Desert Ironwood

Cueballdg

Cueballdg

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I recently purchased two blocks of ironwood because I have always liked the grain and character of the wood.
My questions to the cuemakers is twofold.
1. Why are there so few cues out there that have either points or forearms made with ironwood??

2. Is it hard to find or too hard to work with??

And lastly any knowledge on the subject of ironwood would be greatly appreciated.

I am considering having a cuemaker do something with these pieces but would like to hear thoughts first.

Thanks
Cueballdg
 
I have used desert ironwood several times. It's very dense and one of the heaviest woods around. It has a tendency to split if it's not sealed properly while drying. It does have great character, color striping, and IMHO it is very rare. Here is a link to some of the butt sleeve work I have done using desert ironwood.

3rd pic 2nd cue from left, 4th pic 1st & 2nd butt sleeve from right,
7th pic 1st & 2nd butt sleeve from left.

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=95335&highlight=merry+widow

Hope this helps.

John
 
The wood is very HEAVY, and woulds make up into a very heavy Cue, but I have seen Desert Iornwood Inlay that are beautiful. Also the DUST of Desert Iornwood is very toxic.
 
I have had a block of it for years and have avoided using it because it is too heavy and prone to cracking. I have used Brazilian Iron Wood some and it hits nice and gives almost zero problems. The light dark color contrast is not as intense but it is still very pretty. It is not as heavy. It is in almost the same weight range as Bocote.
 
1/2 dozen cues

i have used desert ironwood in 1/2 dozen merry widow style cues. i had a customer that wanted a very small butt and a heavy cue. the ironwood worked well because of the weight. i found a log that was suppose to be about 150 years old, yet when i cut it some of the pieces warped. i had cue move a month after it was finished. i have at this time a ironwood forearm and butt with a curly maple handle hanging in my shop. there's lots of other woods that imo are better for cues. chuck
 
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