On the other hand, good excuse for planer and jointer purchases. Best workbench I've ever had, I made from recovered construction lumber and some 2'x4' sheets of MDF. Stable as all get out, plus the 4 ammo crates on the lower shelf help.

Excellent and timely rant.

I started shopping for 2x4s at the local HD & Lowes for a second workbench, one like this, and wound up Just. Walking. Away.

Couldn't find more than four boards that wouldn't have looked like a modern art sculpture glued & screwed together.

I rebuilt a house last year that had caught fire. I gutted it and tore off the back 1/3, reframing what I tore off. I purchased most of my lumber from my local HD, and I must say that it was excellent.

Perhaps it's because I live in the west, and the lumber at the time was from Idaho Forest Group. In my experience, you get fantastic lumber from eastern Washington/Oregon, northern Idaho, and western Montana. In these arid areas, the trees grow very slowly and take about 70 years to mature. You have about 20 lines across a 2x4, and the growth rings nearly touch they are so tight. I used Douglas Fir almost exclusively. Good stuff. Hemlock is junk.

Also, in the old burned house, after tearing off the lathe and plaster, I could see a bunch of the lumber that was used in the 1920's. It was absolute crap. Some of the 2x4's had knots across 75% of the stud.

BTW, I've hauled a bit of lumber into pressure treaters over the years. The base lumber for the treatment isn't a high grade, and it isn't kiln dried before they start. It isn't good lumber.

Last week I was standing in Sierra Pacific's Shasta Lake mill getting loaded. While waiting, I was looking over some of the lumber that had just come out of the kiln. They had a whole shed of 5/4 that was absolutely gorgeous. Some of it was 12-14 inches across with nearly no knots. The really sweet lumber is available. However, you cannot bitch about the prices when you want some of it, and you aren't going to find that stuff at your local retail outlet.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:

quote:

Originally posted by MNSIG:
You also had better not buy it until you are dang well ready to nail/screw it into place within days. Leave it for a week and you'll have a pile of corkscrews.

Here's a stack of pressure treated stuff that was sitting out for about two weeks.

I didn't know you were a cooper, Gustofer. Those are some nice barrel staves you have there on the right.

quote:

Originally posted by FN in MT:
Several years back I dismantled (with some difficulty) an old cattle loafing shed that was on our property from the days when this was a working Ranch. It had mostly straight and clear lumber that was FAR and away better than anything one can find today. It was built in 1960.

We got some 2x8's and 2x10's that were 12 feet long with not a single knot! All straight as an arrow. Used several of them to build work benches, with some polyurethane finish they look like furniture.

Years back I had a few Carpenters mention that all the really good stuff goes out of Country, to Japan. wonder if thats true?

It probably is. Thousands of acres of timer are being clear cut in my area, sadly, all old hardwood forests. But I see very few new homes built, so that lumber has to go somewhere.

I am not against the timber industry, but clear cutting 500+ acres at one time is very bad .

I'm with you Sunset. We see it here as well. Then they plant in pine, let it grow 15 years or so, cut, repeat.

I've been told by some in the timber business out here that the pine goes from harvest to distribution in 10-20 days.

You should try being a cabinetmaker.

quote:

posted August 26, 2017 05:41 PM Hide Post
You should try being a cabinetmaker.

Ok. How do you deal with the issue? Interested to see if there is an inside track to getting decent lumber.

At times, I have found good lumber at Home Depot. I usually buy a few extra during the good times.

Plywood is the looser. The last I bought to redo my 16-foot flat bed trailer have already warped even though I used three coats of paint.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
Ok. How do you deal with the issue? Interested to see if there is an inside track to getting decent lumber.

You buy FAS (first and seconds) from a reputable dealer, for hardwoods. Buy the pallet load or greater. If it is honeycombed, or has other indications of improper drying, you return it. Our hardwoods came in rough sawed, IOW a "1", or 4/4, board, was about 1.0625" in the rough. For softwood, we only bought clear white pine, kiln dried, mill stock, so it came S2S (surfaced two sides) in 3/4" (for 4/4"), 1.125"+ (for 5/4"), 1.375"+ for (6/4"), and 1.8125" for (8/4"). The white pine was used for standard millwork items, 3/4" for cabinet faces and doors, 5/4" for screen doors and storm sash, and some shutters, 6/4" for sash and double sided shutters, as well as interior doors, and 8/4" for exterior doors.
 
Buying by the piece from a big box store is a crap shoot. It is not dried completely, so it will continue to move. The best you can do is pick out the few boards in the pile that have the growth rings (look at the end of the board) that are horizontal, rather than vertical. They will move the least over time.
 

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Appreciate the advice. Thanks

My wife just ordered about $1000 of lumber for a deck project. I stacked it to dry. Some was good and dry some...not so much. I am not excited to have the conversation if that shit warps.

I'd get it screwed down before it does.