Thailand / Cambodia woods?

A.McPherson

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Jan 27, 2012
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Hey all you wood fans!

If you were in Cambodia and Thailand pn vacation, what woods would you try to buy?
 
Amboyna Burl, Afzelia Burl and Afzelia Xylay.
Be sure to get stuff with strong figure and without a lot of bark pockets.
 
I live in Chiang Mai for most of the year and have looked all over, good to know the English names for some of the stuff they have there ;) I know a lot of the thai names but they vary depending on the region so it's quite inconsistent. Knowing what it looks like is going to be your best bet by far.


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Lol, Nick! No kidding! I've been looking at a bunch of trees with Cambodian names and having NO clue what the English translations are! Thanks for the suggestions guys, I'll see if I can manage to bring back some presents!
 
Before buying any wood, check with customs and the USDA. Many things can't be brought back as luggage or carry-on. Most all plants and animals as well as many foods are in this list. Some woods are, too. It is due to invasive species protection. If you don't check, your lovely wood may end up in the trash can at customs.
 
If it is native to that area and you can get it through customs, Curly Pyinma can be nice (often loosely called Satinwood but it is not a true Satinwood).
 
Before buying any wood, check with customs and the USDA. Many things can't be brought back as luggage or carry-on. Most all plants and animals as well as many foods are in this list. Some woods are, too. It is due to invasive species protection. If you don't check, your lovely wood may end up in the trash can at customs.

I'll expand on that a bit. If you're going to be bringing wood back (and I want to see pictures of what you get! I heart wood porn :D ) I'd highly recommend you call the specific port you're going to be flying through. I've seen too many people call what they thought was some central office, and ends up being some Podunk port who might or might not actually know what they are talking about. Call the port you're going to be dealing with and get your answer from the horse's mouth as it were. And get the name of the person you're speaking to!
 
Could you just mail yourself a package of wood and not try to take it back as luggage or carry-on?
 
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