This is a sampling of the grip materials we use but the sample colors are not always right nor is the grain.  We are always amazed to find different shades and different grains right next to one another in the same piece of wood. We also have burls in some of these woods.  Some of the woods we do not sell a lot of and we do not keep grips made, but can make them upon request and list them. Pics of the requested grips will be placed on the proper page and you can buy them from there using the item number.  I want you to see the grips you are buying before you buy so there is no confusion what you are getting. With the item number I can look at your invoice and see exactly which grips you bought years from now if you want more like them.  All pics will be kept on file.
 

Prices are for any grip that we make out of the wood shown.  You may find grips cheaper sometimes on the auctions because I do put them on sale.  Sales prices will not be reflected on our regular pages. 

Prices are subject to change with wood price fluctations and for no other reason.
 

Afzelia  $21.00
Afzelia spp. of the family Leguminosae (subfamily Caesalpinioideae), the legume or pea family .  The genus Afzelia, which occurs both in Africa and in SE Asia, yields a particularly stable wood. 

  Afzelia Xlay Burl  $24.95

Ambonya  $29.95
You might think of Amboyna as “the burl with the swirl.”  Thanks in part to its wavy grain, Amboyna Burl is figured with numerous, captivating swirls.
Amboyna Burl wood, which is known scientifically as Pterocarpus Indicus, has been painstakingly extracted from the jungles of Southeast Asia — and often transported (at least initially) via elephant.
A rare, exotic hardwood with a fragrant aroma, Amboyna Burl can vary in color from yellow to golden brown to red, and is generally considered excellent for both turning and finishing.

Androbia  $21.00

  Bocote  $21.00  
Cordia alliodora
Other Names: Cype, solera, ziricote, canaletta and cordia
Distribution: West Indies and Tropical America
General description: The heartwood is dull golden brown in colour with variegated irregular marking and an attractive ray flecked figure on quartered surfaces. It is straight grained, with a medium coarse texture. Bocote has a specific gravity of .55.
Mechanical properties: Possesses medium strength properties in all categories and a good steam bending classification.
Durability: Bocote is moderately durable.

  Bubinga      $24.95

Guibourtia Demeusei
Commercial names: African rosewood, Kevasingo
Other names: Essingang (Camerron); kevanzingo, buvenga (Gabon).
Distribution: Chiefly from the Cameroon and Gabon, also from Zaire.
General description: The wood is medium red-brown with lighter red to purple veining. The grain is straight or interlocked. In some logs the grain is very irregular and these are converted to peeling into rotary cut veneers called kevasingo. The texture is moderately coarse but even. Bubbinga has a specific gravity of .88.
Mechanical properties: The timber has low steam bending qualities and exudation of gum pockets is troublesome.
Working properties: The timber works easily with both hand and machine tools, although gum pockets may cause difficulty. Interlocked and irregular grained material tends to tear or pick up and a reduced cutting angle of 15° is necessary for planning or moulding. There is a pre-boring; gluing may be difficult due to gum pockets, but the wood stains easily and can be brought to an excellent finish.
Durability: Bubinga is moderately durable.  Reddish brown with darker stripes or mottled grain appearance 

Cebil  $21.00
Cebil, "Anadenanthera collubrina" is a wood from Argentina. Also known as Patagonian Rosewood, it show quite an range of color with a very interesting end grain.

  Chinaberry  $21.00
Also called pride-of-India, umbrella-tree, and Persian lilac, is a fast-growing tree that can grow to 50 feet tall.  Its twigs are slightly purple with light-brown spots (lenticels).  The leaves are large (up to 2 ft. long), blue-green, with long stalks (petioles), and doubly compound (i.e., divided twice into smaller leaflets).  Individual leaflets are toothed and pointed.  The leaves turn golden-yellow in the fall.  Flowers are small but showy, appearing in clusters at the end of branches in early spring.  Each flower has five narrow pink petals surrounding a central purple-red tube. Fruits are round yellow berries, which mature into brown leathery seed capsules. 

Cocobolo  $21.00 
Dalbergia retusa
Other name: granadillo
Distribution: West coast of Central America.
General description: The heartwood colour varies from rich red to an attractive variegated appearance of yellow, orange and red streaks and zones, which mature upon exposure to mello orange red. The grain is irregular and variable, but has a fine uniform texture. Cocobolo has a specific gravity of about 1.10.
Mechanical properties: This very heavy, tough, strong timber has high mechanical strength in all categories but these are unimportant due to the purposes for which the timber is used.
Working properties: Works fairly well with both hand and machine tools, with a moderate blunting effect on cutting edges which must be kept very sharp. A reduced cutting angle is required for planning or moulding, and the surface can be rendered very smooth to the touch. It can be nailed and screwed easily, but is difficult to glue. It takes stain and can be brought to and excellent finish.
Durability: Very durable.  Variegated in color from brownish orange to purple with stripes of yellow, orange and black.

  Macassar Ebony  $29.95
Mgiriti, Msindi (Tanzania), Omenowa (Ghana), Kanran, Nyareti (Nigeria), Kukuo (Gambia).  Macassar ebony, Indian ebony, coromandel, calamander wood, tendu, timbruni . Southeast Asia, including the Celebes Islands, India, Indonesia and the Philippines.  A very heavy, hard and dense wood. Heartwood is dark brown or black with streaks of yellow brown. The grain is typically straight. Wood is brittle and usually used for decorative purposes. Excellent for turnery. Also used for cabinets, walking sticks, musical instruments, and billiard cues. 

  Black and White Ebony $29.95

  Goncalo Alves  $21.00
Astronium fraxinifolium
Commercial names: tigerwood
Distribution:  Brazil
Other names: urunday-para, mura bois de zebre
General description: The timber is reddish-brown in colour, richly mottled and with dark brown streaks and spots similar to rosewood. It has an irregular, interlocked grain, with alternating layers of hard and soft material. The wood is of medium texture. Goncalo Alves has a specific gravity of .95.
Mechanical properties: This hard, heavy, dense wood is stong in all categories and is not used for steam bending.
Working properties: The timber is rather difficult to work with a moderate to severe blunting effect on tools which should be kept sharp. The contrasting layers of hard and soft material together with irregular or interlocked grain requires a reduced cutting angle of 15° for best results. Pre-boring necessary for nailing, but it holds screws well, glues easily and finishes with a high natural polish.
Durability: Highly durable.

  Blue Gray Laminate  $21.00

  Imbuia - Walnut  $21.00
Canella imbuia, Embuia, Embuya (Brazil). A member of the Laurel family, this grows in Southern Brazil and is used for gun stocks and musical instruments, among other things.

  Ipe - Walnut  $21.00
Amapa (Mexico), Cortez (Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica), Guayacan (Panama), Guayacan polvillo (Colombia), Flor Amarillo (Venezuela), Greenhart (Surinam), Madera negra (Ecuador), Tahuari (Peru), Ipe (Brazil), Lapacho negro (Paraguay, Argentina). Heartwood ranges from olive-brown to reddish-black. Very resistant to the elements, making it a popular choice for outdoor decking and construction, including bridges. Difficult to work, especially with hand tools. Has a blunting effect on tools. Predrilling required to avoid splitting.

Kingwood  $24.95 
Dalbergia cearensis
Commercial names: violet wood, violetta
Other names: violete (Brazil)
Distribution: South America, chiefly Brazil.
General description: The heartwood has variegated colours with a background of rich violet-brown, shading almost to black with streaks of violet-brown, ark violet and black, sometimes with golden yellow, presenting an unmistakeable appearance. Usually straight grained, uniformly fine textured and lustrous. Kingwood has a specivic gravity of 1.2.
Mechanical properties: Although very strong and tough in all strength categories, kingwood is chiefly used for decorative purposes as its use is restricted by the small sizes available.
Working properties: Works well with both hand and machine tools with a moderate dulling effect on cutters. If cutting edges are kept sharp a very smooth finish is obtainable. Nails and screws hold wee, and the wood can provide a fine, natural waxy finish.
Durability: The timber is durable.

  Lacewood  $21.00
Southern silky-oak (Australia), Kawilia (Tanganyika), Lacewood (United States). 

  Honey Locust  $21.00
Mostly found in the moist soil of Eastern North America.  Its bean seeds can be used to make beer.
Mostly found in the moist soil of Eastern North America.  Its bean seeds can be used ke er.  Mimosa  $21.00
Silk tree, also known as mimosa, or silky acacia, is a small to medium-sized tree that can grow up to 20-40 feet tall.  The bark is light brown, nearly smooth, and generally thin with lens shaped areas along the stem. 

Loro Preto  $21.00
The color of the heartwood is light yellow brown with irregular darker zones and spots. Sometimes ingrown bark can be found. The wood has a nice lustre and pleasant smell. The sapwood is greyish to yellowish white and sometimes not easy to distinct. The grain is mainly straigth but sometimes wavy or interlocked. The texture is medium fine. 

Macawood  $21.00
Platymiscium spp. (Platymiscium pinnatum)
Common Names - Maca Wood, Cristobal, Granadillo, Macacauba
Macawood is an exotic wood with wildly varying colour, grain and appearances. Heartwood varies from bright red or reddish to purplish brown. It has been used as a substitute for rosewood. 
Macawood tends to be very highly figured, although it is not always apparent until it has a finish on it. It is very dense, and weighs about 5 to 6 pounds per board foot when dry. It also has an incredible low shrinkage value of only 6.5 % by volume, which is less than mahogany, and is known to be very stable and very durable. Despite it's high density, it is easy to work with, machines well, finishes smoothly and takes a high polish. This is a first class cabinet wood that is suitable for any fine furniture projects. It is also a remarkable value as well. 

  Mahogany  $21.00
 Is used where a good quality, medium weight hardwood is needed. Heartwood is shades of pinkish red, darkening to reddish brown with exposure. Sapwood is a creamy or yellowish white. Grain usually interlocked, and dark grooves appear when cut longitudinally. Texture varies. Severe buckling occurs when bent. When planing, use a cutting angle of 20 degrees. Excellent for furniture, cabinets, rotary and flat sawn veneers, staircases, doors, musical instruments, intarsia works, window frames, and the weapons industry.

  Birdseye Maple  $24.95
(Acer Saccharum-Hard Maple) This figure is found in the eastern hard maple trees. Though not really one of my favorites. Birdseye Maple is very popular with many people and usually expensive. Varies from creamy white to creamy tan with distinctive birdseye figure 

  Sugar Maple  $21.00

   Spaulted Maple  $21.00
Yellowish or reddish brown color with distinctive black spalting lines and swirly grain patterns 

  North Western Maple  $21.00

  Mara wood  $21.00
Southern Brazil, Argentina with similar species throughout tropical South America.
Heartwood is light brown in color, soft, easily worked, but not durable. Member of the rubbertree family. Typically used for crating or as a secondary wood in cabinet making.
 

  Mesquite  $21.00
Mesquite is known, along with Ironwood, as the best firewood of the desert, because it burns slowly and is practically smokeless.  Native to Mexico, West Texas, Utah and California, this wood is often used for fence posts and aromatic charcoal for barbequing. Reddish brown to golden color with contrasting dark brown streaks.

Black Mesquite  $21.00

  Morado - Rosewood $24.95
Used for similar purposes of Brazilian rosewood, such as turnery, cabinets, fine furniture, specialty items, and decorative veneers. Heartwood color is brown to dark violet brown, frequently with streaks throughout and a waxy feel. Sapwood is slightly yellow, white or gray. Straight to irregular grain. Fine to coarse texture. Lustrous. Occasional walnut fragrance. Workability varies from fair to excellent.

Mullberry $21.00
A species of fruit-bearing trees native to North America, Asia and Africa.

  Myrtle Burl  $29.95
Native to SW Oregon and NW California. In 1869 the golden spike was driven into the myrtlewood tie marking the completion of the transcontinental railroad. Light to dark brown with occasional areas of olive-brown or blackish streaks 

  Red Narra  $21.00  
Philippines, Borneo, Burma, New Guinea, and the Malay Archipelago
Heartwood consists of light yellow, golden brown, reddish brown to red. Sapwood is a defined pale yellow or slightly white color. Grain is interlocked, sometimes wavy, with dark growth bands. Moderately fine to moderately coarse texture. Slight lustre, with a fragrant scent. Easy to work using both hand and machine tools. Turns well. Excellent for furniture and cabinets, used along roadsides for shade and ornamental purposes, decorative veneers, interior trim, and novelty items.

  Golden Narra  $21.00

  Nogal - Walnut  $21.00
Argentine Walnut is a short, stout tree with wood similar in figure to American black walnut, but usually slightly softer and coarser textured. Color is often variegated. The heartwood is usually medium brown, often with black streaks and a golden luster. The bark and sawdust are used in dyeing fabrics.

  Holy land Olive  $29.95

Russian Olive  $21.00

  Padauk  $21.00  Not really this bright
(Pterocarpus Soyauxii) African padauk is bright red in color, deepening in time to a very deep red. Usually fairly dense and heavy, coarse textured, with prominent open pores. Density varies as a result of growing conditions, generally machines well regardless of density, but the fine dust can be irritating.

  Panguan  $21.00

  Pollyanna  $24.95

  Pecan  $21.00

Pau Rosa  $21.00

  Pyinma 21.00

  Asian Rosewood $24.95

  Asian Rosewood  $24.95

  Amazon Rosewood  $24.95 

Bolivian Rosewood  $24.95

  Brazilian Rosewood  $24.95
Eastern forests of Bahia to Espirito Santo and Rio de Janeiro
One of the most prized furniture and tone woods of all time, Brazilian rosewood is now rare and tightly controlled on the world market. The heartwood is shades of dark brown with noticable black streaks, and the sapwood is white. The wood looks and feels oily or waxy. It is mostly straight grain with medium to coarse texture, a slight luster and a rose-like fragrance when worked. Used for decorative veneers, musical instrument parts, fine furniture, cabinets, piano cases, fancy turnery, marquetry, and knife handles.
 

Honduran Rosewood   $24.95
Belize -- between the Sarstoon and Monkey Rivers
Heartwood is shades of reddish to purple-brown with alternating dark markings. Sapwood is yellow. Straight to slightly wavy grain. Medium to fine texture. Low lustre. Tougher than Brazilian rosewood, but not used when strength is important. Heaviness prevents bendability. Blunting effect on cutting edges is moderate. Turnery useage is excellent. Necessary to pre-bore nails. Gluing may difficult due to oil in wood, and does not provide a naturally high finish. Used for musical instruments such as guitars, harps, pianos, furniture, picture frames, billiard tables, and doors.

  Indian Rosewood  .24.95
Shisham (India). 

Siam Rosewood  $24.95

Shedua $21.00
Shedua has a yellow-brown to dark brown heartwood with dark gray to black stripes, and has an attractive walnut-like figure and straight grain.

From the Ivory Coast, this member of the Bubinga family is a beautiful cabinet wood. It is dense and polishes well.

Timborana  $21.00
Brazil, Venezuela, Columbia, Guyana.  
Timborana is a beautiful, teak like species, with fine graining which is used for fine furniture and flooring.  
Timborana ranges from a straw tan color to a medium nut brown color with developing reddish highlights.  
When fresh cut, Timborana is a light tan yellow color which darkens to a tan brown color. Then, over time, reddish tones develop. This process occurs quickly in direct sunlight and by oxidation alone over a period of 6 to 8 months.  

  Tulipwood  $24.95
Also known as Brazilian Tulipwood to distinguish it from the American Tulip Poplar, this wood comes from a species in a small area of Brazil and is available only in small sizes.   Pinkish to yellowish heartwood with pronounced stripes of violet, salmon and rose 

Verawood  $21.00
(Bulnesia arborea)  South America , Dark green with some yellow streaks.  A hard and dense wood in the lignum vitae family.  Sharp tools required. Bowls and hollow forms. 

  Black Walnut  $21.00
Black Walnut is common in the United States.  The Black Walnut tree produces edible nuts, but getting through the tough shell is a chore. It is normally cultivated for its wood.  Black Walnut wood is very hard and dense, and polishes to a high sheen, with a light chocolate color. For centuries, it has been the timber of choice for gun makers. Very dark brown.

   Black Walnut Burl .24.95
Rich dark brown with black swirls of burly grain.

  Claro Walnut  $24.95
 "Claro" is a Spanish word meaning clear or bright, and the common name "claro walnut" is usually used to refer to the wood cut from the lower bole (stump) of orchard walnut trees, especially on the West coast of the US. These trees are a mixture of species, created by grafting an English walnut (Juglans regia) scion to a rootstock of one of our native walnut species -- either black walnut (Juglans nigra) or California walnut (Juglans hindsii). The wood near the graft tends to be variegated in color, with beautiful marble-like, dark brown and tan swirls in the figure. It is a favorite wood for making gunstocks.
There is some confusion about the term "claro", since the lumber trade sometimes uses it to describe the wood of ordinary California walnut, which is more like black walnut, rather than the marbled variety cut from orchard trees.
Claro walnut has working properties similar to black walnut. It works well with hand and power tools, has good strength and bending properties, and takes finishes well. It is used mainly for high-quality furniture and gunstocks.

   Marbled English Walnut  $24.95
Originated in Persia, but now grown commercially in the USA, particularly California.  English walnut is variable in color and density depending on where it grows. Heartwood brown with a grayish-brown background, often with irregular dark streaks and wavy grain. Also available as highly-figured veneer. A superb cabinet wood that works easily and takes a high polish.

  Zebrawood  $21.00
( Microberlinia Brazzavillensis) 
This unique wood has beautiful striped grain markings that resemble a zebra. It is a decorative, exotic wood that has been used in Mercedes Benz cars.  It comes from West Africa (Gabon, Cameroon and Congo.  Light tan to golden yellow with distinctive streaks of dark brown or black 

  Ziricote     $24.95
Guatamala to southern Mexico, primarily Belize
Ziricote is the most dramatic member of the Cordia genus, which grows throughout Central and tropical South America. The heartwood is dull brown with irregular dark brown and black streaking, and the sapwood is creamy white to light golden tan. A pleasing ray or fleck figure is visible in quartersawn stock. Ziricote's grain is generally straight, and its texture is medium to coarse. Good for steam bending and easily worked with machine and hand tools, ziricote has only a slight blunting effect on cutting edges. It takes a smooth finish, polishes well, and holds screws and nails well. Long used by natives for decorative craft objects, ziricote is also used for boat decking, turnings, interior joinery, furniture, cabinets and other light construction.

  Black Micarta Bead Blasted  $31.95

  Black Micarta Polished  $31.95