False Kamani
False Kamani (Terminalia catappa) haole kamani, Andaman badam, Barbados almond, tropical almond, country almond, Indian almond, Malabar almond, sea almond, bastard almond, beach almond, and dozens of other names, are trees in the leadwood family, Combretaceae.
They are native to Asia, Australia, Pacific islands and Madagascar.
False Kamani wood has high water resistence and was used to make canoes all across Polynesia. The strong wood has also commonly been used worldwide for buildings, boats, bridges, floors, boxes, carts, wheelbarrows, barrels, water troughs and drums. The almond-flavored kernels can be eaten raw or roasted, or dried for an extracted cooking oil.
False kamani wood's ease of use varies greatly with the complexity of the grain orientation. It can cut very easily to relatively difficult. It also has a wide variety of shades and colors that can make two boards from the same log look like different species. Colors you will often see in false kamani grain are whites, yellows, oranges, reds, pinks, purples and browns. Grain from the sapwood and outside edges of a log can often look turbulent like it came from a burl, and whispy and less chaotic in the heartwood. Every false kamani board is very unique.
Janka Hardness: Unknown
Average Dried Weight: 450-720 kg/m³
Specific Gravity: .5
False Kamani (terminalia catappa) wood being milled on Sawmizer bandsaw.
False Kamani (Terminalia catappa) wood grain sanded to 120 grit.
More information: