Sourcing Timber

[cowfoot]

Took a trip down to English Woodlands Timber a couple of weeks back...beautiful location, amazing wood yard (I'm used to Travis Perkins, basically), friendly bunch of people, highly recommended.
I'll probably stick with them for the time being, but I had some logs delivered the other day (which pained me greatly, my old man was a forester so the idea that you have to actually pay for firewood seems utterly demented!) and the lad who turned up said they run a sawmill fairly close by, but rarely get asked for boards even thought they can cut them.
Anyone here have any experience of getting decent timber from out of the way sources? Tree surgeons, Forestry Commission etc?

 

[custard]

+1 for EWT.

One of the very few places where you might find boules or flitches (the through and through sawn log restacked into the original cutting order) of unsteamed, waney edged Black Walnut.

Is that worth the effort of schlepping around a timber yard? Only you can decide that, but if it means building your furniture from book matched/colour matched boards like this then I think so,

 

[iNewbie]

Have you seen this Sellers video, Custard - its at 22mins 30 secs in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wy5GMxz_oMo

Reminded me of your boards for worktops with a touch of resin.

Sorry for going OT.

 

[RobinBHM]

Thanks for the link, a very interesting video. Im not in the bespoke furniture sector, but I do know it is a very niche market with limited scope for a fully paying career. It would be interesting to know if cfratsmen working interdependantly is a good business model -in theory it seems good with the scope for pooling resources, marketing and machinery.

Back on topic, I would say avoid buying timber from out of way sources unless you are prepared to allow a long time for the timber to dry. Its probably a good source for woodturners that will rough turn bowl green then leave them. Or possibly a source to buy rustic waney edge planks for rustic furniture tops where movement and splits are all part of the charm.

 

[custard]

There's a co-incidence, I was chatting to some other makers only yesterday when Neil Scott's name came up, he's getting a very strong reputation for his distinctive work. It won't be everyone's cup of tea but it's so differentiated that if an interior designer or architect is looking for that style, then Neil Scott will be at the top of a very short, short-list!

And to Robin's point, that's one of the very few routes to thriving rather than barely surviving as a bespoke furniture maker, having a strong and unique design signature and sticking to it. Tinkering around, doing a bit of this and bit of that, you'd earn more stacking supermarket shelves.

 

[garethharvey]

I just wish we had the choice of timber yards they have in the US, local to me, I have a choice of pine with knots, pine without knots or bent pine

 

[sunnybob]

Gareth, have you actually asked the woodyard guys what they have? Just walking around looking might not be the best way of finding stuff.

I've come across two woodyards now that are stacked out with construction timber and boards, but by asking for "exotic" or "hardwood" have found a few pallets of good stuff so tucked away in corners that they have had to use a forklift to shift stuff so I can get to it.
i just found what must be a 1000 foot of black walnut this way, and the owner just shrugged and said "no one buys it anymore".
I tried to tell him thats because no one can see it any more, but he wasnt interested, he was too busy selling warped and knotted pine.
In another I found 4 planks of mahogany that had been used as pallet packing. badly used, but the guy gave it to me and I made several small boxes from it.