Sucupira

Sucupira (Bowdichia spp.)

Cutiuba, Sapupira, Arenillo, Tatabu, Macaniba.

Origin:

The trees inhabit Central America – from Belize and Guatemala to Panama, and South America – in the Andes, the Orinoco Plain and the Guiana Highlands (Venezuela, Ecuador and French Guiana), the Amazon Basin (Brazil) and the Paraguayan-Argentine Plain. The species is found in many forest types - lowland and montane humid equatorial forests, subtropical forests and dry intertropical forests.

Tree habit:

The trees produce straight, usually cylindrical, highly branched trunks (branches appear at a height of 15-20 m). Mature plants can reach heights of up to 35 m, with a diameter at the butt of about 60 cm. The trunks are covered with relatively thin, smooth bark, containing natural latex.

Structure type:

Diffuse-vascular, vessels distributed singly or in clusters (2-3 each), visible to the naked eye.

Sapwood:

Narrow (2 to 4 cm wide), whitish-yellow in colour.

Heartwood:

When freshly cut, it has a lemon-yellow colour. Under the influence of atmospheric factors, including sunlight, it darkens intensively and takes on a colour ranging from yellowish brown to dark brown.      

Fragrance:

It does not emit a characteristic odour.

Pattern:

In this wood, there is a striped twist to the fibres, which adds variety to the pattern on the radial section. The strips with twisted fibres are wide (2-3 cm).  Annual increments on the cross-section are very poorly distinguishable or not visible at all. Distributed across the cross-section, large vessels filled with thylles are visible as lighter (yellow) spots. This visibility is facilitated by the surrounding paratracheal parenchyma around the vasculature and the poorly developed winged parenchyma. On longitudinal sections, the vessels are noticeable as fine, darker pits. Small and inhomogeneous medullary rays are only visible on radial section.   

Typical defects:

Striped fibre twist. 

Properties of Sucupira wood:

According to the six-grade density scale, it is heavy wood (class II). The wood is characterised by low fibre saturation point moisture content (20%) and relatively low shrinkage values. According to Monnin's classification, sucupira is a low-shrinking wood with a low tendency to warp. The high density of wood has a beneficial effect on its mechanical properties. The average compressive strength along the fibres averages 78 MPa. Static crushing strength is also high at 109 MPa. The wood in question is also characterised by a high modulus of elasticity.  

Similar species:

In visual terms, Iroko Milicia excels. In terms of strength parameters, Jatoba.

Drying:

Drying this wood is difficult, slow and with a high risk of cracking and warping.   

Working:

High-quality tools should be used in manual and machine tooling, which require frequent sharpening due to significant cutting resistance. The resulting cut surfaces are smooth, as are the planing and milling. It is also a good material for turning. Dust from sawn roundwood (with bark) may cause allergic reactions.   

Joining:

Nail and screw joints are very durable, but require pre-drilling due to the high hardness of the wood and the danger of splitting.  

Finishing:

The homogeneous, compact structure of the wood allows for a very fine finishing of the parts (sanding, polishing), producing shiny surfaces.

Intended use:

veneers, furniture, flooring, interior fittings, high quality joinery products

Availability

28 mm – KD – SE edged – FAS grade

• Mechanical properties: Working is difficult, bonding is good, nailing requires pre-drilling.
• Modulus of elasticity: 22.3 GPa
• Tangential shrinkage: 7.0%
• Radial shrinkage: 4.9%
• Specific gravity: 910 kg/m³ (12%)
• Durability: species resistant to destructive fungal attack
• Dry wood pests: resistant – risk limited to sapwood penetration
• Protections: class 3 – poorly-accepting