Sources for lumber?

[CountryGoalie]

Out of curiosity, does anyone know of any good sources for lumber? You know, aside from Home Depot?

My boyfriend would like to start making some furniture, but doesn't want to buy from Home Depot (boards that aren't straight, et cetera), doesn't want pine (I'm not knowledgeable regarding wood, but I know he said it doesn't hold up well?) and hasn't had much luck with folks calling him back from Craigslist. Does anyone know of some avenues he could look into that won't cost him an arm and a leg?

And if you've got any location-specific sources (he's in the Harrisburg, PA, area, and I'm north of Syracuse, NY), I'd love to hear about it, so I can pass any of that information along to him.

Thanks for any help!

[TurnerHill]

Home Depot actually has some decent hardwood. The boards are plenty straight, and he out to be squaring them up himself, anyway. Pricey, though.

I would look around for a small custom mill. They still exist, and the quality, selection and price should be good.

Other than that, I'd look for a bandsaw guy. Most people advertising that service also have a stash or two of air-dried boards.

Or, especially if he's new at this, give HD a shot.

[shelfer]

Hi
There is a local branch of woodmizer(sawmill sales company) in Hannibal NY.
They can send you in the right direction for lumber. If you can not find the # I can get it just do not know it right know. If you were closer I have some. I am between Rochester and Buffalo.

[big rockpile]

I've seen people take Old Barn Lumber plane it down and make some very good furnture.

big rockpile

[NostalgicGranny]

Lumber Liquidators http://www.LumberLiquidators.com
Or sometimes the Habitat for Humanity group has a resale store where they sell their excess material. Just go to there website and it will tell you if there is one remotely close to you.

[boonieman]

Here's a place that looks to be a couple hours from Harrisburg. Might be a nice day trip and worth at least calling them.

http://www.heacocklumber.com/roughcut.html

[Michael Kawalek]

Didn't think I would ever be a defender of Home Depot, but I used their lumber to roof my cabin and it was of good quality. It was Douglas fir, not pine

It was marketed as being #2 or better grade. Actually, the load I received was mostly #1's and "select structural's" with just a few #2's. I don't remember getting more than 1-2 pieces that were twisted or warped.

Is your boyfriend trying to make 2X4 style furniture? Besides their structural wood they sell individual pieces of oak. I would guess you can get oak cheaper at Home Depot than at a specialty shop
Michael

[Nomad]

When I was building Shaker style furniture to sell, I would buy dimension lumber from Lowes or Home Depot. It was meant to be pine and I tailored every piece to be able to not have to rip anything. It saved me a ton of time. When I built furniture for myself I would use hardwoods that I could get locally rough sawn for a very reasonable price. I still have 150-200 board feet in storage that I'll probably never use. I bet it's nice and dry since I've had it inside for about ten years. It's too bad the Harrisburg area is so far away. I'd sell it all pretty cheap, but it would be too expensive to come this far to get it. Somebody would need a planer and jointer to end up with good straight finished boards.

Nomad

[meanwhile]

We get all types of free wood from small saw mills - from their scrap or trash piles. They let us carefully go thru the piles, I am always with the children and no one is allowed to climb up on any piles. I think they have allowed us back since we are very careful. Sometimes we find very good straight boards with only a bit of bark on the outside and mostly we get bark wood or knots or crooked wood but we cut it down and use where we can. Then, since we have not had to use cash to buy wood, we save the cash to buy the good straight boards (which we do get from Home Depot or Lowes). We have also used wood from pallets taken apart. Good luck

[clovis]

I have had the same problem finding material at decent prices.

I think it is one of those things that seems impossible to find until you run into it somewhere, and then you find the stuff is available EVERYWHERE.

You might start with asking all the cabinet shops where to buy material. See if there are saw mills nearby.

Home center prices are stupidly high compared to what you can buy rough sawn by the truck load.

[Yvonne's hubby]

I have had good luck finding fellas with bandsaws to mill up hardwood trees damaged by storms here on the farm. I have also found a lot of pretty good wood at the small sawmills here in the area. 50 miles or so. Straight hardwood is hard to find. I usually have to square it up an rip it to diminsions anyway so its not that big a deal to me.