Padauk Wood

Padauk is a vibrant African hardwood known for its brilliant orange-red color that deepens to a rich reddish-brown over time. Dense and durable with excellent stability, it machines and finishes well, making it a popular choice for furniture, turning, and decorative woodworking where bold natural color is the highlight.
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Lumber

Padauk Lumber Packs

4/4 Padauk Lumber

From $20.95
$20.95
Padauk Project Packs

4/4 Padauk Lumber Pack

$176.50
$176.50
Padauk Lumber Packs

8/4 Padauk Lumber

From $44.95
$44.95
Padauk Lumber Pack

8/4 Padauk Lumber Pack

$186.50
$186.50
Padauk Lumber - Full Length

4/4 Padauk Lumber - Full Length

From $79.75
$79.75

S4S Lumber

S4S Padauk Lumber
Online / Pre-Order

S4S Padauk Lumber

From $25.95
$25.95
S4S Padauk Lumber
Online / Pre-Order

S4S Padauk Lumber - Thick

From $49.95
$49.95

Thins

Padauk Thin

Padauk Thin

From $8.95
$0.00

Turning Wood

Padauk Bowl Blank

Padauk Bowl Blank

From $19.00
Padauk Turning Square

Padauk Turning Square

From $13.00

Cutting Board Blanks & Packages

Padauk Cutting Board Blank

Padauk Cutting Board Blank

From $7.50
Exotic Cutting board pack available to ship

Exotic Wood Cutting Board Pack

Limba, Padauk, & Purpleheart
From $59.95
Exotic Cutting Board Package - Offcuts

Exotic Cutting Board Package - Offcuts

Limba, Padauk, & Purpleheart
$45.50 $59.95

Dowels

Padauk Dowel

Padauk Dowel

From $4.95
$4.95

Padauk (Pterocarpus soyauxii)

Pricing

Average

Hardness

1970

Janka

Distribution

Central and tropical west Africa

Availability

Readily Available

Appearance

The heartwood ranges from a light pink/orange to a dark red/brown. The colours are at their most vibrant when the boards are freshly worked but will change to a dark brown/purple colour over time. Padauk lumber doesn’t take much sanding or scraping to get the original color back.

Workability

Padauk Wood works well with hand and power tools, but beware, the grain can be interlocked ,which can lead to tearout if your tools aren’t sharp. You should have no problems gluing this wood or having finish stick which makes it a great beginner exotic. It also smells nice with a light, aromatic quality. Fair warning, you will have colorful dust everywhere, so don’t hesitate to wear a mask.

Uses

Veneer, flooring, turned objects, musical instruments, furniture, tool handles, and decorative objects. Padauk lumber is also a fantastic wood for hand planes due to its awesome color, weight and stability.

Additional Comments

You don’t get much more bang for your buck as you do with African Padauk wood. It’s relatively inexpensive (for an import), looks great, and It has a light, pleasant odor when worked. This species also takes on a wicked shine when worked with high-angle planes or scrapers. This is a fantastic choice if you are new to exotics, so have fun with it.

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Why choose Padauk Wood?

Padauk is one of the most instantly recognizable woods in the world. It has a vivid, almost electric red to orange color that is so bold it barely looks real, and while it does mellow to a deeper reddish brown over time it never loses that warmth entirely. It is hard, stable, and naturally resistant to wear which makes it a reliable choice for flooring, furniture accents, and knife handles where you want something that performs as well as it looks. That color also makes it a popular choice for inlays and decorative accents where even a small amount of Padauk completely transforms a piece. It machines and finishes well and a clear finish is always the right call because anything else would hide what makes it special.

Frequently Asked Questions About Padauk Wood