Timber species
70 Ramin
Botanical names: Gonystylus spp. (mixed group comprised of over 20 species)
Family name: Gonystylaceae
Local names: Melawis (Malaysia), mavota (Fiji), nununa (Solomon Islands), bagyo, lanutan (Philippines
Tree description and natural occurrence
Medium to large hardwoods attaining 50 m in height and 1.2 m diameter on good sites. The bole is straight, and the trees have aerial roots but no true buttress. The bark is grey, brown, or red-brown, scaly and covered in very fine irritating hairs. Stems sometimes fluted at base.
The mixture of species marketed as ramin occurs in Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Fiji. They usually grow in the coastal swamps and peat forests but can be found in low altitude rainforests.
Wood appearance
Colour. Sapwood not differentiated from heartwood. It is a uniform pale straw or cream white.
Grain. Grain is straight or shallowly interlocked. Texture moderately fine to even.
Wood properties
Density. 630 kg/m3 at 12 % moisture content; approximately 1.6 m3 of seasoned sawn timber per tonne.
Strength groups. S4 unseasoned, SD4 seasoned.
Stress grades. F7, F8, F11, F14 (unseasoned), F11, F14, F17, F22 (seasoned), when visually stress graded in accordance with AS2082-2000, 'Visually stress-graded hardwood for structural purposes.'
Joint groups. JD3 seasoned.
Shrinkage to 12% MC. 4.5 % (tangential); 1.7 % (radial).
Unit shrinkage. 0.13 % (tangential); 0.16 % (radial). These values apply to timber of G. macrophyllus reconditioned after seasoning.
Durability above-ground. Class 4 - life expectancy less than 7 years.
Durability in-ground. Class 4 - life expectancy less than 5 years.
Lyctine susceptibility. Untreated sapwood susceptible to lyctid borer attack.
Termite resistance. Not resistant.
Preservation. Relatively easy to impregnate with preservatives.
Seasoning. Ramin seasons well but may be prone to surface checking and end splits, particularly in thicker sections. It is prone to sap stain fungi attack.
Hardness. Firm (rated 4 on a 6 class scale) in relation to indentation and ease of working with hand tools.
Machining. Easy to work to a smooth finish with hand and machine tools, although moderate blunting of cutting edges can occur.
Fixing. Screws well, but pre-drilling recommended when nailing near board ends, to prevent splitting.
Gluing. Glues well.
Finishing. Painting, staining and polishing characteristics are good.
Uses
Construction. Protected framing, internal flooring.
Decorative. Furniture, plywood, turnery, picture frames, mouldings and joinery, veneer, carving, panelling.
Others. Non-impact tool handles, toys, dowels, drawers.
Identification features
General characteristics
Sapwood. Not differentiated by colour.
Heartwood. Cream white to pale straw.
Texture. Moderately fine, uniform, generally straight grain.
Wood structure
Vessels. Solitary and radial groups up to 4 cells, medium size, uniform distribution. Vessel lines visible but not prominent.
Parenchyma. Aliform with thin extended wings, sometimes confluent.
Rays. Fine.
Other features
Burning splinter test. Wood burns to ash.
For information on technical terms consult Timber Species note No.1.
Further reading
Boland, D.J., Brooker, M.I.H., Chippendale, G.M., Hall, N., Hyland, B.P.M., Johnston, R.D., Kleinig, D.A. and Turner, J.D. (1984). Forest Trees of Australia. CSIRO, Australia.
Bootle, K. (2005). Wood in Australia. Types, properties and uses, (2nd edition). The McGraw-Hill Companies.
Hopewell, G. (Ed) (2006). Construction timbers in Queensland: properties and specifications for satisfactory performance of construction timbers in Queensland, Class1 and Class10 buildings (Books 1 and 2), Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, Brisbane.
Ilic, J. (1991). CSIRO Atlas of Hardwoods. Crawford House Press.
Standards Australia (2000). AS 2080-2000: Timber - Hardwood - Visually stress graded for structural purposes, Australian Standard, distributed by SAI Global Limited.
Last updated 11 December 2006
