Thread: A Log for ID

Mulga would be my guess.
Cheers WC

Inland rosewood.

Bark is wrong for Inland Rosewood, Gidgee and a lot of Mulgas & Lancewoods I know. Could still be an Acacia but my guess would be an ironbark

Don't think there is any Mulga 'just west of Ravenshoe', Luke, unless the locals are REALLY stretching their country miles!

I'd be pretty sure it's an Acacia, but no idea which - there are just so many of them, and so many look pretty similar when reduced to a half log! The best hope of an accurate id is if the supplier or someone from the area sees your post, and can nail the precise species for you. Otherwise it's a "dry country Acacia".....

Cheers,

Edit: I agree with Neil, I think A. rhodoxylon is definitely out - it has a peculiar scaly bark which I've not seen on any other Acacia - see here for a pic...

grain looks to open or not tight enough for iron bark , though the bark looks close and the border between the sap wood and the heart wood is not sharp enough for iron bark , well the iron bark that we have around here anyway . the timber grain looks more like one of the blood woods .

johno

Maybe look at a more 'eastern' woodland wattle like Acacia aulacocarpa and A. disparrima. Most of the wattles mentioned above are from western downs, southern brigalow and channel country. Ravenshoe is stony northern upland, rather different country.

The photos on Google images for A. aulacocarpa are very similar to this wood. The common name is Brown Salwood.

Anyone have any thoughts on this?

It does look a bit like Mulga but if it came from just west of Ravenshoe, I'd guess Sally Wattle.

Originally Posted by redmower

Maybe look at a more 'eastern' woodland wattle like Acacia aulacocarpa and A. disparrima. Most of the wattles mentioned above are from western downs, southern brigalow and channel country. Ravenshoe is stony northern upland, rather different country.

Really depends on how far 'just west' is, redmower. The country immediately around Ravenshoe itself is hardly what I'd call 'stony' - it's mostly basaltic soils, but it does change very quickly as you go west off the Tablelands toward Mt. Garnet. There is a big range of forest types along the edge of the ranges. Ravenshoe had rainforest on the eastern side of the town, grading rapidly via wet sclerophyl forest to drier Stringybark forest, then open savannah woodland. That's why I was querying how far west of the town our wood hails from - a few hundred metres could radically change your choices!

Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers

It does look a bit like Mulga but if it came from just west of Ravenshoe, I'd guess Sally Wattle.

Which 'sally wattle' you thinking, Cliff? A. melanoxylon is one of the 'sallys', and there is plenty of that around those parts in favourable spots, but the bark looks too rough to me to be Blackwood. We had some (pretty miserable) A. melanoxylon on the home farm, which is not very far away. 'Brown salwood' (A. aulacocarpa) as suggested by redmower could be a good bet, it's a pretty common species up there in suitable spots. It has a lot of different common names throughout its range....

Arrgh! It's all too hard, Acacias can be so variable over their ranges, and the wood of many is virtually indistinguishable. Bring it over sometime, Luke, and we can probably pin it down as an Acacia, if that's what it is, and you can take your pick as to which particular species or subspecies it might be!

Cheers,

Yeah, just stick with Acacia, be aware that is can crack when you least expect it, the side grain is brilliant, the end grain just sucks light & oil.

Hah, ok ok. As much as I'd like to know exactly what species I guess at some point I have to just accept that it's just "A cool wood".

I think it'll make some great chisel handles.

Cheers, fellas.

Originally Posted by Luke Maddux

.... it'll make some great chisel handles......

Absolutely.

It's not aulococarpa (wrong bark), crassicarpa (too far off the coast) melanoxyn (wrong grain and colour) or mangium (too red and no enclosures).

If it's softer my bet would be Acacia auriculiformis, off some creek bank in that deco country up along the Wild River or over towards the head of the Tate. Also every stony ridge in that country has Acacia Shirleyi - northern lancewood- on it and the bark looks spot on for that but the grain looks too open. If the seller said lancewood that's what it'd be.

Auriculiformis is might have a faint brown sugar smell to it if it's green.

Originally Posted by John.G

..Acacia Shirleyi - northern lancewood- on it and the bark looks spot on for that ..

Based on TTIT's site (http://www.ttit.id.au/treepages/lancewood.htm) the Shirleyi's bark is far more stringy I thought, but you've certainly seen more than me

Originally Posted by John.G

Auriculiformis is might have a faint brown sugar smell to it if it's green.

Acacia Auriculiformis is a real possibility now you mention it