Jatobá

Description

Hymenaea courbaril L.

copal – courbaril – jataí – jutaí – jutaí-açu (PA) – jutaí-grande (PA) – quebra-machado

General Characteristics: heartwood reddish brown with dark streaks, becoming dark brownish red, sharply demarcated from the pale brown sapwood. Grain interlocked, texture medium, not distinctive odor and taste when dry.
Density: heavy wood with density at 12% moisture content of 890 kg/m3 and green density of 1240 kg/m3.
Drying: air and kiln-dries easily and rapidly, without serious problems of checking and warping.
Workability: difficult to plane, medium to sand, good to bore and very good to turn. Good gluing, finishing and steam-bending properties. Problems when veneering and peeling due to crystals. Finishes well with paint and varnish. Polishes well.
Durability: heartwood very resistant to fungi and termites. Sapwood easily attacked. Low resistance to marine borers.
Preservation: heartwood not treatable with creosote or CCA-A, even with pressure vacuum systems.
Uses: civil construction, framing, fine furniture, tool handles, sport goods, railroad crossties, musical instruments, turnery, automobile and truck bodies, sliced veneers and others.