Hawaiian Exotic Woods from Griffin Exotic Wood

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Griffin Exotic Wood

Koa & other Hawaiian Woods
Koa (in photo above) (Acacia koa)

Koa, the best known of Hawaiian woods, grows year round and can reach heights of 100 feet. The specific gravity is around .55, making it similar to American Black walnut in density. It has been used for centuries by Hawaiians to make wa'a (dugout canoes). It is a great wood for many purposes including musical instruments, bowls and all kinds of projects where a medium weight wood can be used. Our figured Koa has the beautiful chatoyance in the curl seen in the photo above, and the distance between curls vary (the one above has very tight, close curl). All of our figured wood comes from the stumps of dead or dying trees, havested legally on private land. As best we can tell, it is not classified as endangered. The biggest threat to Koa in Hawaii appears to be overgrazing of cattle. Click here for a larger detail of the Koa photo.

Grading:
Gallery grade minus (gg-) has very good figure in most areas but may have some areas of low figure or no figure.
Gallery grade (gg) has very good figure on two parallel sides that is mostly consistent down the entire length of the parallel sides.
Gallery grade PLUS (gg+) figure has excellent figure down two parallel sides and has some figure showing on the other sides as well. (somewhat rare)l

New! Macadamia wood now added. See on this page below the Koa.

SIZES ARE IN INCHES
unless specified otherwise.


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Koa tree in Hawaiian Islands. Koa Tree flowers Freshly cut log

sample photo--pieces have good curl figure
. Some pieces have black lines,
others may vary in color from red/tan
to black and tan. Random appearances:

Macadamia wood
(macadamia integrifolia)

Macadamia wood has an appearance much like lacewood/leopardwood, but has a pinkish cast and slightly different markings. The color can look like red stain with a finish. Just like lacewood, the appearance of the markings changes based on the angle the wood has been cut. The wood often develops multiple defects when drying, which makes it very important to buy truly dry wood. These pieces have been kiln-dried completely.

The freshly cut wood looks like the lighter pieces. If exposed to light without a finish, the
pieces gradually look like the darker ones above. The darker color is only skin deep, and
as soon as the piece is sanded, the lighter color is apparent. Sample photo of typical pieces.
A few pieces are now available as of 11/13/11. Our supply is sporadic, so we may be out for awhile after the current ones are gone.

photo courtesy of Frank McClure
Koa: A dead/dying tree being harvested legally on private land.

photo coutesy of Frank McClure
Koa: Getting some of the figured wood, usually lower on the stump.

Order online, or call us Monday through Friday toll free: 1-866-518-9663
International callers and all Questions: (USA country code)+970+241+2827

Note that everything on this page (photos too!) are copyrighted and may not be used
without written permission. Credited photos to other than James Griffin
or Griffin Exotic Wood llc must still be credited if you use them. Credited photos
on this page can be used without permission by getting them from the Wikipedia article on Koa..
Copyright 2006 by James Griffin. If you are a customer
and desire to use some of our photos on your website, call us with your request.