Tropical wood · Southeast Asia and Oceania
Tembusu wood
Tembusu (Fagraea spp., family Loganiaceae) is a tropical timber from Southeast Asia and Oceania. Dry, its Janka hardness is 2,120 lbf (9,430 N), and air-dry it weighs about 50–63 lb/ft³ (801–1,009 kg/m³). The figures are from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory's Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 645–646.
Other names, by country: Buabua (Fiji Islands), Urung (Philippines), Temasuk (Sabah), Tatrao, Trai (Cambodia), Tam Sao (Thailand), Tembesu (Indonesia), Anan, Ananma (Burma).
Key numbers
- Janka hardness, dry
- 2,120 lbf (9,430 N)
- Green: 1,770 lbf (7,873 N)
- As printed: “Janka side hardness 1,770 lb for green material and 2,120 lb for dry.”
- Air-dry density
- 50–63 lb/ft³ (801–1,009 kg/m³)
- Basic specific gravity
- 0.65–0.80 oven-dry weight, green volume
- As printed: “Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) varies with species 0.65-0.80; air-dry density 50-63 pcf.”
- Shrinkage, green to air-dry
- 1.6% tangential
- Radial 1.1%
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 | 15,800 psi (109 MPa) | 2.66 million psi (18.3 GPa) | 7,340 psi (51 MPa) |
| 12% MC | 21,400 psi (148 MPa) | 3.02 million psi (20.8 GPa) | 12,100 psi (83 MPa) |
| 12% MC | 18,700 psi (129 MPa) | — | 9,500 psi (66 MPa) |
A dash means the sheet prints no value; none is filled in.
What the data sheet says
- Color, grain and texture
- Heartwood yellowish-brown to light brown, darkening on exposure to a deep goldenor orange-brown; sapwood generally lighter in color and not clearly defined. Texture variable from fine to somewhat coarse; grain straight to irregular; lustrous; has a distinct aromatic and somewhat acid odor when freshly cut but does not persist upon seasoning. Skin rashes may develop when handling green logs with bark on (F. fragrans).
- Working properties
- Considering the high density, the timber is easy to saw and machine, takes a good finish. Some species are rather abrasive and dull cutting edges, a good carving timber and turns well.
- Durability
- Heartwood is reported to be very durable in ground contact and very resistant to termite attack; resistance to marine borer attack is questionable.
- Uses
- Heavy construction, flooring, turnery, carvings, printing dies, specialty items (rulers, T-squares, straight edges), railroad crossties, boat construction.
- Where it grows
- Widely scattered throughout Indo-Malaya and the Pacific Islands; sometimes planted as an ornamental.
Quoted from Tropical Timbers of the World, pp. 645–646, a USDA Forest Products Laboratory work in the public domain.
Work it out for your project
- Rank woods for flooring with the species picker
Weigh tembusu against other woods on hardness, weight, movement and color, every figure from the Wood Handbook.