hardwood suppliers

[UTMonkey]

Hi all,

My local timber merchant has been really helpful (Allen and Orr) with my modest requirements.

Whilst they are perfectly happy to get some hardwoods in for me, they only stock cedar, meranti and oak.

I appreciate for places like this it probably isn't reasonable to expect them to stock the more exotic\limited use\expensive hardwoods.

Can anyone think of anywhere near me where I could "thumb" through a decent selection of hardwoods?

I have looked through the locals section of this website but I have no reason to believe that those guys will operate any differently.

There is an eBay seller in Newark who sells some bits and pieces, is that the way to go I wonder?

Any help welcome.

Best wishes.

Mark

 

[Hudson Carpentry]

Associated Timbers in Granthem are worth a look. There my regular supplier and even though there a large company they don't mind you looking through and picking out a board. Good prices also.

I know its not down the street local but there not to far.
http://www.associatedtimber.co.uk/

 

[bodge]

....... There is an eBay seller in Newark who sells some bits and pieces, is that the way to go I wonder? ......

Gibson Craftwoods? I have used him a couple of times for small bits, but he doesn't really do anything medium or large and it does work out very expensive, especially after postage. Having said that, it is reasonable quality and the service is excellent.

I have just put in a web order with SL Hardwoods in Croydon, so I will see how they work out. Due to a busy work schedule it is quite difficult for me to get out to a merchant in person so I usually just stick with web ordering, not ideal but better than nothing.

 

[UTMonkey]

Associated Timbers in Granthem are worth a look. There my regular supplier and even though there a large company they don't mind you looking through and picking out a board. Good prices also.

I know its not down the street local but there not to far.
http://www.associatedtimber.co.uk/

Thanks for the tip, I have been in touch, and whilst they have all the stuff I need, they sell by the board which for one board 27mm thick they quoted £1255/M3 , not sure what that means entirely but it sounds expensive.

Mark

 

[flh801978]

Arnold lavers in sheffield are good but theres no sorting through in warehouse...you have to ask for a pallat of the timber you are interested in to be brought up then you can sort through that

I bought a load of steamed beech recently to make a bench and it was £920 M3 which equates to about £30 cu /foot +vat

but for a lot of beech to make a large workbench it was only £175 and i have lots left over and thats with legs 4 inch square stretchers 2 inch thick top 3 inch thick X 26inch x 50 long

Ian

 

[marcros]

you are likely to have to buy the full board from most suppliers. If you are after less than that, I would have a word with a local cabinet maker and buy some offcuts.

Also, i would have a good look online at different timbers to see what inspires you and then narrow the search. You will soon get a feel for who stocks what and the way that they operate- imported, predominantly native, expensive but unusual etc. If you go to a supplier for a flick through, it is often difficult to judge exactly what the sawn timber will look like when planed. You could also spend hours achieving very little. If you do it from the comfort of your house, at least you will get a reasonable feel for it and so when presented with a grubby stack of sawn stock, you have an idea of the potential. if you dont, you wouldnt want to buy any of it!

 

[UTMonkey]

Some great advice, I didn't think that starting woodworking would involve getting back into maths quite so heavily.

So, a board let's say 25mm by 100mm by 4500mm which sells at 1255/M3 , how on earth do I calculate that!

Mark

P.s. I don't mind showing my ignorance on forums,

 

[JakeS]

they sell by the board which for one board 27mm thick they quoted £1255/M3 , not sure what that means entirely but it sounds expensive.

A cubic metre is a hell of a lot of wood!

I don't know exactly how timber merchants work it out, but I presume they use the nominal size of the board. To get from a millimetre value to a meter value, simply divide by 1000. If you're talking about 27mm x 200mm (say) boards, then that would be (0.027 x 0.200 =) 0.0054 cubic metres per metre of board. So a 2440mm long board (8 feet) would be (0.027 x 0.200 x 2.440 =) 0.0132 cubic metres, which at 1255/m3 works out to £16.50.

(Edit: seeing your more recent post, 25mm x 100mm x 4500mm is:
25/1000 = 0.025
100/1000 = 0.1
4500/1000 = 4.5
0.025 x 0.1 x 4.5 = 0.01125 cubic metres

0.01125 x 1255 = £12.65
)

Assuming that I'm making the right assumptions about the way the sizes are calculated, of course! Personally I'd double my estimated price as a worst-case estimate just to cover any difference in calculation - for all I know they use the unsawn size of the wood and make you pay for the wood they removed to cut it into boards, and the shrinkage from drying it, or something! Presumably someone more knowledgeable with the process can explain that bit to us.




It's a bit harder to get to (although actually a bit nearer), but you might try Woodlines, which is in Grantham proper (halfway up Commercial Road) rather than just off the A1 - I don't know exactly what they have, I've seen a fair amount of sapele and ash, but they've always been quite helpful and willing to look through offcuts and make cuts/plane for you when I've been in there. They'll also quote you prices based on linear feet of certain size boards, which makes it easier to price up!

 

[UTMonkey]

Thanks for the advice, and maths lesson, I needed it.