Cocobolo

Last updated
Chess pieces made of cocobolo Cocobolo chess pieces.jpg
Chess pieces made of cocobolo

Cocobolo is a tropical hardwood of Central American trees [1] belonging to the genus Dalbergia . Only the heartwood of cocobolo is used; it is usually orange or reddish-brown, often with darker irregular traces weaving through the wood. The heartwood changes color after being cut and can be polished to a lustrous, glassy finish; being quite dense, sometimes having a specific gravity of over 1.0, it will sink in water. The sapwood (not often used) is a creamy yellow, with a sharp boundary between it and the heartwood.

Contents

Provenance

Cocobolo is yielded by two to four closely related species of the genus Dalbergia , of which the best known is Dalbergia retusa , a fair-sized tree, reported to reach 75–80 ft (23–24 m) in height and 3 ft (0.9 m) in diameter; [1] it probably is the species contributing most of the wood in the trade.[ citation needed ] Because of the high value of the timber, the trees yielding it have been heavily exploited, so they have become rare outside of national parks, reserves, and plantations. Only relatively small amounts of this prized wood reach the world market, and it is expensive.

Oil content

Cocobolo heartwood contains oil, which lends a strong, unmistakable floral odor even to well seasoned wood and occasionally stains the hands with prolonged exposure. The high natural oil content of the wood makes it difficult to achieve a strong glue joint, as in applying veneers or guitar fingerboards, and can inhibit the curing of some varnishes, particularly oil-based finishes. Acetone may be used to remove surface oils before gluing. [1] The oil can induce allergic reactions if inhaled or exposed to unprotected skin and eyes. This is due to the presence of allergenic chemicals such as S-4'-hydroxy-4-methoxy dalbergione, R-4-methoxy dalbergione, and other quinones and phenols. [2] A dust collection system, coupled with the use of personal protective equipment such as respirators, is highly recommended when machining this wood.

Uses

Because it stands up well to repeated handling and exposure to water, a common use is for gun grips and knife handles, and duck calls. It is very hard, fine textured, and dense, yet easily machined. The abundance of natural oils, however, causes the wood to clog abrasives and fine-toothed saw blades, like other hard, dense tropical woods. Besides its use on guns and knives, cocobolo is favored for fine inlay work on custom, high-end cue sticks, police batons, pens, brush backs, bowls, pipes, jewelry boxes, desktops and other expensive specialty items.

Musical instruments

Due to its density and hardness, even a large block of the cut wood will produce a clear musical tone if struck. Renowned for its "warm, rich palette", [3] cocobolo is used to make musical instruments, such as oboes, flutes and clarinets--especially boutique, custom barrel joints for B-flat clarinets. Other woodwind instruments, such as bagpipes (as well as the chanters of bagpipes' more basic relatives, duck and goose calls), have been successfully made using cocobolo instead of the orchestral and Celtic instruments' customary mpingo, or African blackwood, known in the trade as grenadilla. Additionally, cocobolo has been used to make fingerboards, as well as entire necks and bodies of guitars and bass guitars, having been employed as a substitute for Brazilian Rosewood since that fellow Dalbergia member was CITES listed in 1992. Additionally, cocobolo is used to an extent in building drums[ citation needed ].

Conservation

Logs, sawn wood, and veneer sheets from the Guatemalan populations of Cocobolo (Dalbergia retusa), have been listed under CITES Appendix III [ clarification needed ] since 2008. In 2011, Panama extended that listing to include all products except seeds and pollen and finished products packaged and ready for retail trade.

As of January 2, 2017, Cocobolo is protected as a CITES Appendix II [4] species, along with Bubinga (Guibourtia demeusei, G. pellegriniana, and G. tessmanni), other true rosewoods (Dalbergia spp.) and related species found in the Dalbergia genus, such as Tulipwood, Kingwood, and African Blackwood.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebony</span> Type of dense black/brown hardwood

Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus Diospyros, which also includes the persimmon tree. A few Diospyros species, such as macassar and mun ebony, are dense enough to sink in water. Ebony is finely textured and has a mirror finish when polished, making it valuable as an ornamental wood. It is often cited as one of the most expensive woods in the world.

<i>Dalbergia</i> Genus of legumes

Dalbergia is a large genus of small to medium-size trees, shrubs and lianas in the pea family, Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. It was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic Dalbergia clade : the Dalbergieae. The genus has a wide distribution, native to the tropical regions of Central and South America, Africa, Madagascar and southern Asia.

The oboe d'amore (Italian for 'love oboe';, less commonly hautbois d'amour, is a double reed woodwind musical instrument in the oboe family. Slightly larger than the oboe, it has a less assertive and a more tranquil and serene tone, and is considered the mezzo-soprano of the oboe family, between the oboe and the cor anglais or English horn. It is a transposing instrument, sounding a minor third lower than it is notated, i.e. in A. The bell is pear-shaped and the instrument uses a bocal, similar to but shorter than that of the cor anglais.

<i>Dalbergia melanoxylon</i> Species of plant

Dalbergia melanoxylon in french Granadille d'Afrique is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to seasonally dry regions of Africa from Senegal east to Eritrea, to southern regions of Tanzania to Mozambique and south to the north-eastern parts of South Africa. The tree is an important timber species in its native areas; it is used in the manufacture of musical instruments, sculptures vinyago in Swahili language and fine furnitures. Populations and genomic resources for genetic biodiversity maintenance in parts of its native range are threatened by overharvesting due to poor or absent conservation planning and by the species' low germination rates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosewood</span> Several dark-hued, dense tropical woods of the genus Dalbergia

Rosewood is any of a number of richly hued hardwoods, often brownish with darker veining, but found in other colours. It is hard, tough, strong, and dense. True rosewoods come from trees of the genus Dalbergia, but other woods are often called rosewood. Rosewood takes a high polish and is used for luxury furniture-making, flooring, musical instruments, and turnery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wood finishing</span> Process of refining or protecting a wooden surface

Wood finishing refers to the process of refining or protecting a wooden surface, especially in the production of furniture where typically it represents between 5 and 30% of manufacturing costs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingwood (wood)</span>

Kingwood is a classic furniture wood, almost exclusively used for inlays on very fine furniture. It was the most expensive wood in general use for furniture making in the seventeenth century, at which time it was known as princes wood. It is brownish-purple with many fine darker stripes and occasional irregular swirls. Occasionally it contains pale streaks of a similar colour to the sapwood, as in the picture.

<i>Acacia melanoxylon</i> Species of legume

Acacia melanoxylon, commonly known as the Australian blackwood, is an Acacia species native to south-eastern Australia. The species is also known as blackwood, hickory, mudgerabah, Tasmanian blackwood, or blackwood acacia. The tree belongs to the Plurinerves section of Acacia and is one of the most wide-ranging tree species in eastern Australia and is quite variable mostly in the size and shape of the phyllodes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Na ʻĀina Kai Botanical Gardens</span>

Na ʻĀina Kai Botanical Gardens are nonprofit botanical gardens located at 4101 Wailapa Road, Kīlauea, Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi. A variety of guided tours are offered Tuesday through Friday; an admission fee is charged for each.

Tonewood refers to specific wood varieties used for woodwind or acoustic stringed instruments. The word implies that certain species exhibit qualities that enhance acoustic properties of the instruments, but other properties of the wood such as esthetics and availability have always been considered in the selection of wood for musical instruments. According to Mottola's Cyclopedic Dictionary of Lutherie Terms, tonewood is:

Wood that is used to make stringed musical instruments. The term is often used to indicate wood species that are suitable for stringed musical instruments and, by exclusion, those that are not. But the list of species generally considered to be tonewoods changes constantly and has changed constantly throughout history.

<i>Dalbergia sissoo</i> Species of deciduous tree

Dalbergia sissoo, known commonly as North Indian rosewood or shisham, is a fast-growing, hardy, deciduous rosewood tree native to the Indian subcontinent and southern Iran. D. sissoo is a large, crooked tree with long, leathery leaves and whitish or pink flowers.

Dalbergia baronii is a species of flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is endemic to Madagascar. It is named after the English missionary and botanist Rev. Richard Baron.

<i>Dalbergia cochinchinensis</i> Species of legume

Dalbergia cochinchinensis, the Thailand rosewood, Siamese rosewood, or tracwood, is a species of legume in the family Fabaceae.

Dalbergia monticola is a species of flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is endemic to Madagascar. It occurs at higher elevation, which gave the species its name.

<i>Dalbergia nigra</i> Species of legume

Dalbergia nigra, commonly known as the Bahia rosewood, jacarandá-da-Bahia, Brazilian rosewood, Rio rosewood, jacarandá-do-brasil, pianowood, caviúna, graúna, jacarandá-una or obuina is a species of legume in the family Fabaceae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abietic acid dermatitis</span> Medical condition

Abietic acid dermatitis is a contact dermatitis often seen in association with musical instruments.

<i>Dalbergia latifolia</i> Species of legume

Dalbergia latifolia is a premier timber species, also known as the Indian rosewood. It is native to low-elevation tropical monsoon forests of south east India. Some common names in English include rosewood, Bombay blackwood, roseta rosewood, East Indian rosewood, reddish-brown rosewood, Indian palisandre, and Java palisandre. Its Indian common names are beete, and satisal. The tree grows to 40 metres (130 ft) in height and is evergreen, but locally deciduous in drier subpopulations.

Dalbergia stevensonii, also called Honduras rosewood, is a Central American tree species in the legume family. It grows in broadleaf evergreen swamp forests in southern Belize and adjacent Guatemala and Mexico. The wood is highly valuable, which has led to population loss from illegal logging.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Backun Musical Services</span>

Backun Musical Services Ltd. (BMS) is a Canadian manufacturer of clarinets in B♭ and A and accessories, based in Burnaby, British Columbia.

<i>Machaerium scleroxylon</i> Species of plant

Machaerium scleroxylon is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae Common names for the species include: pau ferro, morado, caviuna, Bolivian rosewood, and Santos rosewood. The wood is used as an alternative species to genuine rosewoods belonging to the genus Dalbergia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Cocobolo". Wood . Retrieved March 29, 2016.
  2. ↑ ""DALBERGIA RETUSA"" . Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  3. ↑ "The Howarth XL Oboe" (PDF). Oboe Chicago. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  4. ↑ "Appendices". CITES. Retrieved 2018-09-26.
  5. ↑ Allen, M., "Décor by Timothy Leary", The New York Times , January 20, 2005. Archived from the original on March 12, 2012.
  6. ↑ Jarmusch, J., Only Lovers Left Alive screenplay, subslikescript.com, 2013.
  7. ↑ Bowman, D., "Better Call Saul, 'Bingo'", The A.V. Club , March 16, 2015.
  8. ↑ Scarlata, P., "'Dead Moon Walking Adventure' Transcript", TV Show Transcripts, April 10, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.