I have a customer who is stopping by this evening who says he has a beautiful hunk of Sapele Mahogany with super straight grain that has been kiln dried for 4 years and stacked for 7 years now. He would like to see if I can shape it into a nice stock for a 308 Mauser walking varminter. Something light and quick. I have never worked mahogany...I know it has been used in the past for stockmaking-lots of pre war Mausers, Mosin Nagant and in the 70's Remington used it for some 870s. I just don't know it's characteristics such as:

1. Is it prone to checking if over dry-will I need to oil it prior to working it like Rosewood?

2. How brittle it it? I have read it is lighter than walnut due to less moisture content overall- just wanted to make sure that does not hinder workability.

3. Is it as hard as 80 year old Dade County Pine? The guy with the wood now says you have to pre drill it to drive a nail thru it. What will that do to my bits and chisels?

I am honest with myself and customers in that I am only fair as a stockmaker, if this is out of my wheelhouse I have no problem admitting it and passing it on to someone else for the shaping and fitting, but at the end of the day will it even be worth the effort. I don't want to lay in a master line and start checkering if the wood is too brittle to even hold a diamond. Any educated opinions?

Photos from his phone:

About 3" thick

6.5 feet long

Mahogany, like Walnut, varies all over the place as far as density and brittleness, depending on where and how it was grown. But it is often fairly soft and brittle. Only you can tell what this particular piece of wood is like and will do; I would not build a hard kicking caliber on it. Just like walnut, each piece stands on its own.

I have made some Mahoney furniture if I was using it for a gun stock. I would give it a good glass bedding job.

Yes, I should have said, all I have seen was quite soft and brittle.

Ditto Duane's comment. If I didn't have any other work in the shop and was desperate for a paying job, I'd still turn it down, but I'm not a fan of any "alternate" woods.

Can't see a reason to spend anytime on a Mahogany blank. Want something plain by a piece of straight grain walnut.

I have worked with mahogany before on various projects of my own. None of them ever involved making stocks out of it, but it was always very soft. I would probably limit its use to furniture and 1911 grips if it were me.

there is a reason even cheap factory rifles use Walnut...

I thought Sapele was more often described as cedar than mahogany. Your pics certainly look like the sapele one in World Woods in Colour by William A. Lincoln. He says it smells like cedar and lists it as having a greater density than mahogany but close to walnut; reasonable crush and shock resistance but perhaps not the best for steam bending (in case you want to modify the cast ).

Duane, to answer you first, were it South American Mahogany, I would not even consider it, as that stuff is crap for rifles. My question was for the Sapele, of which I have zero experience. I had never even heard of it before my customer contacted me about it, hence this post. I am looking for opinions from people who have had experiences with the wood. If the concensus was that it is an easy wood to work, I may give it a shot. Only ONE of you has had anything constructive to add to this conversation, speaking directly of Sapele, which is miles apart from it's American cousin. I decided to pass on the project as the wood is mighty hard, and I won't chance it solely based on my skill level (I know my limitations).
Walnut is not the only wood in which I have worked, nor is it the only wood for stockmaking, just the most common. As Sapele is not often seen in the States, I didn't know if was used elsewhere in the world. Never know until you ask, right? Wait...this is AR...what was I thinking...

Beautiful piece of wood, though. Probably would finish out like one of those really deceptively nice old straight grained birch stocks I used to see on a few presentation grade Military rifles.

I have built several custom yacht interiors out of Sapele. It is easy to work while being tough, very stable in my experience (marine environments are harder on wood than rifles are), and handsome under a nice finish. I would use that blank to make a stock for a .308. A good piece of sapele is superior to a cheap grade of walnut any day.

We are so indoctrinated with walnut that we rarely tolerate any other wood for custom rifle builds. More is the pity, for there are a world's worth of beautiful suitable woods that are as good (and often better) than walnut.

quote:

Sapele

I had never heard of it but it is listed in The Wood Data Base.

http://www.wood-database.com/l...on/hardwoods/sapele/

Not a true Mahogany but related at a distance.

Some actual specifications of the type wood are available and can be compared to walnut, maple or what ever.

Looks interesting though.

Good Sapele is harder and denser than any of the walnuts. It is also heavier. It would be fine to excellent for rifle stocks. The color should be excellent. While I have not used it for a gun stock, I have used it for other projects throughout the years and found it to be easy to work and finish, although as I stated before, it is harder, so sharp tools is the rule.

I would not do Mahogany as I feel it is too soft, and certainly is lighter than walnut

Awesome replies, thanks a bunch. I might rethink skipping this and sharpen my chisels...

it'll work just fine if the rifle is a blaser

quote:

it'll work just fine if the rifle is a blaser

Friends don't let friends shoot Blasers