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MANGO

Mangifera spp.
Mangifera spp. of the family Anacardiaceae, including at least the following: Mangifera altissima, Mangifera coccigera, Mangifera caloneura, Mangifera foetida, Mangifera indica, Mangifera minor, Mangifera solomonensis, Mangifera sylvatica, and Mangifera zeylandica

Correspondent Pete Morrison tells me that working mango is very similar to working with maple but that it is not a very hard or tight-grained wood and can be quite dusty when sanding. No problems with dulling tools and takes finishes quite well but the wood may chip if worked too aggressively.

Assuming all of the colors seen on this page are correct, mango has a large variation in color from light tan to brown and reddish brown. Mango is known (as are many fruit trees) for having gum deposits fairly often. Near the bottom of this page there are some made objects that show spots. These are gum deposits. The gum deposits can sometimes be confused with spalting, as mango does also show blackline spalting sometimes.

my samples: NOTE: these pics were all taken in very bright incandescent lighting ("soft white" at 2700K) colors will vary under other lighting conditions

both sides of a sample plank of Hawaiian mango / Mangifera indica --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by David Clark whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site. The vendor has labeled this "curly" but it is not curly at all, it just has some very nice wavy grain. The labeled side is raw but the 2nd side has been sanded to 240 grit and so shows details better.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of mango / Mangifera indica --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by David Clark whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of mango / Mangifera indica --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by Mark Peet whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


both sides of a sample plank of mango / Mangifera indica --- HUGE enlargements are present.


end grain and HIGH GRIT END GRAIN CLOSEUP of the piece directly above


both sides of a sample plank of mango / Mangifera spp. --- HUGE enlargements are present. This sample was loaned to me by David Clark whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from directly above


three views of a piece of mango, taken before I removed the coating of shellac that was on them when I bought them. The full set, with the shellac removed, is directly below.


both sides of a sample plank of mango / Mangifera spp. --- HUGE enlargements are present. The dark areas are probably some kind of fungal infection (spalting). I thought at first that they were bark inclusions but on closer examination, that seems unlikely.


end grain and HIGH GRIT END GRAIN CLOSEUP of the piece directly above


both sides of a spalted sample plank


end grain and end grain closeup of the piece directly above


END GRAIN UPDATE from the other end of the piece directly above


face grain closeup of the piece directly above


mango thin-wood being used in a guitar being built by my friend John Cooper. Both levels of enlargement are present.

Note: the following 4 pics were provided by Pete Morrison who assures me that the color is accurate.

small curly plank with furniture polish finish


two planks


a pen that Pete Morrison turned

---

The Wood Book pics


flat cut, quartersawn, end grain
mango (Mangifera indica) from The Wood Book --- both levels of enlargement are present for all 3 views

web pics:

log cross section


slabs listed as Hawaiian mango


planks


both sides and a closeup of a plank listed as mango / Mangifera indica


planks all from the same vendor and all listed as mango / Mangifera indica (which is sometimes called "common mango")


plank listed as mango / Mangifera indica


planks all rough-cut with a chainsaw


curly mango slab with blue stain


planks listed as curly mango / Mangifera inidca --- these show up better in the enlargements


mango cutoffs --- both levels of enlargement are present


pen blanks


curly Hawaiian mango guitar-back thin-wood with both enlargements for both pics


scales


bookmatched mango crotch scales with a color that I find unlikely (oversaturated)


spalted scales


plank listed as splated


planks listed as chocolate-heart Hawaiian mango


planks and scales listed as curly Hawaiian mango


bowl blanks of mango, all from the same vendor. The first three are curly, the 4th one is mottled and the 5th one is a basket weave mottle.


mottled mango


mango planks listed as curly but which are actually mottled


mango plank listed as curly --- I'd call it mottled but the "curly" designation is not totally unreasonable.


mango planks, all from the same vendor, with most of them being figured one way or another


planks of figured mango, all from the same vendor and all with HUGE enlargements present (and the figure shows up much better in the enlargements)


plank listed as curly Hawaiian mango`


slab listed as curly mango with worm holes


slabs, all from the same vendor and all listed as black mango but I can't find any academic source that uses that name so I assume it's just another name for regular mango (and the wood certainly looks identical to regular mango)


mango planks that are listed as curly and actually ARE curly


figured mango turning stock


plank listed as spalted Hawaiian mango


bowl blank listed as hawaiian mango


veneer


veneered cabinet


burl turning stock and closeup from Functionhouse (thanks)


mango log section with burls around the side


pen blanks listed as mango burl


pen blanks listed as wild Laos mango


spalted mango guitar back and a mango guitar set with just white rot spalting


bookmatched curly mango paddle


pepper mill of spalted mango


platter and bowls


turned box made with spalted mango


curly mango pen


small bowl (3" across at the top)


bowl listed as spalted Hawaiian mango


candle holders


two views of a box ... to see that it IS a box, realize that the top and bottom overhang the sides by quite a bit and these pics are taken from an angle above and in front of the box.


mango natural edge (but debarked) table --- both levels of enlargement are present