Monkeypod Wood Uses, Properties, Advantages, and Disadvantages

What is monkeypod wood?

Monkeypod (Albasia saman) is also known as Raintree, is a Central and South American hardwood. Not only there, but monkeypods can also be found in tropical areas around the world.

This wood tree is 100-125 feet tall, with a 3-4 feet trunk diameter. Monkeypod wood has a unique, and even exotic, look for some reason with beautiful grain figured.

It’s also wood with good resistance to rot and most insect attack and good workability that is easy to work.

Monkeypod wood is commonly used for cabinetry, carving, furniture, veneer, millwork/trim, plywood, and musical instruments.

The properties of monkeypod wood

This wood has a pretty good color, with a tendency to be golden to dark brown. Ads are also stripes with a darker color. Meanwhile, sapwood is white/yellow and looks different from heartwood.

Monkeypod has a medium to coarse texture and a medium natural shine. This wood also has a straight grain, sometimes wavy or interlocked. In terms of resistance to decay, monkeypod wood is rated as durable to very durable.

Good resistance also applies to most insect attacks. It is also an easy wood to work on, has no characteristic odor, and has good availability.

Monkeypod wood advantages

Durable: This wood has good resistance, both to rot and insect attack. In resistance to rot, monkeypod wood is durable to very durable.

This seems to be influenced by other things such as environmental conditions, usage, and quality of the wood. It is also a wood that is resistant to insect attack, at least most of them.

Some insects may be a problem for this wood. But it looks like you don’t need to worry because we think it can last quite a while. So, it’s still good to use for large wooden objects and others.

Easy to work: Generally, a monkeypod is a wood that is easy to work with machines or hand tools. However, this doesn’t make monkeypod wood free from problems in the process.

For examples include tearing or blurring of grain during planning operations in wood with interlocking grains. We have no information on the silica content or density.

Because of that, it seemed like it was fine and not a problem. At least it can be done well and maybe fast.

Not only that, but we also hope that monkeypod wood can maintain the quality of the tools well, including the sharpness of the cutter.

Appearance: Although not entirely, some monkeypod wood has unique figured grain patterns that make this wood worthy of being called an exotic.

We think this is good news, especially for people who prefer to preserve the naturalness of wood. You can make unique tables that maintain the shape of the board, and it’s very beautiful.

Chairs can also be made of it. But it seems like you have to spend more money on beautiful monkeypods. But you don’t have to worry about the availability of monkeypod wood because it seems like it’s still available in a good population.

Monkeypod wood disadvantages

Pricing: Although we think the availability of monkeypod is good, that doesn’t make the price of this wood in the cheap range.

Because the price is in the mid-to-upper range, sales are also available in several forms, including lumber and craft wood. Craft wood is generally available in smaller sizes.

If you want a monkeypod board that has figured grain patterns, the price is much higher. It’s best if you don’t want to buy it.

Because we think some regular monkeypods also have an interesting look, although that doesn’t make it the equivalent of figured grain patterns.

Monkeypod wood for veneer

You can use monkeypod wood as a veneer, although we think you’ll have to make your own. However, you can order it if you are interested in monkeypod veneers. If you want to use veneer from this wood, we hope you only use medium-priced.

Because it seems like a monkeypod with a high price or a much more expensive one is not suitable for this.

You won’t likely find too many problems in the work process, but tears or other problems can still occur. Not only that, but the wood quality is also good, including its resistance to rot.

Monkeypod wood for plywood

Not only veneers but monkeypod wood can also be used as plywood. We think this is very good, including its durability qualities and status as a hardwood. That might be the reason people choose a monkeypod to use.

Although we still don’t recommend the figured grain patterns for plywood, the wood appearance is also good. Choose wood with a mid to upper price for this.

The process of making plywood is usually done using machines and is not or rarely done by individuals. So, it seems that this is only for companies that make and sell plywood.

Monkeypod wood for millwork/trim

If you want to use monkeypod wood for something valuable, we recommend millwork/trim. We didn’t find information that the density of this wood is so high that it’s difficult to work.

That’s why it seems that monkeypod wood as millwork/trim can still be work easily. If you use it, it looks like there are some things you wish you did.

Use monkeypod figured grain patterns to make it look beautiful, even though it is much more expensive. Not only that, make sure to plan well, and we hope you keep the monkeypod’s natural look.

Monkeypod wood for carving

It looks like carving is also not a bad choice for using monkeypod wood. You can make curved objects of high quality with a beautiful appearance.

Choosing figured grain patterns is also recommended for this because it can make it more beautiful and valuable.

We think that there will be no significant problems in the process. However, doing carving is not an easy thing. Make sure you have planned well, including preparing good-quality tools.

Do the work properly and regularly, because the wood you use is quite valuable. We hope you do some experiments before working on the main wood.

Monkeypod wood for cabinetry

Another common use is cabinetry. This is common usage and doesn’t seem to require figured grain patterns. We think the mid-priced monkeypod is also worth using as cabinetry.

The use of cabinetry is usually only for storing items, including collectibles, decorations, or items needed in the kitchen.

If you use it for kitchen cabinetry, it seems like a good thing because monkeypod wood has good resistance to rot, durable to very durable.

That will make cabinetry in a humid room last better and not rot easily. We hope you retain the natural color of the monkeypod.

Monkeypod wood for furniture

We think furniture is the best choice for using monkeypod because it looks like this wood is very good and has a quality that meets the requirements to be quite high-quality furniture.

If you have more considerable funds, choosing a monkeypod with figured grain patterns is recommended to make your furniture more beautiful.

But the mid to upper price is also not a wrong choice if you choose it well. It is wood with good resistance to most insect attacks and rot and generally easy wood to work. It looks like you won’t have much trouble.

Monkeypod wood for musical instruments

The last common use of monkeypod on this list is in musical instruments. But it seems you should not hope for all musical instruments because they are generally used only for guitars and ukuleles.

Not only will it produce a sound that is easy to hear, but it will also make guitars and ukuleles look beautiful.

We hope you’ll consider figured grain patterns, for that matter, though a regular monkeypod is also pretty good.

We don’t know if the sound quality it produces is the same as Spruce and Maple or not. Would you please make your own to know the quality?