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Working with Wenge

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16K views 40 replies 28 participants last post by  jayseedub 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Hey guys,

I am doing a project this weekend with some wenge. I know it can be pretty nasty stuff to work with, so I figured I would ask some more seasoned LJ's for some tips.

How bad is the dust?
How bad are the splinters?
How does it machine?
How does it treat hand tools?
Any other tips?

Thanks
 
#2 ·
TheWoodenOyster, not much of help, but what is "wenge". I'm new at this too, but I have never heard of it.
 
#3 ·
I had the same concerns. Recently finished some end tables.

Dust is very bad. Use a good dust collector and wear a mask.

It's not hard to cut with a good blade/bits but it is not easy to work with hand tools. Wenge is slow to sand.

It splinters easily.

Handle it as little as possible to minimize splintering.

It's beautiful when finished.
 
#4 ·
Wear a mask for dust. Wear gloves for splinters.
Ifyou have dust filtration and/or dust collection use them.
Sawdust and shavings have never caused me problems but suggest you clean up as you go.
Do not have sharp finished edges that may allow splinters.
Apply a coat of oil to make grain pop.
 
#5 ·
Thanks for the info guys.

MarkSr - wenge is a very dark, almost black African wood. It is a coarse wood and though it can finish well, it is pretty hard to handle. But, you do get the "ebony" coloring without paying as high of a price. The reason I asked about the health issues is because it is pretty well known as one of the most unfriendly woods to work with. The splinters go septic, the dust is nasty, and from my 3 minute handplane session, I can tell you that the shavings smell like a dumpster fire.
 
#6 ·
The add on to what TheWoodenOyster said:

When he says that splinters can go septic, that deserves extra emphasis. Sepsis means contracting blood poisoning, which can be hard to treat and is sometimes fatal.

I repeat, SOMETIMES FATAL.

It's beautiful wood, but that stuff can kill you if you're not careful.
 
#7 ·
BTimmons,

You are kind of freaking me out a little bit. I mean, I figured they were worse than most splinters. I don't really want to die making a croquet mallet though. Should I think twice before I start messing with this stuff? It sounds like VX nerve gas to me…
 
#10 ·
I just finished building my shooting board plane with this stuff (in my projects). What a pain!

Splinterss suck, I didn't wear gloves because I didn't know better. Definitely had splinters, lots of splinters. Definitely drew a little blood too but not much. There are still spots on my hands where I got splinters a couple weeks ago but no major damage or sickness or infection. I'm a horse though, I haven't missed a day of work for being sick in a few years. Some others might have a worse reaction. Tear out was horrible as well. I might build something with my scraps from the plane but probably will try not to find a need to buy anymore ever again. Wasn't fun.
 
#12 ·
I just finished building my shooting board plane with this stuff (in my projects). What a pain!

Splinterss suck, I didn t wear gloves because I didn t know better. Definitely had splinters, lots of splinters. Definitely drew a little blood too but not much. There are still spots on my hands where I got splinters a couple weeks ago but no major damage or sickness or infection. I m a horse though, I haven t missed a day of work for being sick in a few years. Some others might have a worse reaction. Tear out was horrible as well. I might build something with my scraps from the plane but probably will try not to find a need to buy anymore ever again. Wasn t fun.

- ki7hy
watch the splinters, they hurt, break off inside and infect quickly. I only had a couple get me and they were shallow but not fun

- Mikesawdust
so if you had to work with wenge again and chose to wear gloves, what kinda gloves would you use?
 
#14 ·
nmssis, leather gloves I suppose would stop splinters the best but I think you just need to be careful. I don't think this stuff is going to kill anyone, just pull the splinters completely and clean area right away and you should be fine.

In other words take care of yourself. BTimmons sounds like he's trying to scare you, sounds like my mother when I was 5. Just be cautious and clean your wounds and pay attention to how you feel/look as time progresses. If you feel the need to go to the Dr. don't hesitate. Personally I would choose something else in the future but not for the splinters in my skin, just the pain it is to work with. Was almost like palm which kind of sucks too.
 
#16 ·
I think people are getting a little carried away here. I've worked with it and not had trouble. It does smell bad when cutting and wearing dust protection is important with all wood. I wear gloves all the time because I have contact sensitivities, but I've not had trouble with splinters. There is also a difference between "festering" (a local infection) and "sepsis" (a systemic infection) (BTW, I'm an MD).
 
#17 ·
Wait LiveEdge, didn't you see the article the other day about the guy who died from a wenge splinter? I wouldn't underestimate this massive killer. Reports show wenge is the second leading killer world wide next to car accidents but almost double smoking deaths.

;)
 
#18 ·
I'm no pro, but I am working on my first project using wenge right now. I never noticed any odor issue, but I am pretty consistent with my use of a dusk mask and dust collector. For the most part, I haven't seen any splinters. The wood works very nicely. It was easy to get smooth surfaces and sharp corners from the planer, sander and table saw. Of course there are no substitutes for sharp tools and meticulous technique.

There was that one incident at the router table, though. One little slip and I saw a router table blow-out like I've never seen before. And then there were a lot of splinters.

I'm glad I didn't see this post before working on this project, otherwise I might have shied away from the wenge. But as it is, based on my experience, I'm going to keep using it.
 
#20 ·
I have used about 10 bdft of wenge and have not had any problems with it whatsoever. Maybe I have been lucky or maybe it isn't really wenge. :D I have read that you can get slivers just walking by it but that has not been my experience. I don't like the way the saw dust sticks to everything however.
 
#23 ·
I have used about 10 bdft of wenge and have not had any problems with it whatsoever. Maybe I have been lucky or maybe it isn t really wenge. :D I have read that you can get slivers just walking by it but that has not been my experience. I don t like the way the saw dust sticks to everything however.

- AandCstyle
would you use naptha n rag to clean?
 
#26 ·
Many years ago I carved an apron for a huge dining table, about 12'x5' or so for a furniture maker in Santa Barbara. Simple carving, kind of continuing fish scales. Don't remember how many cuts…few thousands. As others said, it splinters easily and I did sharpen my chisels frequently as each cut had to be perfect (no repairs). The final result was beautiful.
 
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