Species data
Goncalo Alves
Astronium spp. - a hardwood from mexico southward to Brazil. Also sold as tigerwood, jobillo, muiracatiara.
Properties at a glance
| Janka hardness | 2,170 lbf |
| Stiffness (MOE) | 2,401,000 psi |
| Specific gravity | 0.91 |
| Density | 56.8 lb/ft3 (910 kg/m3) |
| Weight per board foot | 4.73 lb |
| Shrinkage, green to oven-dry | 7.8% tangential / 4.2% radial |
| Indicative price | $10.00 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 Goncalo Alves compares
Measured against the 113 solid woods in this database: it is harder than 84% of them, heavier than 90%, and stiffer than 88%. 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 Goncalo Alves it weighs about 25.2 lb. A stack of ten is 252 lb - worth knowing before you load a rack or a car.
Against red oak, the trade's usual yardstick at 1,220 lbf, Goncalo Alves is about 1.8x as hard and 1.30x as heavy.
Its shrinkage is 7.8% tangential against 4.2% radial, a ratio of 1.9 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 Goncalo Alves on hardness in this database: Leopardwood (2,150 lbf), Persimmon (2,300 lbf), Bocote (2,010 lbf), East Indian Rosewood (2,350 lbf). Similar hardness does not mean similar behaviour - check density and movement before substituting one for another.
Working with it
Workability. Manageable despite its density; figure troubles planing, cutters dull moderately, oils hinder gluing; finishes and turns well
Durability. Very durable; weathers excellently and stands up to decay
Typical uses. flooring, veneer, furniture, cabinetry, carving, turned objects, knife handles.
Related calculators
Sources
MOE, SG (12% MC), Janka and shrinkage from The Wood Database (cites USDA FPL Wood Handbook). SG is the 12% MC value from the source's "Basic, 12% MC" pair (0.80, 0.91). Not in the FPL/Hoadley dimensional-change table, so movement coefficients are omitted. Uses, region, durability, 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.