OMG - Captial City Lumber

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tri4sale

Daniel
Corporate Member
Sorry Fred, not true about hardwood cutting.
As far as I know, Capitol City Lumber will cut hardwoods, as long as you leave 6 or 8 feet of length (depending on whether it is domestic or exotic; can't recall which one is which length).
Dimensional lumber and sheet goods are under a different policy - not cut as far as I know.

correct, they've cut for me in the past. While their prices are higher, when I factor in the travel time to Hardwood Store and gas expense, or even just the HW store delivery fee, they actually come out cheaper because I'm not buying a lot of BF at any one time.
 

NCGrimbo

NCGrimbo
Corporate Member
The drive from Raleigh to Gibsonville is approximately 65 miles and takes a little over 1 hour. My truck gets 15 mpg (very old truck) and I pay $2.75 a gallon for gas. The round trip cost me about $25 in gas plus my time. Assume $30 an hour for my time and that's a total of $85 for time and gas.

Even if it was cheaper to buy from Capital Lumber, I'd still pay the cost of driving to The Hardwood Store of NC. Those guys at CL are not very friendly while the HSoNC people are friendly and very helpful.
 

Plunkett

Lee
Senior User
As a newbie, the Hardwood Store has been great for me. I had never been to true lumberyard before, and they walked me through the process like I was a long time customer. That alone earns my business.
 

marinosr

Richard
Corporate Member
Capitol City has always cut wood for me if I leave 6', and they're also happy to let you bring a plane and take some shavings to show the grain. They've helped me load my car before, and I'd say there nice enough. And it's very convenient and saves $ over a long drive costing 50 cents a mile, even if they are expensive.

Not my favorite lumber yard, or even top five, but a respectable business IMO.
 

DTBoss

New User
Dan
they won't cut. they will charge a lot more than anywhere else but they likely will have what you are looking for. I only go there as a last resort.

This has not been my experience. I go there probably 3-4 times a year for a few boards. It's fairly well posted that they will cut boards to length for you as long as they can return an 8' (or maybe it's 6') piece to the pile. I've never been charged for this service. Lumber prices may be what they are there but I've personally found the guys in the yard very helpful and patient with me.
 

junquecol

Bruce
Senior User
Capital City sells SERVICE! They cater to the guy who only needs one of something. Several times in the past, I have needed some special products to repair something for a customer. My choices were to pick it up a CC that day, or drive around until I found a vendor who would order me some in the small amount I needed for job, and then wait two weeks for delivery. By time I added motor freight to order, CC was cheaper. Remember they are a "DO IT BEST" hardware store also. The varnish I use at the "Y's," Lowes only sells in two gallon cases which have to be ordered, plus I have to pay shipping. CC has it shipped to store (No shipping charges,) and I can buy just one gallon. Recently, I bought a F&W submersible pump, which cost me over $800. A "Star" pump, also made by F&W, thru CC would have set me back a little over $400. Same exact pump, only a different label. Either one, I had to wait for delivery. So expensive is a relative term.
 

Henry W

Henry
Corporate Member
Capital City sells SERVICE! ... Remember they are a "DO IT BEST" hardware store also. ...

I too have taken advantage of their Do-it Best network and free shipping to store. In my case I have a brother-in-law plumber who sometimes recommends products to me (that he sells and recommends) that are not easily available to me here in NC. Do-it-Best has carried these products and makes broader range of these types of products available to me. In the last instance these were two toilets, and so shipping costs were not negligible - but still free to me.
 

Eric G

Eric
Senior User
Sure am glad I came across this thread. Been to Capitol City a few times. Has been "meh". Their hardwoods are always stocked pretty well, but sifting through the stacks is a bit rough. Went looking for oak, and their red oak was a stack of 14' long boards with a 3' crook in them. Impossible to sort through when that shelf is at shoulder height. Went looking for some Walnut and found most of the boards with large cracks and chunks missing. I mostly went because I thought it was the only option in the area. From now on I plan on exploring some other options mentioned here.
 

Henry W

Henry
Corporate Member
Sure am glad I came across this thread. Been to Capitol City a few times. Has been "meh". Their hardwoods are always stocked pretty well, but sifting through the stacks is a bit rough. Went looking for oak, and their red oak was a stack of 14' long boards with a 3' crook in them. Impossible to sort through when that shelf is at shoulder height. Went looking for some Walnut and found most of the boards with large cracks and chunks missing. I mostly went because I thought it was the only option in the area. From now on I plan on exploring some other options mentioned here.

And there are other options for wood - good options at that. No one should should shop in a place not of their choice.

As the closest lumberyard to my house, i am there fairly regularly (even though I don't buy much wood). As a result I do buy when they have good selection of what I want/need. I have bought some truly outstanding wood there; one example is a 27" wide x 7' long piece of Padauk that made a wonderful table. There were even wider (>30") and longer (>14') pieces available at that point. I have never seen a shipment like that.
http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/showthread.php?t

Agreed that the lumber is not the easiest to access, but with the quantity they have, I think it simply can't be stored vertically - without 4 more buildings. I do look for good wood, and leave the cracked and crooked stuff there. I am not a frequent purchaser, but I have found great (and routine) stuff there. Selection is best after a fresh shipment (well duh?) and I agree that it can be well 'picked over' by the end of the run; I simply buy when the picking is good. I recognize that not everyone has this luxury (of being able to drop in on my way home).

I will also note that so many here have such a dismal view of the place that I no longer post when they do have great sales or a new shipment with a great selection or outstanding wood. We can all shop where we want to, and clearly so many here do not want to shop there, so I keep what I find there to myself mostly.
 
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BKHam

Bradley
User
Sorry Fred, not true about hardwood cutting.
As far as I know, Capitol City Lumber will cut hardwoods, as long as you leave 6 or 8 feet of length (depending on whether it is domestic or exotic; can't recall which one is which length).
Dimensional lumber and sheet goods are under a different policy - not cut as far as I know.

yea it used to be 6 ft but now i think its 8. they will cut.

they are expensive but the time and cost of going to gibsonville means i've bought from them before. the baltic birch plywood is crazy expensive.
 

cheryllewis

New User
cheryl
We don't stock MDO at The Hardwood Store of NC but we're happy to bring it in for you.......no extra charge.

Cheryl
 
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