SAPELE
SAPELE WOOD EXTRA INFORMATION
Sapele Wood is a hardwood that comes from tropical Africa (in fact it is named after Sapele, a city in Nigeria) that is often used for veneer, plywood, furniture, cabinetry, flooring, boat building, musical instruments, turned objects, and other small wooden specialty items.
Our Sapele Wood is an appealing and economical alternative to Mahogany, with a dark to reddish brown color. It can be easily glued, holds nails well, and is dimensionally stable.
Species: Entandrophragma cylindricum
Other names: Sapele, Sapelli, Sapeli, Sapelle Sapale, Aboudikroe, Penkwa, Assi, Assie sapelli, Sapele mahogany, Lifari, Muyovu, Libuyu
Sapele Origin: Angola; Cameroon; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d’Ivoire; Gabon; Ghana; Nigeria; Sierra Leone; Togo; Uganda
Appearance: Sapele Wood has a medium to dark brown color that tends to darken with age. It has a very fine and nterlocked gran, which is very distinctive.
Tree Size: 100-150 ft (30-45 m) tall, 3-5 ft (1-1.5 m) trunk diameter
Average Dried Weight: 42 lbs/ft3 (670 kg/m3)
Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC): .50, .67
Janka Hardness: 1,410 lbf (6,280 N)
Modulus of Rupture: 15,930 lbf/in2 (109.9 MPa)
Elastic Modulus: 1,746,000 lbf/in2 (12.04 GPa)
Crushing Strength: 8,750 lbf/in2 (60.4 MPa)
Shrinkage: Radial: 4.8%, Tangential: 7.2%, Volumetric: 12.8%, T/R Ratio: 1.5
Drying: Sapele can be air dried and kiln dried.
Workability: Sapele is easy to work with, which is why it has been a choice wood for carpenters for centuries. It can be glued, nailed, and sands well.
Sustainable: The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) does not list sapele in its appendices. Brazilian Lumber, LLC meets high standards for social, economic and environmental responsibility.
We monitor and document chain of custody of all our hardwood, we are Lacy Act compliant, IBAMA certified, and provide certified options.
This means that purchasing from us, fuels the hardwood lumber economy in African forests, and by providing well paying jobs for many people in turn means the industry values its conservation and preservation.
