Rosewood Pipes

[puffy]

A friend who was at a Renaissance Festival told me that a man there was selling pipes made of Rosewood.I've heard of this wood being used in the making of guitars.Any one know anything about it being used to make pipes?

 

[jgriff]

Its unsettled. There are some types of rosewood that are toxic and others that are safe. That being said , my understanding is that they burn hot relative to briar anyway. I would trust a pearwood or cherry before I would buy a rosewood.

 

[zack24]

Rosewoods contain an extractive called dalbergione. It is known to be a powerful sensitizer with respect to causing allergies in some people. In my case, I worked with rosewood for three months and developed a rash like poison ivy that didn't go away until I stopped using rosewood- itching, bleeding, lost half the pigment on my chest- took years to get back to normal. If you have an allergy, the reactions can be very bad- I wouldn't take the chance. As a stem inlay, no problem...just don't use it in a tobacco chamber....