open main page for all woods open page 2 for articles
ARTICLES
Various articles that have one of three types of content as follows:
INFORMATION ABOUT THIS SITE
acknowledgements --- When folks send me wood samples or contribute pics to the site, I always give credit with the pics but this is a broader thanks to a lot of the people who have done that.
bogus color vendor --- a discussion of the absolute master of misrepresentation of wood
color correction, digital cameras, eBay pictures, etc. --- a discussion of why I started this site in the first place and why you may not get what you think you are buying if you buy wood on eBay or from Internet vendors.
computer monitors and colors --- a discussion of why you are likely to see pretty much what I see when I post pics to this site (but I could be wrong)
end grain --- a discussion of the end grain pics found on this site
end grain UPDATE --- an update to the discussion of the end grain pics found on this site using a newer technique
general discussion about this site --- A discussion of the purpose, methodology, and goals of this site.
image files, how they are handled on this site --- a detailed description of how I manipulate images for this site and why I do so.
image files for posting --- How to set up image files for posting on web sites.
links --- A few links to non-commercial wood sites and wood reference sites.
prejudices (mine) and how they affect this site --- A brief discussion of why it is that if you use stain to change the color of wood I will hunt you down and hurt you, and other personal rants.
site history --- Notes about the stages the site has gone through over the years.
site statistics --- A page of statistics about the site that is automatically generated every time I run the software that recreates the site, which I do fairly often to accomdate whatever new pics I have added.
standards --- This site doesn't use standards much but it's a topic I'm interested in and this is a great description of how they evolve.
INFORMATION ABOUT WOOD
acronyms and abbreviations --- a fairly extensive list of the acronyms used in woodworking (but NOT including social-media type acronyms such as "LOL")
book reviews --- reviews of some books on wood
coffee tree vs honey locust --- a discussion of the characteristics of each and how you can tell them apart.
color changes in wood --- a discussion of the kinds of color changes that occur in woods, what causes them and what, if anything, can be done to prevent them.
common names and botanical names of wood --- a discussion of how common names, botanical names, and trade names used for woods are created. See also wood names
The ebonies --- a discussion of the genus Diospyros of the family Ebenaceae, the ebony family
"figure" and "grain" --- a discussion of these commonly used terms and how I use them (includes an extensive discussion of their causes)
GLOSSARY --- A heavily illustrated glossary of wood and woodworking terms with hyperlink cross-references among terms.
the look of processed wood --- images of the various ways processed wood looks
lumber prices --- In the summer of 2008 I compiled a list of prices of some of the most readily available domestic and exotic woods from a number of vendors that advertise their price lists on the internet. This is just intended as a rough general guide to the range of prices you might encounter for those woods. It is not exhaustive and I do not intend to keep it up to date.
sycamore / lacewood / leopardwood / silky oak / and the kitchen sink --- a discussion of name confusion among some woods with large ray flakes.
mahogany names (Swietenia and Khaya species) --- A discussion of mahogany names including "true", "genuine", and "American" in addition to the more formal names and a discussion of the history of mahoganies in the Americas.
The rosewoods --- an illustrated discussion of the rosewoods and some substitutes
satinwood --- a discussion of the various woods that have "satinwood" as all or part of one or more of their common names, and the two that actually ARE satinwood.
wood identification using wood anatomy --- A heavily illustrated guide to those aspects of wood anatomy that can be used in the shop with nothing more than your eyes, a sander, and a 10X loupe (and if you're lucky, JUST your eyes) to identify different kinds of wood.
wood name database --- A Windows database application sitting on top of a database of 170,000 wood name pairs (botanical and common) that is a free download from this site.
wood names and buying wood --- a discussion of botanical names / common names / trade names as they relate to identifying and buying wood. See also common names and botanical names of wood
wood toxicity --- a discussion of some possible dangers of working with wood and a list of woods that create the problems.
wood terms described with pictures --- several terms having to do with the ways in which woods are categorized by appearance, and some other wood related terms, are explained and illustrated with pictures, cartoons, and my usual uninformed remarks and wise cracks.
wenge vs panga panga --- a discussion of the similarites and differences in appearance of wenge and panga panga, two closely related species from the genus Millettia.
veneer production and buying guide --- A discussion of how veneer is made and how it is sold.
WOOD NAME DATA SETS --- various sets of botanical/common names
ash species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the ash species (genus Fraxinus) of North America and their English-language common names
aspen and poplar species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the aspens & poplars (Genus Populus) of North America and their English-language common names
elm species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the elm spieces (genus Ulmus) of North America and their English-language common names
fir species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the fir spieces (genus Abies) of North America and their English-language common names
maple species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the maple species (genus Acer) of North America and their English-language common names
oak species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the oak species (genus Quercus) of North America and their English-language common names
pine species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the pine species (genus Pinus) of North America and their English-language common names
spruce species --- a set of lists (one by species, one by common name) of the spruce species (genus Picea) of North America and their English-language common names