- Common Name(s):Honduran mahogany, genuine mahogany, big-leaf mahogany, Brazilian mahogany, American mahogany, Caoba
- Scientific Name:Swietenia macrophylla
- Distribution:From Southern Mexico to central South America; also, commonly grown on plantations
- Tree Size:150-200 ft (46-60 m)tall, 3-6 ft (1-2 m) trunk diameter
- Average Dried Weight:36.8 lbs/ft3(590 kg/m3)
- Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC):0.52, 0.59
- Janka Hardness:900 lbf(4,020 N)
- Modulus of Rupture:11,710 lbf/in2(80.8 MPa)
- Elastic Modulus:1,458,000 lbf/in2(10.06 GPa)
- Crushing Strength:6,760 lbf/in2(46.6 MPa)
- Shrinkage:Radial: 2.9%, Tangential: 4.3%,
- Volumetric: 7.5%,
- T/R Ratio: 1.5
Doors & Windows, Fine furniture, Natural Forest Timber, Tonewoods
Honduran Mahogany / Caoba
Swietenia macrophyllagoes by many common names, yet perhaps its most exclusive name is “genuine mahogany”—a name meant to distinguish it not only from unrelated Asian species (such as those in the Shoreagenus that are sometimes called Philippine mahogany), but also the more closely-relate. .
Honduran mahogany’s easy workability, combined with its beauty and phenomenal stability have made this lumber an enduring favorite. It’s an incredibly important commercial timber in Latin America, where it’s now grown extensively on plantations.
| Color/Appearance | Heartwood color can vary a fair amount, from a pale pinkish brown to a darker reddish brown. Color tends to darken with age. Mahogany also exhibits an optical phenomenon known as chatoyancy. |
|---|---|
| Grain/Texture | Grain can be straight, interlocked, irregular or wavy. Texture is medium and uniform, with moderate natural luster. |
| Rot Resistance | Varies from moderately durable to very durable depending on density and growing conditions of the tree. (Older, wild-grown trees tend to produce darker, heavier, and more durable lumber, while plantation-grown stock can be lighter in weight, paler in color, and slightly less rot resistant.) Heartwood is generally resistant to termites, but vulnerable to other insects. |
| Workability | Typically very easy to work with both hand and machine tools. (With exception to sections with figured or irregular grain, which can tearout or chip during machining.) Slight dulling of cutters can occur. Sands very easily. Turns, glues, stains, and finishes well. |
| Odor | No characteristic odor. |
| Allergies/Toxicity | Although severe reactions are quite uncommon, Honduran mahogany has been reported as a sensitizer. Usually most common reactions simply include eye, skin and respiratory irritation, as well as less common effects, such as boils, asthma-like symptoms, nausea, giddiness, and hypersensitivity pneumonitis. |
| Pricing/Availability | Despite export restrictions, Honduran mahogany continues to be available in lumber or veneer form, ideally from plantations. (Though because of CITES restrictions, most US-based retailers are unable to ship the wood internationally.) Prices are in the mid range for an imported hardwood, though the wood tends to be more expensive than African Mahogany. Figured or quartersawn lumber is also more expensive. |
| Sustainability | This wood species is in CITES and is on the IUCN Red List. It is listed as vulnerable due to a population reduction of over 20% in the past three generations, caused by a decline in its natural range, and exploitation. |
| Common Uses | Furniture, cabinetry, turned objects, veneer, musical instruments, boatbuilding, and carving. |
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