Exotic Woods Trading
BOTANICAL NAMES
Nauclea diderrichii, Sarcocephalus, Nauclea Gilletii
FAMILY
Member of the Rubiaceae family
COMMERCIAL NAMES
Bilinga
NATIVE NAMES
Akondoc, Aloma, Badi, Bilinga, Bonkangu, Bundui, Engolo, Kilingi, Kilu, Kusia, Linzi, Mokessé, N'gulu maza, Opepe, Opepi
SPECIES APPLICATIONS/ USES
HIGH CLASS FURNITURE – EXTERIOR/INTERIOR PANELLING – SHIP BUILDING (Planking and deck) – FLOORING – HEAVY CARPENTRY – VEHICLE OR CONTAINER FLOORING – BRIDGES – HYDRAULIC WORKS (Seawater) – SLEEPERS - CABINETRY
RANGE
African equatorial forests and gallery forests throughout the equatorial region: Angola, Cameroon, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Zaire.
TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Bilinga is characteristic for its yellow or aureate colour which darkens with time. The heartwood is a golden-yellow or orange-brown colour that is clearly defined from the sapwood which is pinkish yellow and about 50 mm wide. It darkens on exposure. The texture of this timber is coarse and the interlocked grain is frequently used to produce a striped figure on quarter-sawn surfaces. without characteristic odor or taste. An alkaloid in the wood may be toxic to woodworkers. Freshly-cut wood is reported to have a slightly fragrant aroma, which becomes indistinct when the wood is seasoned. Taste is described as slightly bitter.
Heartwood is rated as very durable, high resistance to dry rot and moulds, but is moderately resistant to termites.
DRYING
Bilinga will dry slowly with little checking or warp.
SPECIFIC WEIGHT
With a moisture content of 12%, the specific weight in average of 760 kg per cubic meter.
PRINCIPAL USES AND PROCESSING TECHNIQUES
Timber works moderately well with hand and machine tools, requires a slow feed in sawing, a 10-degree cutting angle is suggested for planning prevent tearing; good gluing; takes a satisfactory finish. Poor steam- bending characteristics.
Bilinga
