working with teak

Not sand, per se, but silicate compounds.

Yes.

It's hard on *everything*. Plus, it's pretty oily, so it's usually recommended to wipe the surfaces of joints with acetone before applying glue.

Teak is beautiful wood. So is mahogany. IMHO, teak is a PITA to work with. Mahogany isn't. Quite the contrary IME.

----------------------------------- Once you price out ranch grown teak (It's almost impossible to find Thai teak anymore) vs.Mahogany, even Honduras Mahogany, think this will be a moot discussion.

Expect ranch teak to be north of $17-$18/BF.

Teak is fun to machine, has a great smell, and totally destroys cutting tools.

If you insist on teak, worn tools are part of the price of admission.

Have fun.

Lew

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--------------------------------- Yes.

I've used maybe 1000 bf of teak. Burmese teak. Yes, it can be mildly abrasive but I've never found it to be all that bad, not hard to work, glue or finish. It does have a tendency to split if you put screws near the end; solution is properly sized shank holes and stay away from the ends.

The biggest problem with teak is the current ridiculous cost. Used to be about the same as walnut, around $1.30 bf at the time. No more. Same problem with koa which is sort of mahogany on steroids. I used to get it as low as $0.50 bf and it hadn't been cherry picked for figure; now $22 and up.

Any idea if carbide tooling deals with the silicate compounds appropriately or if even carbide is affected by them?

Worst case, a carbide saw blade might need resharpening after running a lot of teak.

Interesting. I would have to presume the same thing applies to drilling then.

Any other woods have this property to watch out for? Specifically, I'm curious about Ipe (Eepay) and any of the other "rot resistant" woods used in decking, truck floors, etc.

Regards, Joe Agro, Jr. (800) 871-5022

either mahogany or teak.

Some of the finest furniture ever built was made of mahogany. Some of the finest patio furniture ever built is made of teak.

Just my opinion but teak is way way down the beauty scale from mahogany. I've never really considered it a nice material for furniture but rather boat decks and deck chairs.

Again, all opinion.

Also, mahogany is a dream to work with.

And much less expensive than teak. I just picked up some

scott

Most decking jobs with Ipe(several different woods) is mostly a trip to the store for more drill bits and saw blades. I had a contractor friend who built a rather large(1800 sqft) deck and he told me that went through more than $300 in

The hardness is quite remarkable.

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

The various rose woods contain silicate compounds and are hard to saw or turn. Some of the resin or shaving - might be hazardous to allergic reactions.

Mar>>> Any idea if carbide tooling deals with the silicate compounds