Working with Inland rosewood help

**Turtle81** · 29th June 2017, 06:35 PM

Hi, I got a great looking biscuit of inland rosewood (Acacia rhodoxylon) last weekend for a coffee table (550x370mm) without realizing just how hard it is ! Possibly not the best timber to use as my first live edge project using only hand tools ....

I have since been fighting to level the top, I only need to take 2-3mm off the top to make it level and remove the saw marks. I have used my record 4.5 plane with it either biting in or skipping across the top, my LN62 low angle plane with 50deg blade that worked better but still was taking very fine short shavings and was hard to keep a good finish with due to grain changes, a hand scraper was the most successful but got blunt very fast and was slow going and lastly my random orbital sander with new 60grit paper that did a great job of polishing the timber and hardly took anything off.

Just wondering if there are any tricks to working such hard timber or should i give up and make a sled and pull my router out to do most of the leveling? I would prefer to do it by hand though.

Thanks

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**bench1holio** · 29th June 2017, 08:16 PM

Hey Turtle, The biscuit you've got there is actually Western rosewood ( Alectryon oleifolius ) also known as boonaree
just thought id let you know

**Turtle81** · 29th June 2017, 08:47 PM

Ohh it was labeled as inland rosewood by the seller at the Sydney wood show.

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**Turtle81** · 29th June 2017, 09:05 PM

Ok they both can be called inland rosewood, thanks for letting me know

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**clear out** · 29th June 2017, 10:06 PM

As this is end grain you are going to have fun with any hand tool.
Try a belt sander with 30 or 40 grit belt at slow speed for starters.
The dust is probably very irritating so wear a decent powered breather and goggles to keep it out of your eyes.
H.

**Turtle81** · 29th June 2017, 10:20 PM

If I had access to a belt sander, I only have basic hand tools and a router and orbital sander as I have very limited space and noise considerations unfortunately

The advice about the dust is noted for sure, will do thanks

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**Luke Maddux** · 30th June 2017, 12:42 AM

There is a special, poorly insulated corner in Hell for working Inland Rosewood end grain by hand. It's hard for me to think of a more difficult task than planing off three mm of the end grain to a nicely finished, flat surface. I would DEFINITELY enlist the help of some electrons in one form or another.

**dai sensei** · 30th June 2017, 12:30 PM

Originally Posted by bench1holio

Hey Turtle, The biscuit you've got there is actually Western rosewood ( Alectryon oleifolius ) also known as boonaree
just thought id let you know

I agree, definitely not Inland Rosewood that is an Acacia, they don't grow that large and look totally different. If you think that is hard, wait to you get some Inland Rosewood LOL.

Like all the desert hardwoods, they are not only hard but also high in silica and take the edge off tools quickly. How old was the sandpaper you used, it won't last long on this stuff and once blunt just burns and polishes rather than sanding. Mind you 2-3mm is a lot for this stuff, so I agree with Luke, some power will be required.

**Kidbee** · 30th June 2017, 02:09 PM

Originally Posted by Turtle81

If I had access to a belt sander, I only have basic hand tools and a router and orbital sander as I have very limited space and noise considerations unfortunately

The advice about the dust is noted for sure, will do thanks

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You could make a router jig to level it. Plenty of stuff on the web including Youtube.

**Turtle81** · 30th June 2017, 02:15 PM

Im thinking that's what I'm going to do, hope it leaves a nice flat surface so I don't have much finishing to do lol

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**IanW** · 4th July 2017, 09:13 AM

Common names! Alectryon (formerly Heterodendron) oleofolium is commonly known as "Western Rosewood" in its own region. It's the one I came across first, so I was nonplussed when I came across some obviously different wood labelled "Western Rosewood". With help from the blokes in the "Timber" section, I got it sorted, it was Acacia rhodoxylon. Does anyone know how many different "Rosewoods" there are there in this country? At least half a dozen that I know of get 'Rosewood' in their common names. Only a couple belong to the same genus, and none of them belongs to the genus (Dalbergia spp.) that woodworkers in other countries think of as 'Rosewoods'. If the seller is able to tell you the botanical name of a wood, it can save much confusion later, and makes life so much easier if you decide you want more of the same...

Having worked with both the "Western" & "Inland" rosewoods, I can vouch that Alectryon is a good deal easier to plane than its Acacia cousin, and with a decent hand-plane or two, I reckon you could get a polishable surface on your 'biscuit'. But surely there is someone in your orbit, or a local mens' shed or similar that has a drum sander? You can then concentrate your woodworking skills on the undercarriage.

Cheers,

**elanjacobs** · 4th July 2017, 10:17 PM

Originally Posted by dai sensei

If you think that is hard, wait to you get some Inland Rosewood LOL.

We have a sample of it at work; looks and smells fantastic, weighs as much as a boat anchor and is just as hard as one.

**Turtle81** · 6th July 2017, 06:49 PM

Thanks for the help, over the weekend i decided it was a hard enough timber for it to be no fun doing by hand And ended up making a sled and using some electrons to flatten the top with my router, now to choose a more easily worked timber for the undercarriage lol

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**elanjacobs** · 6th July 2017, 06:59 PM

Here's some real Inland rosewood straight off the buzzer
IMAG2464.jpg

**Turtle81** · 6th July 2017, 08:55 PM

That's some real nice looking timber, shame it's tough as nails !

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