Tropical wood · Tropical America
Capomo wood
Capomo (Brosimum spp. (alicastrum group), family Moraceae) is a tropical timber from tropical America. Dry, its Janka hardness is 1,340–1,700 lbf (5,961–7,562 N), and air-dry it weighs about 45–65 lb/ft³ (721–1,041 kg/m³). The figures are from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory's Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 47–48.
Other names, by country: Masicarón (Guatemala, Honduras), Ojuste (El Salvador), Guaimaro, Manata (Colombia), Tillo (Ecuador), Muiratinga (Brazil).
Key numbers
- Janka hardness, dry
- 1,340–1,700 lbf (5,961–7,562 N)
- As printed: “Janka side hardness ranges between 1,340 lb and 1,700 lb dry.”
- Air-dry density
- 45–65 lb/ft³ (721–1,041 kg/m³)
- Basic specific gravity
- 0.55–0.72 oven-dry weight, green volume
- As printed: “Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) very variable with species ranging between 0.55 to 0.72. Air-dry density from 45 to 65 pcf.”
- Shrinkage, green to oven-dry
- 9.4% tangential
- Radial 5.1%, volumetric 15.4%
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 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green | 17,610 psi (121 MPa) | 1.85 million psi (12.8 GPa) | — |
| 12% MC | 16,050 psi (111 MPa) | 1.85 million psi (12.8 GPa) | — |
| 12% MC | 16,610 psi (115 MPa) | — | 8,870 psi (61 MPa) |
A dash means the sheet prints no value; none is filled in.
What the data sheet says
- Color, grain and texture
- Both sapwood and heartwood a uniform yellowish-white; wood around knots and other defects may be a distinct red. Texture is fine to medium; grain is straight to irregular and shallowly interlocked; luster low; without distinctive odor or taste.
- Working properties
- Reported to be easy to moderately difficult to machine. Because of its density and a silica content of 0.68%, proper cutters should be selected. Figured wood is sliced for face veneers without difficulty.
- Durability
- Durability is low, vulnerable to attack by white-rot and brown-rot fungi. Particularly susceptible to insect attack because of abundant starch.
- Uses
- General construction work, flooring, furniture, cabinet work, veneers, and tool handles. Cooked seeds of B. alicastrum are edible.
- Where it grows
- B. alicastrum and other closely related species are found in southern Mexico through Central America and southward into the Peruvian Amazon.
Quoted from Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 47–48, 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 capomo against other woods on hardness, weight, movement and color, every figure from the Wood Handbook.