the prices and scarcity of teak I am just wondering if anyone
here has tried using Jatoba (aka Brazilian Cherry) as a substitute?
Or, how about Ipe (Sometimes called Brazilian walnut). Informed
comments appreciated.

Not informed until I became curious enough to look them up in a book:

Jatoba aka Courbaril aka Locust:

Are you sure about this? I heard locust grows in Eastern Washington,
Wa state, usa. They used it for fence posts 60 years ago and it's
still good, they just flip it over and plant it for another 60. The
stuff I saw represented as Locust varnished to a honey blond and is
supposed to darken after exposure to sunlight. It didn't have much
personality at all but is supposed to be durable and strong.



Jatoba is definitely a tropical hardwood and bears no resemblance to
locust. That's why I asked for informed comments.

"Joe Bleau" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 06:54:29 GMT, ok wrote:

Jatoba is definitely a tropical hardwood and bears no resemblance to
locust. That's why I asked for informed comments.

Informed comments is what you got and what you might have learned is that
niether jatoba nor locust are words which reliably identify timbers. But
then if you really wanted reliable information you wouldn't have asked
complete strangers with time to waste like me would you?

Tim W

I used Ipe to rebuild the bowsprit on my Pearson 365. It's been on
about a year. So far so good. It's less splintery after it weathers.
Carbide tools are a must!!!

gordon