Thread: Malaysian Brushbox V Aus Brushbox

Originally Posted by BaggyRed

Not sure if this is the right forum - however I am looking at laying my own boards - and just wanted to know if there was a material difference between malaysian brushbox and aussie brushbox?

there certainly is a materially different price on both of them!

your help is appreciated?

I used to get this call all the time when I answered the 1800 info line at Boral Timber. There is no such thing as "Malaysian Brushbox" the species being marketed is better referred to as Northern Box and it's far more similar in colour to Turpentine then Brushbox. The grain will be coarse in places and the texture is often inconsistent ranging from the fine tight interlocked grain you get in Brushbox and Turpentine to coarse textured stuff like you get in Meranti.
The floor wont look the same as Brushbox but it will still be nice however the colour is closer to that of Jarrah - deep reds to browns.

When we were trying to market it we made some sample panels and laid them side by side in the sales office and after a few weeks the Northern Box had gaps you could slide a 20c coin through while the Turps & Box were still tight.

This isn't characteristic of the species but of the uncertain milling & drying standards in some Malaysian mills.

Typically Northen Box would cost the on seller about 30% - 40% less than Brush Box or 20% - 30% less then Turpentine so don't get ripped off.