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Color/Appearance: Heartwood is golden brown, frequently with bands of lighter and darker colored wood. Contrasting sapwood is pale yellow. Color tends to darken with age.
Grain/Texture: Grain is deeply interlocked. With a coarse texture and good natural luster.
Rot Resistance: Rated as moderately durable; poor insect resistance.
Workability: Tends to be difficult to machine on account of its interlocked grain. Drying checks and splits may occur if not dried with care. Turns, glues, and finishes well.
Odor: No characteristic odor.
Allergies/Toxicity: Although severe reactions are quite uncommon, lebbeck has been reported to cause eye and respiratory irritation. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicityand Wood Dust Safetyfor more information.
Pricing/Availability: Usually available as veneer or turning blanks, or occasionally as boards. Prices are in the mid range for an imported hardwood.
Sustainability: This wood species is not listed in the CITES Appendices or on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Common Uses: Furniture, veneer, turned objects, carving, and other small specialty wood items.
Comments: Sometimes traded as kokko, this Albizia species is a common ornamental tree throughout tropical regions, and yields lustrous orangish brown lumber. Because of its deeply interlocked grain, it’s difficult to plane or machine, but the divergent grain directions impart a unique banded appearance which, coupled with its golden color, makes for a truly unique hardwood.
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