Folks that sell and ship online are your eyes. A simple test/question would be, would I buy that piece of wood? If not, maybe it should be sold for firewood.
Hardwood supplier that will ship
- Thread starter tdukes
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Folks that sell and ship online are your eyes. A simple test/question would be, would I buy that piece of wood? If not, maybe it should be sold for firewood.
Hi Eddie,
First, the folks in NC are spoiled with hardwood suppliers--those of us in SC, not so much!
I have made a couple trips to The Sawmill Ltd in Iron Station, NC--you might contact Kyle and see if he will ship. He has supplied excellent boards and is generous on the supplied board footage with very fair prices. https://www.sawmillnc.com/
Have you tried Woodford Plywood or Carolina Custom Sawmill?
Another option may be Shuman Owens supply in West Columbia. I need cypress for a porch several years ago and I seem to recall they were willing to order it for me.
And I agree that Mann Tool prices seem to be a bit high.
Zach
First, the folks in NC are spoiled with hardwood suppliers--those of us in SC, not so much!
I have made a couple trips to The Sawmill Ltd in Iron Station, NC--you might contact Kyle and see if he will ship. He has supplied excellent boards and is generous on the supplied board footage with very fair prices. https://www.sawmillnc.com/
Have you tried Woodford Plywood or Carolina Custom Sawmill?
Another option may be Shuman Owens supply in West Columbia. I need cypress for a porch several years ago and I seem to recall they were willing to order it for me.
And I agree that Mann Tool prices seem to be a bit high.
Zach
Ok, gotcha.
There are lots of online suppliers but it sounds like your experiences have been hit or miss with cupping, warping, etc. In any event you won't have the advantage of hand picking your wood before you buy it and save money on shipping as a bonus for twisted wood!
Here's a quality supplier and their shipping policy. Wood is normally shipped by weight via UPS, not by board feet, because most woods can have big differences in weight/unit volume (oak vs basswood).
http://www.hearnehardwoods.com/hardwoods/placing_order/placing_order.html#shipp
There are lots of online suppliers but it sounds like your experiences have been hit or miss with cupping, warping, etc. In any event you won't have the advantage of hand picking your wood before you buy it and save money on shipping as a bonus for twisted wood!
Here's a quality supplier and their shipping policy. Wood is normally shipped by weight via UPS, not by board feet, because most woods can have big differences in weight/unit volume (oak vs basswood).
http://www.hearnehardwoods.com/hardwoods/placing_order/placing_order.html#shipp
Thanks for the leads, Jeff.
I don't think getting twisted boards was intentional. It just not feasible to ship it back. Sometimes folks get in a hurray and don't check before they package it for shipping.
Lots of great info in this thread. I too can vouch for the great products and services from The Hardwood Store and Wall Lumber (and since I'm a competitor that tells you a lot about their quality).
Considering your proximity to The Hardwood Store, Wall Lumber, and West Penn Hardwoods, if you need any significant quantity at all I think that you would enjoy making a visit in person as opposed to having the lumber shipped. You can take your time at the facility and select the boards that best fit your project and budget, and also visit other great woodworking support businesses such as Klingspor's, Woodcraft, etc.
Kyle at the Sawmill in Iron Station has a great selection of slabs and is also a super nice fellow.
We ship quartersawn oak and sycamore lumber all over the US, and there are a lot of factors that impact the shipping costs. Lumber in excess of 11' long has a surcharge, truck (LTL) shipments to residential locations have a surcharge (and any board shipped longer than 8' either has a heavy UPS Parcel Surcharge, or it has to ship via LTL which is also expensive).
We frequently have customers drive up that are 3 - 4 hours away, and they will spend a couple of hours in the inventory room selecting their lumber.
If you opt to make a road trip, you can also reach out to other NCWW members to see if they would like to meet up at your destination and grab lunch and share some woodworking stories.
Scott
Considering your proximity to The Hardwood Store, Wall Lumber, and West Penn Hardwoods, if you need any significant quantity at all I think that you would enjoy making a visit in person as opposed to having the lumber shipped. You can take your time at the facility and select the boards that best fit your project and budget, and also visit other great woodworking support businesses such as Klingspor's, Woodcraft, etc.
Kyle at the Sawmill in Iron Station has a great selection of slabs and is also a super nice fellow.
We ship quartersawn oak and sycamore lumber all over the US, and there are a lot of factors that impact the shipping costs. Lumber in excess of 11' long has a surcharge, truck (LTL) shipments to residential locations have a surcharge (and any board shipped longer than 8' either has a heavy UPS Parcel Surcharge, or it has to ship via LTL which is also expensive).
We frequently have customers drive up that are 3 - 4 hours away, and they will spend a couple of hours in the inventory room selecting their lumber.
If you opt to make a road trip, you can also reach out to other NCWW members to see if they would like to meet up at your destination and grab lunch and share some woodworking stories.
Scott
Eddie,
I live in Lexington, SC too. I have been renovating an old house for the last few years and using existing stock when I needed some hardwood so I haven't bought any. But there used to be a guy selling out of tent buildings south of the airport area that was not bad. He planes everything and sorts out figured material he charges more for. But prices are decent, nothing like Mann. I agree with you about them. It's nice we have something in town but their wood inventory is tiny and their prices are not. I'm not sure if he is still around. He was only open half days in the morning during the week last time I bought from him.
I've driven up into NC several times for wood. I've never been disappointed. I have a lunchbox planner and small jointer and buy rough when I can.
I have difficulty getting 3/4 or 13/16 from most rough sawn wood too, however, if I flatten one face first. Some of my issue is technique but some is the boards. I often just plane it to the needed thickness and deal with the fact it isn't totally flat. Sometimes I flatten it and when I then plane the other side it shifts too. It's frustrating at times but I blame it on the quality of the wood. Could be at least as much me. Dealing with lack of absolute flatness and straightness is part of woodworking in my shop.
Jim
I live in Lexington, SC too. I have been renovating an old house for the last few years and using existing stock when I needed some hardwood so I haven't bought any. But there used to be a guy selling out of tent buildings south of the airport area that was not bad. He planes everything and sorts out figured material he charges more for. But prices are decent, nothing like Mann. I agree with you about them. It's nice we have something in town but their wood inventory is tiny and their prices are not. I'm not sure if he is still around. He was only open half days in the morning during the week last time I bought from him.
I've driven up into NC several times for wood. I've never been disappointed. I have a lunchbox planner and small jointer and buy rough when I can.
I have difficulty getting 3/4 or 13/16 from most rough sawn wood too, however, if I flatten one face first. Some of my issue is technique but some is the boards. I often just plane it to the needed thickness and deal with the fact it isn't totally flat. Sometimes I flatten it and when I then plane the other side it shifts too. It's frustrating at times but I blame it on the quality of the wood. Could be at least as much me. Dealing with lack of absolute flatness and straightness is part of woodworking in my shop.
Jim
Hi Jim,
I can usually deal with defects, but a twisted board is trouble for me. You shouldn't have to start with a 5/4 or 6/4 board to get to 3/4. Ever how much twist is in it, is how much has to come out because its on both sides.
So far, all my projects have been small and don't require much more that 48" in length. I definitely would like to go in person and one day I probably will, but a 6 hour round trip and $40-50 in gas, having it shipped is more economical.
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