Coming Soon - One of a Kind Lignum Vitae

I found this slab covered in dust at a lumber yard in Massachusetts. It also had some blue dye or stain on it making it look very weird for Lignum Vitae. I knew there was something in there though and after sanding the first grit, boy was I right. The figure on these blanks is like nothing I've seen before, especially in a Lignum Vitae. I can only describe it as "feather like", delicate and and contrasting. I also cross cut a few pieces to give you some variety in grain orientation. I've included a close-up to give you some idea of its beauty. I hope to have the blocks up on my site sometime later this week.

That is really beautiful.

I'd never heard of lignum vitae. So I had to look it up. Fascinating stuff. I don't want to hijack this thread, but wanted to show how cool this wood is and looks. Can't wait til this hit website.



Lignum Vitae is the hardest, densest, heaviest hardwood on the earth. When compared to other woods on the Janka hardness scale Pignut Hickory is 1,820...Lignum Vitae is 4,500!

Some of the best known uses for Lignum Vitae are for hydroelectric bearings, submarine and ship bearings, (Lignum Vitae bearings run much quieter than metal bearings). There are hydroelectric plants running 24/7 for over 25 continuous years on the same set of Lignum Vitae bearings and military ships using the same bearings for over 50 years!

I have some on my site now, but (and I probably shouldn't say this) they pale by comparison to these new blocks. Lignum is quite a heavy and hard wood, but until now it wasn't much to look at. These blocks really change that. I would guess they'll be up around Thursday. I haven't priced them out yet, but they will be on the high side for this species. You may never see this kind of quality again.