Hardest wood on earth

[Wood Doctor]

It may not be the hardest, but Lignum Vitae is the densest of them all. The bearing grade version was used for years to make bearings for ship propellers. Lignum vitae is hard and durable, and is also the densest wood traded (density: 1.23 g/cc); it will easily sink in water. On the Janka Scale of Hardness, which measures hardness of woods, lignum vitae ranks highest of the trade woods, with a Janka hardness of 4500 lbf (compared with African Blackwood at 2940 lbf, Hickory at 1820 lbf, red oak at 1290 lbf).

I have a 4 x 4 chunk of Lignum in my shop, about 2' long that I acquired 10 years ago from a friend. Not sure what I should do with it. I'm welcome for suggestions.

 

[VinceGU05]

All I do with porting is.

Squish reduction, widen intake, widen exhaust, muff mod. Don't touch the transfers.

Same plus timing advance.

 

[KiwiBro (deleted)]

Dry Puriri (Vitex Lucens). Not sure if it has ever been tested for its hardness but it sinks and was used as bearings in water pumps back in the day. Last time I dropped a dead standing one, it took 3 x 20" chains.

That and some dry gum. Don't know what type but the chain just seemed to bounce off it.

 

[Brewz]

The video I posted in the first page of this thread was one of the 2 major branches off this main iron bark trunk section.
It is rotten up the middle but I am gearing up to take some slabs off it.

The land owner saved it from the fire wood cutters for me.

So looks like my first milling job will be in a 4 to 5' thick chunk of some of the hardest wood there is.

 

[CR888]

You know your in for a bit of work when a freshly ground chain just slides sideways when you try to cut a log lol.

 

[Iron.and.bark]

The video I posted in the first page of this thread was one of the 2 major branches off this main iron bark trunk section.
It is rotten up the middle but I am gearing up to take some slabs off it.

The land owner saved it from the fire wood cutters for me.

So looks like my first milling job will be in a 4 to 5' thick chunk of some of the hardest wood there is.


View attachment 27070

Can you debark it first?

 

[Brewz]

Can you debark it first?

I am going to try
Its been down for a month or 2 so it will probably be too dry now.

I am thinking I may ask him if we can find a smaller tree to practice on first

 

[Terry Syd]

You know your in for a bit of work when a freshly ground chain just slides sideways when you try to cut a log lol.

But you also know that wood is going to make some great firewood, if you can figure out how to cut that damn thing.

 

[KiwiBro (deleted)]

You know your in for a bit of work when a freshly ground chain just slides sideways when you try to cut a log lol.

Another long-day predictor I came across recently, which I should have known better and avoided but just had to have a crack anyway, is when you go to buck a gum log into rings for splitting and you are creating noodles just cross cutting it. Lasted about an hour trying to split it before just cutting the whole lot up into firewood sizes instead.

 

[Brewz]

I have some gum rounds out back of the house that I cut up, type unknown but its a yellow/white timber.
I can't split it.
It takes 10 to 15 hits with the splitter to crack it.
I am going to noodle it up into burn size bits with a saw. I just cant be fudged half killing myself for a trailer load of wood.

I also like to save bags of noodles for fire starting, works better than news papers

 

[Terry Syd]

before just cutting the whole lot up into firewood sizes instead

Yeah, I do a lot of that. I like a saw that can noodle without clogging up the sprocket side cover, I've modified a few side covers to handle that kind of work.

 

[Hinerman]

I have a 4 x 4 chunk of Lignum in my shop, about 2' long that I acquired 10 years ago from a friend. Not sure what I should do with it. I'm welcome for suggestions.

Make a helluva night stick...

 

[redtractor]

How long does this wood take to season so it will burn properly?

 

[jake wells]

with the grain being so tight in aussie wood im sure it doesn't have much moisture in it anyways.

 

[VinceGU05]

do you want me to cut it up for you?.. i have half a dozen loops of carbide 3/8 25"
splitting is good exercise.. love it.

 

[Terry Syd]

splitting is good exercise.. love it.

I don't mind 'splitting', it is 'just denting' that I avoid.

 

[Brewz]

I like to use my 026 but it pulls so many noodles they block the side cover.

I think I will fit the 16" 325 bar up to my 066 with a 9 pin and see what it will do for some fun
Then again maybe not. The noise that thing makes will have the cops at my house in no time.

I have a 372 and 268 that need testing and tuning after full rebuilds so I will stick my 22" 3/8 bar on them and kill 2 birds with one stone

 

[Brewz]

How long does this wood take to season so it will burn properly?

It depends on the timber but the real dense stable stuff that doesn't crack properly can take a year once split.

A general rule of thumb is an inch a year.

The timber I am burning now was felled 16 months ago and split 12 months ago and left to sit in the heat of summer to dry.

It is only just ready

 

[Brewz]

I don't mind 'splitting', it is 'just denting' that I avoid.

Nothing like laying into timber and the timber handle on your splitter splits in stead of the log.

Mine has layers of duct tape holding the handle together.

Duct tape can fix almost anything!!!

 

[CR888]

I cut split & stacked 5 ton of Redgum
I don't normally cut much redgum & it was so nice and easy to cut. Chain would self feed & pull itself through the wood, I got over a tank of fuel before swapping out chains....it was just nice to work with. Well seasoned, burns nice but its not what I'd call real hardwood. There's easy 10 other species I prefer over redgum but its nice to have a few types to burn.Some really hard stuff and some softer faster burning wood to get the fire going when it dies down.