Chechen Wood Uses, Properties, Advantages, and Disadvantages

What is Chechen wood?

Chechen wood is an exotic wood known by many names: (Chencen wood, Metopium brownei, Caribbean Rosewood).

The tree is 50-115 feet tall, with distribution across several countries in the Americas. It’s wood with a beautiful appearance and has excellent durability.

That’s why the general use of this wood is quite a lot for decorative and useful items. This wood workability is also quite easy to work. It doesn’t seem to require a highly professional classification of workers or high-quality tools.

We think its appearance is so attractive because of its varied colors, wavy and irregular figures, and straight grains.

The properties of Chechen wood

Sapwood may be pale yellow, while the heartwood varies widely. Some colors like orange, red, brown, and some colors tend to be darker.

Chechen wood has grains that tend to be straight, although interlocking can occur. This wood has a texture that is in the fine to medium range and has a good natural luster.

In resistance to rot, Chechen wood is considered very durable.

That makes this wood of good quality for use in humid places, outdoor and long-term uses, although other requirements must still be met.

It is also a wood that is reported as a sensitizer.

Chechen wood advantages and disadvantages

Advantages

Durable: The wood is a very durable wood that is resistant to rot.

That is a significant advantage compared to some other woods with average resistance and even not durable.

This durability allows you to use Chechen wood for more general uses, including long-term and outdoor use.

Chechen wood is resistant to rot and also has to pay attention to its resistance to insect attack. That is an important factor to know the most appropriate use of wood.

The good news is that Chechen wood is considered somewhat resistant to insect attacks. That’s good enough for some things, but not overall.

Relatively easy to work: Chechen wood is a wood that is pretty easy to work. However, working on a competitively interlocked grain may result in tearing.

The use of sharp, good-quality cutters is necessary. Drilling before installing nails and screws should be done. It can minimize breakage during installation.

Chechen wood is wood that glues well and finishes well. We did not find information on silica.

Since it was judged to be fairly easy to work, there didn’t seem to be any significant problems in that regard.

But we hope you do perfect planning before the work for the best result.

Moderately priced: Chechen wood prices are in the moderate range for imported hardwoods. Although we thought it would be more expensive for certain Chechen.

Chechen wood is generally available as lumber, although several other forms are sold, such as thin craft wood and hollow wood.

This is a wood that is touted as a cheaper substitute for the more expensive tropical wood. Not only good quality, but this wood can also give an artistic impression at a lower price. It also can be a substitute for some rare exotic wood which is expensive to very expensive.

Exotic: Chechen wood is sometimes referred to as Caribbean Rosewood.

That’s because this wood has a beautiful color, natural luster, and a density that may be similar. Not only that, but the appearance of this wood is also important to note.

You will notice a unique figured grain pattern with straight and sometimes interlocked grains.

Some patterns even have unique shapes, such as winding and irregular, and this may make Chechen wood more recognizable than common wood with an ordinary appearance.

We think the mention of Chechen as a substitute for rosewood is the right choice, certainly at a moderate price.

Availability: The species Metopium brownei is found in several countries, including Belize, Guatemala, Jamaica, Cuba, southeastern Mexico, and the Dominican Republic.

The spread of the distribution seems to make the Chechen population well maintained.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species also doesn’t list it as vulnerable or endangered. Not only that, but this species is also not listed in the CITES Appendices.

For this reason, it seems that large-scale use is still a good thing.

However, we think there should be a limit to reasonableness because a significant population reduction could occur within a few generations.

Disadvantages

Health risk: Chechen is also known as Black Poisonwood. The name is because this wood has a toxic sap that can turn black and cause severe skin irritation.

However, you don’t have to worry about that, as severe reactions seem to be rare. It’s also the wood reported as a sensitizer.

Skin and eye irritation are the 2 most common reactions. Some allergies related to wood dust may also occur.

Pay attention to health security during the woodwork process is very important. That’s to minimize the possibility of some severe health effects.

Chechen wood for veneer

Veneers are one of the common uses of Chechen wood.

The exotic wood appearance that can attract attention is good enough to coat your furniture that looks luxurious.

The use for wall cladding is also pretty good, although the figure is too complex for walls. Maybe you should pay close attention to the installation process, especially when nailing.

It seems like the price of Chechen veneer should be moderate if sold as finished goods.

Do it yourself is recommended if you have the skills and the necessary tools.

It’s more flexible and probably more cost-effective.

Chechen wood for furniture

Chechen is also a great choice for furniture, though not fine furniture. It’s wood with an exotic and unique appearance.

It seems that having some furniture, such as tables and chairs made of Chechen, is a good thing. You don’t have to worry about the quality of this wood, like its durability and other properties.

The use for the large and long-term is also excellent, including because it’s very resistant to rot.

However, its resistance to insect attacks was not at the same level. But it seems like it’s only a minor problem.

Chechen wood for cabinetry

Cabinetry is another option in the everyday use of Chechen. Some of the reasons are similar to furniture, although there are a few that we’d like to add.

Its very resistance to rot makes this wood great for kitchen cabinetry. It will adapt and tolerate the usually humid kitchen environment.

It looks like painting doesn’t need to be done. We think it’s better to maintain its natural appearance and color; of course, we have to do some work to increase the luster.

Cabinetry in the living room as a place to store collections is also a good choice.

Chechen wood for flooring

Using Chechen for wood floors seems like a good choice.

If the wood you use for the walls tends to be plain or darker, we think using wood floors with varied colors is the right choice.

The appearance that tends to have high artistic value will also make it more beautiful.

It seems that durability, stability, and others are essential for wood floors.

The wood resistance to rot is unquestionable, although we have our doubts about insect attacks.

This wood may also own stability and high hardness, but we are not entirely sure.

Chechen wood for turned objects

It seems the most practical use for Chechen wood is as turned objects. In the process, you can make various decorative or valuable items.

Examples include handles for knives or other tools, some wooden bowls and cups, or maybe you want to make items for machine parts.

It would be best to pay attention to several things: the feasibility of Chechen wood for an item and the cost.

If you can produce more turned objects of good quality, it seems like commercial purposes are a good choice.