Species data
Gaboon Ebony
Diospyros crassiflora - a hardwood from equatorial West Africa. Also sold as african ebony, nigerian ebony, cameroon ebony.
Properties at a glance
| Janka hardness | 3,080 lbf |
| Stiffness (MOE) | 2,449,000 psi |
| Specific gravity | 0.96 |
| Density | 59.9 lb/ft3 (960 kg/m3) |
| Weight per board foot | 4.99 lb |
| Shrinkage, green to oven-dry | 11.2% tangential / 8.3% radial |
| Indicative price | $100.00 per board foot (estimated) |
Values are at about 12% moisture content. Density is specific gravity times 62.4; a board foot is one twelfth of a cubic foot, so weight per board foot is that density divided by twelve. Anything marked estimated is our own figure, not a measured one.
How Gaboon Ebony compares
Measured against the 113 solid woods in this database: it is harder than 95% of them, heavier than 91%, and stiffer than 89%. Hard enough to be tough on edges and on machinery. At this density a full sheet or a long board gets heavy fast; check the shelf-sag and weight tools before you size anything.
What that means in the shop
A 4/4 board 8 inches wide and 8 feet long is 5.33 board feet, so in Gaboon Ebony it weighs about 26.6 lb. A stack of ten is 266 lb - worth knowing before you load a rack or a car.
Against red oak, the trade's usual yardstick at 1,220 lbf, Gaboon Ebony is about 2.5x as hard and 1.37x as heavy.
Its shrinkage is 11.2% tangential against 8.3% radial, a ratio of 1.3 to 1. The wider that ratio, the more unevenly a flatsawn board moves across its width as humidity changes, and the more it wants to cup; anything near or above 2 to 1 is worth quartersawing or restraining for panels and wide tops. This one moves comparatively evenly.
Woods of similar hardness
Closest to Gaboon Ebony on hardness in this database: Massaranduba (3,130 lbf), Cocobolo (2,960 lbf), Pink Ivory (3,230 lbf), Bloodwood (2,900 lbf). Similar hardness does not mean similar behaviour - check density and movement before substituting one for another.
Working with it
Workability. Extreme density makes machining hard; its oiliness complicates gluing, but it buffs to a brilliant sheen
Durability. Very durable, holding off both termites and various insects
Typical uses. musical instrument parts, piano keys, pool cues, carving, small specialty items.
Related calculators
Sources
MOE, SG (12% MC), Janka and shrinkage from The Wood Database (cites USDA FPL Wood Handbook). CT/CR omitted: gaboon ebony is not listed in the FPL/Hoadley dimensional change coefficient table. Uses, region, durability and workability summarized from The Wood Database. Price indicative.
These calculators are for planning and estimation. Engineering results (shelf sag, wood movement) use published average material properties; real boards vary by grade, grain, moisture and defects. Verify load-bearing designs with a professional.