quote:

Originally posted by YellowJacket:
The pallet wood look has been a huge trend for the last 5 years or so. It's not just a cheap material, it is the reclaimed look that people are after. The variance in thickness and color in the material is a feature, not a bug.

Color, maybe.

But thickness differences are a pain, in my experience.

For what I can by pine 1xs and some stain for, it's hardly worth it, IMO.

On top of which, the crest of this trend was years ago.

quote:

Originally posted by 46and2:

quote:

Originally posted by YellowJacket:....The variance in thickness and color in the material is a feature, not a bug.

Color, maybe.

But thickness differences are a pain, in my experience.

For what I can by pine 1xs and some stain for, it's hardly worth it, IMO.

On top of which, the crest of this trend was years ago.

I made most of the furniture and cabinetry in our house in CA. My experience is that if there is a lot of variability in the dimensions of the raw materials, it will take a combination of a lot of time and a lot of tools to get to the finished product. I learned quickly paying a bit extra to get better quality materials is well worth the money.

Go for some clean lumber, rough or otherwise. Go to a pallet maker and specify the species of wood and buy some fresh cut deck boards then true up the edges on a joiner then run it through a planer to match the thickness. There is so much sand, gravel and possibly metal particles in used pallet deck boards you would be keel hauled if you ran used pallet boards through someone’s precious planer.

quote:

Originally posted by Sportshooter:....you would be keel hauled if you ran used pallet boards through someone’s precious planer.

I cringed just reading that (I have my own planer)

I’ve used pallet boards to make cool stuff but the wood was a kiln-dried European hardwood. Some rough-sawn 1x6 spruce, suitably antiqued, might produce a nicer end look. Longer lengths.

quote:

Originally posted by Woodman:
I’ve used pallet boards to make cool stuff but the wood was a kiln-dried European hardwood. Some rough-sawn 1x6 spruce, suitably antiqued, might produce a nicer end look. Longer lengths.

I can think of a lot stuff to make from kiln dried European hardwood that is a lot more cool than pallets.

A brother in law decorated a wall in his new kitchen with stained pallet lumber, looks nice, but no way vibes with his new kitchen with me.

Each to their own I guess.

quote:

Originally posted by Scoutmaster:
I can think of a lot stuff to make from kiln dried European hardwood that is a lot more cool than pallets.

It was kiln dried for bugs, I hear. An industrial park along the river gets overseas stuff and periodically dumps a pile of 5/4 x 6, 8, and 12 from shipping crates. Very very hard.

I aged some in the sun then made coat racks.

my only concern would be that most if not all wood pallets are treated for bugs etc, as mentioned,

not sure how that is done (dipped, fogged, sprayed or ??) or how long it lasts,

Aren’t they soaked with pretty nasty chemicals to prevent rotting? I don’t know if you want that off-gassing into your home.

Pallets for export are either treated chemically or are "heat treated". Where I work, we buy domestic pallets that are heat treated and stamped/marked (kiln dried/heat treated) as such for export shipping. If a pallet is fumigated or otherwise chemically treated it should be marked as such. Google may be your friend here to determine such markings.

Thanks again, all.

I'll have to go over to the warehouse & take a look at the materials.

I'll try to look for any stamping/markings.

BGULL mentioned it. Japanese motorcycles used to come in mahogany crates. Haven’t seen any in several decades, but when I learned that the back lot of the motorcycle shop was a regular stop for me. Might have been 5/16” thick, but the price was right. Usually clear wood, never a knot.