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 Post subject: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2019 1:58 pm 
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Mahogany
Mahogany

Joined: Wed Jun 29, 2011 9:34 am
Posts: 52
First name: Steve
Last Name: Blower
City: Keighley
State: West Yorkshire
Country: UK
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
I happened upon a lovely piece of Padauk at a local lumber shop at the weekend which I’ve been resawing over the last couple of days.

Has anyone else had bad reactions to this stuff?

It makes my nose fizz and catches the back of the throat, also a headache, but I can’t be sure the padauk is the cause.

I’ve had extraction running and even resorted to wearing the air fed hood but it still seems to be affecting me.


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2019 2:38 pm 
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Joined: Fri Jul 10, 2009 4:44 am
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First name: colin
Last Name: north
Country: Scotland.
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Quite common. - https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-allergies-and-toxicity/

Says

Padauk (Pterocarpus genus) - irritant, sensitizer, nausea, asthma

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2019 3:26 pm 
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Cocobolo
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Joined: Wed May 04, 2016 4:17 am
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First name: Gary
Last Name: Leddington
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
Yeah, its bad stuff.. pretty toxic as wood goes.

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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2019 3:27 pm 
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Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Wed Feb 20, 2008 7:15 pm
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First name: Ed
Last Name: Bond
City: Vancouver
Country: Canada
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Status: Professional
That's too bad, generally I'm fine with it. Nicest smelling wood in my shop...


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2019 8:40 pm 
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Koa
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Joined: Mon Nov 24, 2008 12:17 pm
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City: Escondido
State: CA
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Country: USA
Focus: Build
Status: Semi-pro
It also oxidizes into a not terribly attractive brown. Looks great when first cut.


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Wed May 15, 2019 7:38 am 
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Koa
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Joined: Tue Feb 26, 2008 6:19 am
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First name: Richard
Last Name: Hutchings
City: Warwick
State: RI
Zip/Postal Code: 02889
Country: United States
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
I had no problems after building a jewelry box for my wife but It's a real shame it doesn't retain it's color. It isn't worth the bother since it's going to end up brown anyway although I disagree with it not being very attractive. May as well use walnut.

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Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Wed May 15, 2019 8:41 am 
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Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2008 8:20 am
Posts: 5924
If you never knew it started out a bright orange you wouldn't be disappointed in the final color. If you are not into bright orange guitars you might actually prefer it. Like Osage it has good "tonal" properties but suffers from the "aesthetics shift" when it changes color.
Like many of the woods we work with Padauk can be an irritant and you can be more or less sensitive to it. If after taking reasonable precautions you still find yourself bothered by it you may want to avoid it.


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Wed May 15, 2019 2:12 pm 
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Mahogany
Mahogany

Joined: Wed Jun 29, 2011 9:34 am
Posts: 52
First name: Steve
Last Name: Blower
City: Keighley
State: West Yorkshire
Country: UK
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
Attachment:
18D7D6C6-F947-42C0-BFA2-DD23AF54912F.jpeg


Will any of the pattern be retained as the wood darkens? It’s been a couple of days since it was planed.


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Wed May 15, 2019 2:59 pm 
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Koa
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Joined: Tue Feb 26, 2008 6:19 am
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First name: Richard
Last Name: Hutchings
City: Warwick
State: RI
Zip/Postal Code: 02889
Country: United States
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Status: Amateur
Yes, all of it. It's just a color shift.

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Get the heck off the couch and go build a guitar!!!!


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Wed May 15, 2019 3:00 pm 
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Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2008 8:20 am
Posts: 5924
I wonder if anyone has tried bleaching padauk and then staining it?
Here is a brief article about testing various finishes to preserve the color. Surprisingly, dewaxed shellac came out on top.
https://www.woodworkerssource.com/blog/ ... the-color/


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Wed May 15, 2019 7:07 pm 
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Koa
Koa

Joined: Fri Feb 24, 2017 8:43 am
Posts: 1700
I’ve heard it can be an irritant. Fortunately it only irritates me at this point because of the red dust. I think it’s a sensitized too... right? Where you can become sensitive to it?
It sure does make a great sounding guitar though


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Mon May 20, 2019 2:06 am 
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Cocobolo
Cocobolo

Joined: Wed May 04, 2016 4:17 am
Posts: 150
First name: Gary
Last Name: Leddington
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
If you lacquer padauk it will stay reddish for quite some time i've built three with it. Oil it and it will brown within a year.

G.

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These users thanked the author Fasterthanlight for the post: Pmaj7 (Fri May 24, 2019 1:35 am)
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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Mon May 20, 2019 4:12 pm 
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Cocobolo
Cocobolo

Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 9:04 pm
Posts: 315
First name: Andy
Status: Professional
UKSteve wrote:
I happened upon a lovely piece of Padauk at a local lumber shop ...

Having worked with this wood more times than I care to embarrassingly admit, I must say I've never met a lovely piece of Padauk.


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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Mon May 20, 2019 9:19 pm 
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Cocobolo
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Joined: Sun Jun 02, 2013 8:16 am
Posts: 358
First name: Brian
City: U.P.
State: Michigan
Focus: Build
Oh the padauk negativity, and I love the stuff. I could do without the cavernous pores but the rest I like pretty much.

One of the earlier planks I bought to saw into guitar backs and sides was a 8/4 X 13 X 10' piece of padauk perfectly quartersawn and with some figure. It was 8-10 yrs ago and cost about $15/BF.

The plank in the pictures was planned by the local vendor and this piece has been leaning up against the wall outside my shop ever since. It may have darkened a little but the grain is still there as it was when I bought it. The tail end of the two bodies are on the bench now and freshly scraped. A little oranger than the plank, sure, but I like where the plank went on it's oxidation journey w/o any finish too.

I wiped a little shellac on the back cut off 2 years ago and don't think it has darkened much since. The figure has a bit of the chatoyance that snakewood does and it flashes as the light angle changes.

Nothing not to like except the pores and the paprika dust, keep the dust collection going!

Comes out of the bending process dark and blah, like many woods, but it comes right back with a little scraping or sanding.

edit, Some folks are sensitive to padauk as noted, if sensitive or after being sensitized it's probably best to avoid it cause it is possible the reaction can get worse. So many woods can cause allergic reactions, I guess you can count your lucky stars if you live a life in a wood shop and manage to avoid problems that can't be limited by easy to use PPE (protective gear).



Maybe there are different kinds of padauk, but I like what I have.

Attachment:
DSCN3548.JPG


Attachment:
DSCN3240.JPG


Attachment:
file.jpg


Cheers


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Last edited by rbuddy on Wed May 22, 2019 12:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: Padauk blues
PostPosted: Wed May 22, 2019 11:30 am 
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Cocobolo
Cocobolo

Joined: Thu Oct 27, 2011 11:28 am
Posts: 183
First name: Leonard
Last Name: Duke
City: Kalamazoo
State: MI
Zip/Postal Code: 49001
Country: USA
Focus: Repair
Status: Amateur
Yea, it has made me feel sick too. It might even be the smell of the stuff when you cut it... the air-fed hood ought to help. I have to stay out of my garage until I can't smell it in there anymore. Sorry I don't have any solutions. Besides the obvious dust control, I work with all the doors and windows open.


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