On 8/27/2010 5:46 PM, Josepi wrote:
Are you telling me that "IPE" is not Brazilian walnut? The manufacturers all
claim it is.

Marketing name. If you use it for a deck it's "ipe", if you use it for
a floor it's "Brazilian Walnut", if you use it for a turning square it
may be called "lapacho".

One local yard used to have a huge stock of South American
hardwoods--they had cabinet-grade ipe that was lovely stuff right next
to it they had Argentinian walnut that was like American walnut only
they had it 3 inches thick, 15 inches wide, and 18 feet long with not a
speck of sapwood on it. For some reason that they wouldn't share they
no longer have any of that lovely stuff--it's all domestic lumber now.

Sometimes the translations from Portugese to English is not too good...LOL

but if they are a different genus then that would settle that one. Common
names for plants are a bitch too, sometimes. everything is a "flower"...LOL


"J. wrote in message
...
While there is true walnut grown in South America, wood commonly sold in
the US as "Brazilian walnut" is the same stuff sold for decks as
"ipe"--different wood--walnut is in the genus juglans, ipe is in the
genus tabebuia.



On 8/27/2010 2:05 PM, Josepi wrote:
There are online hardness charts for tropical woods. Try google.ca

It would seem the softer the hardwood in N.AMerica the harder it is in
Brazil???

Brazilian walnut is one of the hardest woods there is and yet N.Am walnut
is
one of the softest.