Anyone here use Idigbo?

[opener]

Hi everyone. I've been lurking for a while and now have reason to post something.
Amongst other things I make windows and doors out of Idigbo since I stopped using redwood a few years ago. But I have problems when it comes to morticing.
Despite making sure the chisel and bit are razor sharp and that there's enough clearance I get varying degrees of smoke and a black crust forms inside the chisel and a black liquid occasionally runs down onto the wood. Sometimes the bit gets clogged up and jams, taking 10 mins or so to clear by hand.
Does this ring a bell with anyone else and if so have you come up with any solutions. I also use Iroko and Oak without any problems.

[dom]

Hi opener, can't help you, but welcome to the forum.

Dom

[bjm]

No personal use with it but just looked it up in the Handbook of Hardwoods which has an interesting comment: "... with chisel morticing - Burning may occur due to poor chip extraction"

Brian

[pj]

Opener,
I've not used Idigbo/Emeri very much, but found it quite a bit softer than oak etc. Planes well with sharp blades but I wonder if it is maybe a combination of the softness,tannin and heat build up in the chisel. May be worth trying a jet of compressed air on the chisel while mortising.

Sorry can't be any more help.

philip

[opener]

Hi Brian and Philip
Thanks for your comments. At least it's not just me it happens to.
I'll give the compressed air a go and see if that helps.
Cheers
Malcolm

[Scrit]

It's one of those timbers which the importers seemto recommend the use of either an Alternax-type or Maka-type oscillating chisel mortiser with for the reasons you give

Scrit

[dantovey]

I went out this morning to quote for a kitchen on a very nice barn conversion and the client showed me his new double opening front door which he had had made and fitted recently.

God knows why but the joinery company had suggested idigbo instead of oak - presumably to save a bob or two - and the client had taken their advice.

It looked bloody awful!

Its not like oak's that expensive!

Needless to say I kept schtum. I want the kitchen job!

[craigmarshall]

I have used (with my boss) Idigbo for windows and doors and other external stuff like shutters that are going to be painted - because it's cheaper than oak, and it's durable.

I don't use the mortiser with it, we tend to use the doweller wherever possible, but I do have another problem with it. It's terrible on my throat. Even with the extractors plugged into the machines, it's like a poison. After half a day or more of it (and purposefully not breathing anything in!), I get home and I feel like my throat has something blocked in there. I can breathe just fine, just have a really horrible feeling of needing to clear my throat and a disgusting taste. Hate the stuff. I'm fine with oak, pine, mahogany and probably others, just idigbo (and ipe' isn't great either).

I've bought five of the disposable level 3 masks now from Axminster, so I hope they'll sort me out.

Craig

[opener]

Hi Craig,
Sorry to hear about the effect it has on you, I am fortunate in that respect, though the
first time I used it was almost the last as the shavings seemed to smell of cat's pee. But
I've got over that now. Do you use the doweller specifically to avoid the burning
problem with the morticer?

Hi Scrit
I've not heard of these oscillating morticers, presumably they are expensive industrial
type machines?


FWIW - I find Idigbo to be a good utility timber, stable and durable, mostly clear of
defects and easy to work with, though a bit soft e.g. when chiseling across the grain.
From a distance with a light stain it might look a bit like oak but I wouldn't use it for
any prestigious work.

Cheers
Malcolm

[craigmarshall]

opener said:

Sorry to hear about the effect it has on you, I am fortunate in that respect, though the
first time I used it was almost the last as the shavings seemed to smell of cat's pee. But
I've got over that now. Do you use the doweller specifically to avoid the burning
problem with the morticer?

FWIW - I find Idigbo to be a good utility timber, stable and durable, mostly clear of
defects and easy to work with, though a bit soft e.g. when chiseling across the grain.
From a distance with a light stain it might look a bit like oak but I wouldn't use it for
any prestigious work.

Yes - the smell is not great, but I can live with smelly wood, it's the irritation that I can't do with. Apart from that, yes - it's great timber to work with and good for anything that's going to be painted. I personally don't like to see painted wood, I like oiled and waxed, or satin varnished at most, but then people seem to want to pay for painted wood and mdf!

It does vary a lot, you can pick up two of the same sized components for a single project, and one could easily weigh 50% more than the other, so if you want a hard piece for a corner or something, well, try the next board!

No, we don't use the doweller specifically because of burning with the morticer, but because we tend to use the doweller anyway. Personally, I'd mortise and tenon more often than not, and have the joints on show, because I like that kind of thing...

Cheers,
Craig

[craigmarshall]

opener said:

FWIW - I find Idigbo to be a good utility timber, stable and durable, mostly clear of
defects and easy to work with, though a bit soft e.g. when chiseling across the grain.
From a distance with a light stain it might look a bit like oak but I wouldn't use it for
any prestigious work.

One other thing I've noticed is the yellow-green colour! And it's magnified when the glue oozes out and you don't wipe it off properly, it's a horrible slime colour, so you'd want plenty of that light stain!

Craig

[opener]

Not to forget the occasional board that is riddled with pinholes ;D

[Scrit]

opener said:

I've not heard of these oscillating morticers, presumably they are expensive industrial
type machines?

They're no more expensive than any other bit of trade kit, and Make even used to make a portable machine which clamps onto the workpiece (rather like the Makita portable chain mortiser does), but still more expensive than the £500 DIY specials, that's true.

I was chatting with someone earlier in the week who's made barn doors out of the stuff using a chain morticer. They cut so quickly that there's no burning, although the risk of break-out at the chain exit point means using well-fitted hardwood chip breaker to prevent it

Scrit