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Blunting Effect
Boring
Carving
Common Names
Common Uses
Countries of Distribution
Cutting Resistance
Distribution Overview
Drying Defects
Ease of Drying
Environmental Profile
Family Name
Gluing
Grain
Heartwood Color
Kiln Schedules
Luster
Mortising
Moulding
Movement in Service
Nailing
Natural Durability
Numerical Data
Odor
Planing
Product Sources
References
Regions of Distribution
Resistance to Impregnation
Routing & Recessing
Sapwood Color
Scientific Name
Screwing
Staining
Steam Bending
Strength Properties
Texture
Trade Name
Tree Size
Turning
Veneering Qualities

Scientific Name
Antiaris toxicaria

Trade Name
Antiaris

Family Name
Moraceae

Wood Image 1

Common Names
Akeche, Ako, Andoum, Antiaris, Bonkonko, Chenchen, Ipoh, Kirundu, Ogiovu, Oro, Tenek, Tsangu, Upas

Regions of Distribution
Africa, Oceania and S.E. Asia

Countries of Distribution  [VIEW MAP]
Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, Uganda, Zaire

Common Uses
Boxes and crates, Building construction, Construction, Core Stock, Decorative veneer, Furniture , Furniture components, Joinery, Light construction, Packing cases, Paneling , Plywood, Veneer

Environmental Profile
Abundant/Secure
Secure in many areas of its range
No threat in the near future


Distribution Overview
Burma, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indomalesia. Also in west and central Africa, specifically Kenya, and generally in wet zones.

Heartwood Color
Yellow
White
Grey
Yellowish gray
Whitish


Sapwood Color
Yellow
White
Not distinct from heartwood

Usually very wide

Grain
Even
Straight
Interlocked

Straight to interlocked


Texture
Coarse
Medium
Uneven
Medium to coarse


Luster
High
Medium
Lustrous


Natural Durability
Perishable
Very little natural resistance to attack by fungi and other organisms
susceptible to sap stain
Should be promptly removed and converted or treated with chemicals soon after tree is felled
Highly vulnerable to attack by wood destroying insects


Odor
Has an odor
Unpleasant odor which disappears after seasoning
Seasoned wood has no distinct taste or odor


Kiln Schedules
T2-D4(4/4);T2-D3(8/4)Us Schedule A; United Kingdom


Drying Defects
Discoloration
Distortion
Natural tendency to stain
Kiln-Drying produces better results
Highly prone to warp and twist


Ease of Drying
Rapidly
Dries at a fairly rapid rate


Tree Size
Bole length is 20-30 m
Tree height is 30-40 m
Tree height is 40-50 m
Trunk diameter is 100-150 cm


Product Sources
The ITTO reports that timber from this species is produced occasionally and exported in low volumes.

Blunting Effect
Little
Slight dulling effect on cutting tools


Boring
Fairly easy to very easy


Carving
Fairly Easy to Very Easy


Cutting Resistance
Easy to saw
Sharp cutters are required to prevent crumbling
Responds readily to sawing


Gluing
Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Fair to Good Results
Satisfactory gluing properties


Mortising
Fairly Easy to Very Easy


Moulding
Fairly Easy to Very Easy


Movement in Service
Fair to Good Stability - Medium Movement
Excellent Stability - Small Movement
Small movement in use
Dimensionally stable after proper seasoning


Nailing
Fair to Good Results
Satisfactory results


Planing
Fair to Good Results
Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Works rather easily dulling
Requires sharp cutting edges to prevent interlocked grain from crumbling and tearing
Dresses smoothly


Resistance to Impregnation
Permeable sapwood
Permeable heartwood
Responds readily to preservative treatment by either open tank or pressure methods


Routing & Recessing
Fairly Easy to Very Easy


Screwing
Fair to Good Results
Fairly Easy to Very Easy
Fair screwing qualities (expect < 70% of screwed pieces to be free from complete splits)


Turning
Fairly Easy to Very Easy


Veneering Qualities
Suitable for slicing
Suitable for paneling and furniture
Slices into quartered veneers which usually exhibit an attractive striped figure


Steam Bending
Poor to Very Poor Results
Poor steam bending characteristics


Staining
Fair to Good Results
Very Good to Excellent Results
Stains well


Strength Properties
Stifness=Very low
Soft
Shock resistance=very low
Medium weight
Crushing strength = medium
Bending strength (MOR) = low

Antiaris is described as a low-grade timber which is similar to Obeche (Triplochiton scleroxylon ), but is generally considered to be inferior

Numerical Data
ItemGreenDryEnglish
Bending Strength46757125psi
Hardness490lbs
Maximum Crushing Strength28714988psi
Stiffness7949411000 psi
Specific Gravity0.35
Weight2520.lbs/ft3
Radial Shrinkage4%
Tangential Shrinkage7%
Volumetric Shrinkage12%
ItemGreenDryMetric
Bending Strength328500kg/cm2
Hardness222kg
Maximum Crushing Strength201350kg/cm2
Stiffness55661000 kg/cm2
Specific Gravity0.35
Weight400320.kg/m3
Radial Shrinkage4%
Tangential Shrinkage7%

References
Boone, R.S., C.J. Kozlik, P.J. Bois and E.M. Wengert. 1988. Dry Kiln Schedules for Commercial Woods: Temperate and Tropical. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, General Technical Report FPL-GTR-57, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wisconsin

Chudnoff, M.,1984,Tropical Timbers of the World,U.S.A. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products,Laboratory, Madison.

Desch, H. E. 1954. Manual of Malayan Timbers - Volume II. Malayan Forest Records, No. 15. Malaya Publishing House Ltd., Singapore.

Keay, R.W.J. 1989. Trees of Nigeria. Revised Version of Nigerian Trees. Clarendon Press, Oxford.

Lincoln, W.A. 1986. World Woods in Color. Linden Publishing Co. Inc. Fresno, California

Patterson, D. 1988. Commercial Timbers of the World. Fifth Edition. Gower Technical Press, Aldershot, UK. ix + 339 pp.

WCMC. 1992. Conservation Status Listing: Trees and Timbers of the World. World Conservation Monitoring Center (WCMC, Plants Program, 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge, CB3 ODL, United Kingdom.