Tropical wood · Tropical America
Angelin wood
Angelin (Andira inermis, family Leguminosae) is a tropical timber from tropical America. Dry, its Janka hardness is 1,600 lbf (7,117 N), and air-dry it weighs about 45–60 lb/ft³ (721–961 kg/m³). The figures are from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory's Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 23–24.
Other names, by country: Moca (Puerto Rico, Cuba), Cuilimbuco, Maquilla (Mexico), Barbosquillo, Arenillo (Panama), Rode kabbes (Surinam), Acapúrana (Brazil).
Key numbers
- Janka hardness, dry
- 1,600 lbf (7,117 N)
- As printed: “Janka side hardness about 1,600 lb air dry.”
- Air-dry density
- 45–60 lb/ft³ (721–961 kg/m³)
- Basic specific gravity
- 0.64 oven-dry weight, green volume
- As printed: “Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) 0.64, air-dry density 45 to 60 pcf.”
- Shrinkage, green to oven-dry
- 9.8% tangential
- Radial 4.6%, volumetric 12.5%
One source: USDA Forest Products Laboratory, Tropical Timbers of the World (Chudnoff, 1979 edition), the only published source read for this wood
Strength
Bending strength is the modulus of rupture (MOR); stiffness is the modulus of elasticity (MOE); crushing strength is compression parallel to the grain. The sheet collects these from published tests: it prints 2 data sets, from different tests and sources, so they can differ widely; all are shown, in the sheet's order, each at the moisture content printed beside it, never restated as 12%.
| Moisture | Bending strength (MOR) | Stiffness (MOE) | Crushing strength |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12% MC | 20,870 psi (144 MPa) | 2.64 million psi (18.2 GPa) | — |
| 12% MC | 17,680 psi (122 MPa) | 2.44 million psi (16.8 GPa) | 9,130 psi (63 MPa) |
A dash means the sheet prints no value; none is filled in.
What the data sheet says
- Color, grain and texture
- The narrow sapwood is pale brown to grayish yellow and usually clearly demarcated from the yellowish brown to dark reddish brown heartwood. Bands of light colored parenchyma tissue give this wood a distinctive figure. Luster rather low; without distinctive odor or taste when dry; texture very coarse; grain only moderately irregular.
- Working properties
- Angelin saws and works fairly well except that it is difficult to plane to a smooth surface because of the alternating bands of hard and soft (parenchyma) tissue. The wood works well in the lathe, holds nails and screws well, and glues satisfactorily. Polishes and varnishes well after filling.
- Durability
- Heartwood is resistant to attack by decay fungi and insects, but is only moderately resistant to drywood termites. Sapwood is highly vulnerable to powder-post beetle attack.
- Uses
- The wood is used locally for heavy construction, crossties, house framing, and exterior siding. Other suggested uses are turnery, furniture and cabinet work, parquet flooring, and decorative veneer.
- Where it grows
- Occurs throughout the West Indies and from southern Mexico through Central America to northern South America and Brazil. In most locations the tree will grow under varying rainfall and soil conditions.
Quoted from Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 23–24, a USDA Forest Products Laboratory work in the public domain.
Work it out for your project
- Rank woods for furniture with the species picker
Weigh angelin against other woods on hardness, weight, movement and color, every figure from the Wood Handbook.