"bob" wrote in message
.. .
I am building a kitchen hutch out of primavera, also known as "white
mahogany".
--snip---
Any ideas why this is happening? Are the panels useable? I'm thinking
not.
Also, when you glue up panels, should they be stickered while stored?
I've
always just stacked 'em up on some sawhorses or whatever is handy.
This is the first time I've worked with primavera, so maybe it's just not
a good species to use for furniture...

I've used primavera for small tables, clocks, doll cradles and other stuff.
I salvaged the wood from crates that came from Costa Rica. The wood is
soft(similar to pine), exhibits some incredible grain patterns, is easy to
work, but has problems with finish splotching and moisture absorption. The
breadboard ends of some 28" table tops in my living room are presently about
3/16" proud of the table edge both front and back. The house humidity is,
right now, about 50%. The slight cupping you are experiencing is probably
typical of the species. The wood is used for fine furniture and veneers.
FWIW The Farnsworth house designed by Meis van der Rohe uses primavera for
all the interior wood work. Some of the wood paneling is over an inch
thick and VERY wide. See
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/BT/...TH/images.html space
down to interior views of cabinets. The house is in a very humid area along
a river but has a.c. The paneling uses very select primavera that is
straight grained. I noticed no distortion of the cabinetry when I visited
there back in August. From my experience I've found the wood to dent and
scratch easily and, probably, would not use it in an area that was subject
to a lot of people contact.
I would be interested in any other experiences you have with this stuff and
please post any pictures(or links) of your progress.
Larry
--
Lawrence L'Hote
Columbia, MO
http://home.mchsi.com/~larrylhote