How to Identify Sapele Wood (Entandrophragma cylindricum)

Sapele, Entandrophragma cylindricum: color, grain, end grain, Janka hardness (1,510 lbf) and weight, and how to tell it from Mahogany (Honduran/Genuine), quoted from the USDA Wood Handbook and The Wood Database.

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At a glance

Scientific name: Entandrophragma cylindricum
Type: Hardwood
Origin: Tropical Africa
Color: Heartwood golden to dark reddish brown, darkening with age; shows figured patterns such as pommele, quilted, mottled, wavy, beeswing, and fiddleback.
Grain and texture: Grain interlocked and sometimes wavy; fine, uniform texture with good natural luster.
End grain: Diffuse porous; growth rings sometimes discernible from marginal parenchyma and decreased pore frequency; vessels large, few, with occasional reddish-brown deposits; parenchyma diffuse-in-aggregates, unilateral, vasicentric, and banded; rays narrow to medium width, generally not visible without magnification.
Janka hardness: 1,510 lbf
Specific gravity (12% MC): 0.55
Other clue: Distinct, cedar-like scent while being worked; reacts with iron to become discolored and stained.

What Sapele looks like

Heartwood golden to dark reddish brown, darkening with age; shows figured patterns such as pommele, quilted, mottled, wavy, beeswing, and fiddleback. Grain interlocked and sometimes wavy; fine, uniform texture with good natural luster. End grain: Diffuse porous; growth rings sometimes discernible from marginal parenchyma and decreased pore frequency; vessels large, few, with occasional reddish-brown deposits; parenchyma diffuse-in-aggregates, unilateral, vasicentric, and banded; rays narrow to medium width, generally not visible without magnification.

Hardness and weight

Janka hardness 1,510 lbf (side hardness: the force needed to embed a 0.444-inch steel ball to half its diameter). Specific gravity 0.55 at 12% moisture content, so a cubic foot weighs roughly 34 lb. Weight in the hand is one of the quickest checks: compare a piece of known size against a board you already know.

Sapele vs Mahogany (Honduran/Genuine)

Sapele is sometimes called 'sapele mahogany' and used as a substitute, but it is notably harder (1,510 lbf vs 800 lbf), has interlocked grain that often shows ribbon-stripe or other figure, and gives off a distinct cedar-like scent while worked, whereas true mahogany has no characteristic odor and more often straight or gently wavy grain. The Mahogany (Honduran/Genuine) page has its own details.

Smell, weight and other clues

Distinct, cedar-like scent while being worked; reacts with iron to become discolored and stained.

Where you will meet it

Veneer, plywood, furniture, cabinetry, flooring, boatbuilding, musical instruments, turned objects, and small wooden specialty items.

Working it

Can be troublesome to machine (planing, routing) due to interlocked grain causing tearout; reacts with iron causing staining; turns, glues, and finishes well; reported as a skin and respiratory irritant (uncommon).

How to photograph it for identification

Photograph a freshly cut or sanded face in daylight, not a finished or stained surface, since stain hides color and finish flattens grain. Add a close-up of the end grain: cut a clean end, wet it or sand it to 220, and shoot from straight on; pore pattern and rays are the most reliable marks. Put a ruler in frame. The app suggests the likely species; confirm with the end grain and weight.

FAQ

How hard is Sapele?

Janka hardness 1,510 lbf. For comparison, Red Oak is about 1,290 lbf and Eastern White Pine about 380 lbf.

How do I tell Sapele from Mahogany (Honduran/Genuine)?

Is Sapele a hardwood or a softwood?

Sapele is a hardwood: it comes from a broadleaf tree. Hardwood and softwood describe the kind of tree, not how hard the wood is; some hardwoods are softer than some softwoods.

What color is Sapele?

Heartwood golden to dark reddish brown, darkening with age; shows figured patterns such as pommele, quilted, mottled, wavy, beeswing, and fiddleback.

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