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Bubinga

A heavy, dramatic pinkish-red wood with dark veins, famous for striking slab tables and wild patterns.

Start a project with bubinga
Illustration of a bubinga board

Color over time

Approximate, in a normally lit room. Illustrated grain; real boards vary.

Hardness
2,410 Extremely hardHigher number means harder to dent. About the Janka test
Weight
Heavy
Cost of the wood
$$$Premium, per board foot
Grows in
Equatorial Africa

What it looks like

Pinkish-red to deep reddish-brown with darker purple or black veins. Smooth and dense. Many boards have spectacular patterns: rippling “waterfall,” bubbly, flamed or quilted.

How it changes over time

Over a few years it deepens from pinkish-red to a richer burgundy-brown, faster in the sun. The dark veins stay dark.

Shimmer

Bubinga is one of the most three-dimensional woods anywhere.

Smell

Little to none once finished.

With a natural wax finish

So dense it polishes to a satin sheen with wax alone. The color deepens slightly and the pattern stays soft.

With a semi-gloss lacquer finish

The patterns look liquid and three-dimensional, and the color turns a rich burgundy.

Safe for food?

Serving pieces onlySafe around food, but it’s very hard, so it’s best for serving boards, trays and accent stripes rather than a cutting surface.

Looks great with

Made in the shop

Bubinga in a finished piece.

Bubinga keepsake box with a brass latch, closed
Bubinga keepsake box, made as a Mother’s Day gift.
Bubinga keepsake box with the lid open, showing blue velvet lining
Velvet-lined bottom, for jewelry or anything else.
Inside the bubinga box: a music box housed in American walnut
The music box sits in a walnut housing under a flip top, so it can be swapped out.

Thinking about bubinga?

Tell me what you’d like built and I’ll suggest a design and finish that suit it.

Start a project with bubinga

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