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| Name | cumaru |
| Other Names | Cumaru (Brazil), gaïac de Cayenne (French Guyana), ebo (Honduras), tonkawood, tonkabean (Guyana, UK), charapilla, cumarut (Peru), tonka (Suriname), sarrapia (Venezuela, Colombia). |
| Name Botanical | Dipteryx odorata (Aubl.) Willd. (= Coumarouna odorata Aubl.), D. alata Vogel, D. spec. div., Taralea oppostifolia Aubl. (= Dipteryx oppositifolia (Aubl.) Willd.). |
| Family | Leguminosae (Papilionaceae). |
| Origin | Tropical South America |
| Tree Description | Grows to heights of 30 m (max. 50 m) with well-formed, straight branch-free trunk lengths of 18 to 24 m. Diameters reach a maximum of 1.2 m. |
| Available As | Planed timber |
| Wood Description | Heartwood and sapwood are clearly distinguishable from one another. Sapwood is light yellow. Heartwood is yellowish to reddish brown, mostly with yellowish red vessels. Cumaru feels somewhat oily to the touch, smells slightly of vanilla and tastes of rancid oil. |
| Wood Type | Hardwood |
| Grain | Interlocked grain. |
| Texture | Moderately coarse. |
| Density | 850/1050/1200 kg/m3 at 12% humidity. |
| Working | Supposedly average. |
| Drying | Very slow. Cumaru shrinks slightly or moderately and is only slightly susceptible to end splits and distortion if dried carefully. |
| Workability | Cumaru is difficult to work due to its high density. It can be planed fairly well to a very smooth finish except where there is a very strongly interlocked grain. Can be turned well. |
| Fixings and Fasteners | Pre-drilling required. |
| Bonding | Poor. |
| Pliability | - |
| Surface Finishing | Good. |
| Durability | 1 |
| Strength Class | Cumaru has been classified as K60 according to NEN 5498:1997. Given that no knots were encountered in the beams tested and its strength and rigidity are the same order of magnitude as those of azobé, the same A/B quality requirements in accordance with NEN 5480 can be assumed. |
| Impregnability | Heartwood - very difficult. |
| Peculiarities | The seeds (beans) are a source of flavouring used as a substitute for vanilla. Red Cumaru, Dipteryx magnifica, is also available on the market, but is less durable than D. odorata. |
| Applications | Heavy-duty, durable structures, sheetpiling, sound barriers, bridge and jetty decks, truck flooring, street furniture, boat and shipbuilding, outdoor woodwork, furniture veneer, turning work, shovelling disks, sculptures, pockwood substitute (not bearings), etc. In countries of origin , it is used for chopping blocks and lintels. |
| Quality Requirements | - |
Source: Houtvademecum, 8e druk 2001