Andiroba

Family: Meliaceae - Order: Sapindales - Class: Magnoliopsida
Scientific name: Carapa / C. procera / C. Guianensis / C. Megistocarpa

Trade name: Andiroba

Also known as African crabwood, Andiroba mahogany and Carapa

Origin: West tropical Africa and tropical America.

Instrumental uses:
Guitar back and sides, fingerboards, electric guitar bodies, guitar necks, head plates and bindings

Tonal properties:

Very well balanced overall from tight balanced basses until the mid highs, and a slightly clearer high end than Mahogany also with a big presence.

By its interlocked grain, steady and stiff, many luthiers use it in guitar neck’s sounding excellent compared to maple, on solid electric guitar bodies as well.

As an acoustic guitar set, it exceeds expectation by being a combination between mahoganies and maples.

Very easy to work, very stable and provides a very bright natural finish.

Medium density reference nearly 660 kg/m^3.

Similar to mahoganies, Andiroba trees are reported to reach heights of 30 to 40 m, with diameters ranging from 50 to 80 cm. They develop straight and cylindrical boles, up to 15 m long. Lengths of 20 m are also possible.

Carapa procera has a wide growth range in tropical America and it is also found in West Africa, although the African trees do not reach the same dimensions as the American ones. In tropical America it is reported to occur from Costa Rica down to southern Panama. In the Amazon Basin occurs two species of the genus Carapa.

CITES status is unrestricted. Carapa Megistocarpa is reported as endangered

on the IUCN Red List.