Name Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)
Type Hardwood.
Other Names Also known as hard maple, rock maple, sweet maple, and black maple.
Sources Grows throughout eastern North America.
Appearance Straight, close grain with a fine, uniform texture. Nearly white sapwood, sometimes with a reddish tinge and light tannish heartwood.
Physical Props Heavy, hard, strong, and stiff with moderate shock resistance, low decay resistance, and medium movement in use. Steam-bends satisfactorily.
Working Props Machines well, especially for turning, but is susceptible to burning and irregular grain can cause chip-out. Pre-drilling recommended for screwing or nailing. Glues well and finishes very smoothly.
Uses Used for furniture, cabinetry, interior joinery, bowling pins, bowling lanes and other floors, school desks, ladder rungs, countertops, cutting boards, textile rollers, sports goods, stringed instruments, paneling, and decorative veneer. Commonly marketed as hard maple.

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Name Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa)
Type Hardwood.
Other Names Also known as honey mesquite, common mesquite, velvet mesquite, algarobo, and honey pod.
Sources Grows in western United States, Central America, and South America.
Appearance Medium to coarse texture with a fine, wavy, interlocked grain. Tan sapwood and light to dark brown heartwood, often with a golden hue. Sometimes resembles genuine mahogany.
Physical Props Heavy, hard, strong, and stiff (but brittle) with high stability in service and outstanding decay resistance.
Working Props Somewhat difficult to work due to hardness and cross-grain. Sands easily and finishes to a high polish. Very good turning properties. Glues, screws, and nails satisfactorily.
Uses Used for fence posts (due to high decay resistance), turnery, gunstocks, knife handles, novelties, fireplace mantels, flooring, and furniture to a limited extent.

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Name Muhuhu (Brachylaena hutchinsii)
Type Hardwood.
Other Names Also known as muhugu, mubuubu, watho, mvumvo, mshenzi.
Sources Grows in east Africa.
Appearance Usually straight grained with a very fine, even texture. Dark yellowish brown heartwood (sometimes with darker streaks) and narrow grayish sapwood. Exudes a pleasant odor when machined.
Physical Props Very heavy, hard and dense, with a high resistance to abrasion, high crushing strength, and low shock resistance and stiffness.
Working Props Exudes a pleasant odor when machined. Very heavy, hard and dense, with a high resistance to abrasion, high crushing strength, and low shock resistance and stiffness. Stable in use and quite durable. Difficult to machine - has tendency to burn and gum up cutting edges. Good turning properties. Pre-drilling required for screwing and nailing. Stains and polishes to a very nice finish. Ideal for heavy duty flooring due to its abrasion and wear resistance. Aromatic oil extracted from wood for use in perfumes.
Uses Also used for carving, turnery, heavy construction, decking, door and window frames, and as a substitute for sandalwood for cremation purposes.

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Name Muninga (Pterocarpus angolensis)
Type Hardwood.
Other Names Also known as ambila, Brown African padauk, bloodwood, kiaat, kajat, mninga, mukwa, mutete, and mututi.
Sources Grows througout south-central Africa.
Appearance Straight to interlocked grain with a coarse, uneven texture.
Physical Props Fairly hard, moderately heavy, medium bending strength, high crushing strength, low stiffness and shock resistance, and high decay resistance and dimensional stability. Steam-bends moderately well.
Working Props Works easily with hand or machine tools but reduced cutting angle recommended for interlocked grain. Good turning properties. Glues satisfactorily. Pre-drilling recommended for nails and screws. Can be brought to an excellent finish.
Uses Used for fancy turnery, high-end furniture, cabinets, and paneling, carving, flooring, joinery, boat building, dowels, furniture components, and veneer.
Comments Often has attractive figure on quartered surfaces.

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