hardwood · Dalbergia latifolia

East Indian Rosewood wood properties

Also known as: indian rosewood, indian palisander, sonokeling.

Type hardwood
Botanical name Dalbergia latifolia
Modulus of elasticity (MOE) 1,783,000 psi
Specific gravity 0.80
Density (approx) 50 lb/ft³ (4.2 lb per board foot)
Janka hardness 2,350 lbf
Shrinkage (tangential / radial) 5.9% / 2.6%
Region India, Sri Lanka and Indonesia

A 1 in x 6 in x 8 ft board of East Indian Rosewood weighs about 16.6 lb (roughly 50 lb per cubic foot). Its Janka hardness of 2,350 lbf is harder than about 86% of the woods in our database.

Uses and working notes

Common uses: fine furniture, musical instruments, veneer, turned objects, specialty items.

Durability: Very durable, with reliably solid resistance to termites.

Workability: Interlocked grain and density make it tricky; chalky deposits blunt cutters, yet it usually glues and turns well.

Use this data

Similar woods

Woods with comparable hardness and density to East Indian Rosewood:

How these numbers were sourced

MOE, SG (12% MC), Janka and shrinkage from The Wood Database (cites USDA FPL Wood Handbook). SG given as a range; midrange value used. Not in the FPL/Hoadley dimensional-change table, so movement coefficients are omitted. Uses, region, durability, workability summarized from The Wood Database. Price indicative.

Values shown as estimates rather than sourced constants: typicalPricePerBF_usd, specificGravity.

Sources

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.