Brazil Cherry is a very beautiful reddish brown wood, with an interlocking grain and a golden luster beneath. It is a hard, heavy and very strong wood. This species is one of the most popular imported species due to its inherent beauty, rich color and superior hardness.

BOTANICAL NAME:

ORIGIN:

South America – Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, Suriname, Nicaragua, Mexico, Guatemala, & the Caribbean

COMMON NAMES:

Jatoba, Paquio, Guapinol, Brazilian Cherry, Jutaby, West Indian Locust, Copal, Jatoba-Curuba, Jutai, Jutai-Acu, Jutai-Grande, Courbaril, Guapinol, Locus, Red-Locust, Rode-Locus.

JANKA HARDNESS:

2350

DIMENSIONAL STABILITY:

Average – Change Coefficient .00300 – 19% more stable than Northern Red Oak.

RELATIVE ABUNDANCE:

Information currently unavailable.

INTERESTING FACTS:

Brazil Cherry grows to an average height of 120 feet with diameters of 2-4 feet. Jatoba is often referred to as Brazil Cherry although it is not a cherry wood.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

Brazil Cherry / Jatoba wood is an attractive burgundy, deep red, or orange, some of it has dark stripes, but not all. It has a texture similar to bloodwood. It is not as porous as mahogany but harder and denser. The heartwood varies in colour from a salmon red to an orange brown when it is freshly cut which darkens to a red brown when seasoned. Jatoba is frequently marked with dark streaks. The sapwood can be wide and is much lighter in colour – either white or pink and sometimes gray. The wood has a natural luster, with a medium to coarse texture. It has no obvious taste or odor. The heartwood is rated as only moderately resistance to attack by fungi and marine borers. The wood is relatively stable once it has been dried properly.

COLOR CHANGE:

Like domestic cherry, Brazil Cherry will change dramatically over time from the tannish salmon color when freshly milled into a deep rich reddish color. In direct sunlight, the color change will occur within a few days. Out of sunlight, it will oxidize slowly over six months. Water based finishes tend to retard the color change while oil based finishes enhance it.

MAIN USES:

Brazil Cherry is often used in flooring but it also is ideal for stair treads, athletic equipment, tool handles, railroad ties, gear cogs and wheel rims. Can also be used for carpentry, cabinet making and general woodworking .

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES:

Grain is interlocked, texture is medium, durable in contact with the ground, notable for its hardness, no distinctive odor or taste.

WORKING PROPERTIES:

Difficult to plane, medium to sand, good bore and very good to turn. Good gluing, finishing and steam-bending properties. Finishes well with paint and varnish. Polishes well.