Rosewood reaction

[Bryan Adolphe]

Well, trying to finish up this riser and first time using Rosewood with a wenge ibeam I noticed getting a bit of a rash on my forearms then💩 hit the fan, my eyes, Swoll up, and most everything has become extremely itchy and I mean everything  ended up at the clinic and an eye doctor. Every time I walk into my shop I can tell my system doesnt like it. I’ve always wore a respirator but I guess that’s not enough when it comes to some woods that can react . Today I need to suit up with all the protection I have and finish off this riser and clean up my shop of all the dust and hopefully try and get over this …. upset to say the least. It is what it is.  Take care out there. B

[dbeaver]

That is rough man.  Have you looked further into this? Ive seen other guys on here speak about reactions to various woods, i wonder if they have commonalities in plant families or a certain chemical present. Anybody with experience like this?

[kennym]

I stopped keeping any coco around for same reason but not that bad.  It didn’t start for years and when it I just stopped keeping any .

Only other woods that bother me are yes and walnut but only a headache and no rashes

Collect that dust guys!!

[KenH]

Rosewood is NOTORIOUS for causing rashes, breathing difficulties and all that.  All I can suggest is to keep the surface wet/damp while you do the rounding/sanding.  Dunk, sand, as soon as it dries, dunk, sand again. 

[Crooked Stic]

I CANT USE ANY OF THEM.

[flint kemper]

All those oils in the exotics are nasty stuff. N95 respirator and long sleeves you don’t wear into the house along with a great
Filtration system.

[Bryan Adolphe]

I got busy today suited up head to toe and had no problems Finishing the bow ready to spray went in the house had a shower slip back into the shop with just jeans and T-shirt on to put a quick coat of sealer on the wenge and this is after I ran my air exchange filter for an hour arms turn beat red in no time holy💩. Try and get the shop cleaned up tomorrow it’s a shame no more Rosewood and I’ve got a lovely piece of 8/4 I’ve been saving for a riser.  B

[Kirkll]

Man I’m sorry to hear you had such a bad reaction. I actually get a burning sensation in my nose running Wenge through the table saw, and sanding it too. But I’ve never had an issue with rosewood…

 if you want I can swap a nice piece of black walnut for that rosewood riser block.  I’ve also got some Black Myrtle veneer stock you might be interested in. I just found a stack of 20 pieces of that black Myrtle already run through the table saw that are about .125 thick.

Send me a PM if you are interested….  Kirk

Kirk

[wood carver 2]

When I started to feel signs of reactions to tropical woods, I tried to be proactive. I bought a powered respirator that I now wear whenever I’m making dust in the shop. I love the unit. It keeps a cool flow of air over my face while I work and as a bonus, it’s also a protective face guard for turning on the lathe.
So far, I haven’t had any skin reactions. Knock on wood… 
Dave.
P.s. just don’t use the respirator if you’re gassy. Just saying…😉

[Robertfishes]

 I have never had a reaction to Rosewoods,  But cutting and sanding on a Phenolic Riser 7 years ago gave me really bad headaches. I talked to Big Jim about this and he told me it was absorbing thru my skin..because I was wearing shorts and short sleeve T-Shirt... He suggested I wear long sleeves, pants and an apron like meat cutters wear. 

[Mad Max]

I hear other on here before, that other woods started bothering them after the first reaction.

[Kirkll]

I think having reactions to different kinds of wood dust is much like allergies that can develope at any given time…. The one that absolutely drives me nuts is Zebra wood… I used it for 10 years and never had a problem, then one day I was sanding a riser and went into the longest sneezing episode I’ve ever experienced.
I just sneezed just thinking about it…

After that I couldn’t even run the stiff though the table saw or the drum sander with the dust collector running without having another sneezing fit… I’m talking 30 non stop sneezes… I had to quit using the stuff completely because of that, and it was sad because it’s a great bow wood that makes very nice veneers and is a great core material too.   I call the stuff Sneeze wood now…