# Wood Experts...I need some help.



## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

I have decided to use rosewood for the dark side of my chess set I'm making. The piece in the picture below has been sanded to 800 and I love the look and feel of rosewood. Here's my question. Is there a light wood I can use that is similar to rosewood for my light side? I tried white oak and poplar. Didn't like either. I need something closed grain and tight similar to rosewood. Polish rosewood to 3000 grit and you don't need anything else to make it shine. Basswood is perfect but too light weight. I would have to fill it with lead shot. Any suggestions?


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## Mahdeew (Jul 24, 2013)

Desert Ironwood.. Expensive though.


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## distrbd (Sep 14, 2011)

Maple it's hard and heavy,also white Ash.but what do I know,I'm sure the more experienced members with better recommendations will chime in.


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## ShaneA (Apr 15, 2011)

A figured or BE maple would be nice.


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## bigblockyeti (Sep 9, 2013)

Hard maple would be my first thought, tough, tight grained and polishes up well.


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## BigYin (Oct 14, 2011)

Boxwood - hard, dense, polishes well.


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## waho6o9 (May 6, 2011)

Yellowheart comes to mind.


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## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

Basswood, boxwood, yellowheart, the yellowheart would go nicely with the rosewood. I am torn…


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## Wildwood (Jul 22, 2012)

Good luck finding and Boxwood. I search the internet for some when got my thread chasing set.


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## JayT (May 6, 2012)

Hornbeam might be another possibility.


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## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

Hornbeam looks good but I've never seen any. Do they sell it? I've seen a lot of yellow heart.


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## bigblockyeti (Sep 9, 2013)

Dogwood is another tough dense and fairly light colored wood.


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## sras (Oct 31, 2009)

If you want white - holly is good. Not the hardest wood though…


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## Bogeyguy (Sep 26, 2012)

Birch, maple, cherry.


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## vikingcape (Jan 3, 2013)

How about Holly? Might be a nice white contrast


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## Woodbum (Jan 3, 2010)

Hard Maple. Very light colored, dense, and easily obtainable would be my suggestion FWIW


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## helluvawreck (Jul 21, 2010)

DKV, I'd just keep it simple and use maple. If you can go somewhere where you can pick it out it would be better. I really do like maple and use it for a lot of things.

helluvawreck aka Charles
http://woodworkingexpo.wordpress.com


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## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

Basswood is the right color, tight grained and it sands very smooth. However, it is very light and I'm afraid it might dent. CA glue might solve the denting problem and a drilled hole with lead or steel shot would solve the weight problem. How do woodcarvers, who love basswood, get around the above problems? Thanks again for all the suggestions.


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

Did anybody say Osage orange? Saw one as I was driving and thought of this.


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## JayT (May 6, 2012)

> Did anybody say Osage orange? Saw one as I was driving and thought of this.
> 
> - firefighterontheside


Biggest problem with Osage is that over time it will darken to a coppery brown that isn't going to contrast enough with the rosewood. It polishes up great on turnings, though.


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

I wasn't sure of the color part. I knew it was light colored. I've seen baseball bats made out of it. It looked yellowish then, but didn't know it darkened to copper color.


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## JayT (May 6, 2012)

Yep, it can start out VERY yellow as seen here where I was building a mallet.










And here is a plank that has been exposed for a while. It will get a few shades darker than this as it ages some more.










Keeping Osage completely out of sunlight can slow down the darkening, but it will change to that orange coppery brown.


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## johnstoneb (Jun 14, 2012)

Hard Maple light colored, close grain, hard, will polish well.


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## Nubsnstubs (Aug 30, 2013)

If you live in the desert, try Palo Verde. Reasonably heavy, stays pert near white, is reasonably hard. Stinks if green, but loses odor quickly…....... ........ Jerry (in Tucson)


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## JAAune (Jan 22, 2012)

Woodcarvers that use basswood do so only in projects where hardness and durability are not an issue. Sculptures that are displayed but not handled are one example. Most old carvings I've seen on more functional works such as band organ facades were done in poplar which isn't the toughest, but it's reasonably resistant to dents.

The chess set I've seen that was purchased by a relative had boxwood pieces for the white side. I've seen hornbeam on Two Cherries chisels but not anywhere else. Apparently ironwood and hornbeam are one and the same if Wikipedia is to be believed.

Hard maple would certainly work but if you want something super dense and hard, acrylic-infused maple is a possibility.


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## BigYin (Oct 14, 2011)

Lemonwood Timber is a tropical hardwood from the family Betulaceae. Latin Name: Calycophyllum candidissimum Distribution: Cuba, Central America, tropical South America. It is excellent for carving. Used as an alternative to lancewood for turnery, tool handles, the top joints of fishing rods, archery bows, billiard cues, superior joinery and cabinet work. The wide sapwood is white to light brown in colour with a small light olive brown variegated heartwood. The grain varies from straight to very irregular, with an exceedingly fine and uniform texture. It is a hard, heavy, tough and resilient timber with a very good bending classification, high bending and crushing strength and medium stiffness. Weighs 820 kg/m3 (51 lb/ft3); specific gravity .82. Lemonwood dries well with little degrade and small movement in service. Non-durable; the heartwood is non-resistant to decay. Other Names: Degame lancewood (UK); lemonwood (USA).


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## wormil (Nov 19, 2011)

Take a look at holly. Below you can see it paired with walnut:


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## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

I was leaning towards boxwood until I saw this…


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## runswithscissors (Nov 8, 2012)

I seem to recall that lilac is quite a light colored wood; I know it is close grained and dense.


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## mpax356 (Jul 30, 2011)

When you say "like Rosewood", do you mean an oily exotic that is typically just sanded and polished? There may be some but none I have used that come to mind. As suggested hard maple would be good. Depending where you live, Bradford Pear would do well but might oxidize to more of an orange than you might like. Both of these would require some finish to hold up to the constant use a chess set might get. Hornbeam would be nice if you can find it. Neither B Pear or hornbeam are likely to be found commercially.


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## EPJartisan (Nov 4, 2009)

I would vote for Lilac or HopHornbeam…. the two both have really tight and beautiful grain, both are shrubs, very dense, and heavy.


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## Nubsnstubs (Aug 30, 2013)

DKV, would you like a piece of Palo Verde? For postage, I'll send you a piece. Interested, contact me at [email protected] Give me your largest Od, and I'll track some down in 10 minutes…...... Someone mentioned Lemonwood. I didn't get if it's citrus, of just a name for wood, but wood from a lemon tree is fairly hard, and almost white. I think it's an extremely faded yellow, but I'm also color blind. It could be blue for all I know.. ............ Jerry (in Tucson)


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## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

mpax, yes, a wood that when sanded to a fine grit will shine on it's own and just needs a little wax. Comparable to rosewood but for the white side.

Nubs, I'm making a trip to the hardwood distributor tomorrow. If I can't find what I want I will take you up on your offer.

Thanks all for your help. Sometimes I'm serious.


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

For something small like chess pieces, have you considered using walnut sapwood? Either walnut or pecan sapwood has a unique texture and can be a very solid color ranging from cream to almost pinkish with blue/grey streaks.


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## NoThanks (Mar 19, 2014)

I didn't read all the answers but maybe you could find a wood close to the color you want and then bleech it to a lighter color.
Just another thought!


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## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

Hard maple turned and sanded to 3000 grit. Rosewood and hard maple it is. Thanks for all the suggestions.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

Not sure if anyone suggested Pear

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-PC-BKMTCHD-FIGURED-CURLY-PEAR-LUMBER-688-/251664617067?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a98614e6b


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

This Flame birch would look cool too

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-4-FLAME-BIRCH-2-boards-/171480187054?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27ed0400ae


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## jumbojack (Mar 20, 2011)

Hard maple. Woodcraft on Folsom Blvd had plenty two weeks ago.


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## DKV (Jul 18, 2011)

jumbo, do you find that Hughes is typically cheaper than Woodcraft?


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## hairy (Sep 23, 2008)

Ash is a bit open pored, like oak, but cleans up well. Heavy and strong. Pecan is good and hard, in the hickory family. It's kinda creamy white with some light brown. You can't go wrong with sugar maple. Hard, heavy, nice light color.

Ash is probably the lightest color of that bunch.


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## Mahdeew (Jul 24, 2013)

How about empress tree. I have a bunch you can have.


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## jumbojack (Mar 20, 2011)

DKV. I do find Hughes a skosh cheaper but not much. Since Woodcraft is between my house and the fishing grounds I seem to stop there more often. I am on a lumber buying mission this week. I have not got a specific project in mind but the wine boxes pretty much wiped out what little lumber I had. Hughes will definitely be on my visit list this week.


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