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wallace

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Hi all, I went to see a timber suppliers today and need some advice with regard to price. I was given a price for a 6" by 0.5" by 60" board rough sawn in american oak =£18.25. Is this good, bad

Also how do I work out what part of a cubic metre a piece of wood is, presumably width * thickness * length in cm =
m cubed.

Mark
 
mark,

length x width x thickness in metres = m cubed

or your way and divide by a million

Unfortunately, a small, single board and the supplier can charge you what they like. Never bought American Oak, you might find offcuts more suitable pricewise.
 
Nearest I could see quickly is that British Hardwoods on line are charging Planed Oak Timber 146 x 19mm at £9.25 per meter ... if that's anything to go on. I couldn't see anywhere sawn timber as thin as ½".
 
what sizes do you actually need- is the thickness, length or width the critical factor?
 
More to the point, what on earth are you going to do with 1/2" rough sawn wood?

By the time you've got it flat and free from wind, you're going to end up with about 1/4" finished thickness! I hope you've got a decent thicknesser! :?
 
Mark - price for 1" American White Oak is normally around £35 - £40 per cubic foot inc VAT. Therefore you are buying 5ft x 0.5ft x 0.042ft = 0.104 cu ft x (say) £40 = £4.16. That would be for sawn timber. I suspect that to end up with 1/2" PAR you would need to start with 1" stock, but it's still only just over 0.2 cu ft, so, say about £8 plus machining. If you want it machined for you then probably £10 for machining is not unrealistic. If you have to plane it to size yourself then it's a pricey piece of timber.

HTH
 
I went to a local timber supplier and explained that I was planning on makeing a breakfast bar affair for someone which is to be 60" by 36". I asked for a price list of timber and he said 'we dont really do them because the prices change'. He gave me a couple of examples and I toddled off. Thanks for the maths lesson Marcos. Thanks for explaining the price Roger.
Mark
 
I have just checked my e-mails and the suppliers have quoted a price of £58.40 per cubic foot inclusive of vat for american white oak.
 
I know that this won't help very much but,.................... the "price" is not always the the "cost" of the wood it's also the service that is provided with it, ie. do you expect to select the perfect piece of wood some times from the bottom of the pile to find the bit with no sap or knots? do you expect to chat for 20min about timber or have a look around asking questions? do you want just one piece or to have it machined or delivered? or are you buying a whole pack over the phone with out selection? to talk of so much per cube can be very miss leading sometimes.

The way I see it is the best price is for un sorted or as rising from the pile and if you want to select then you pay extra to cover both the lower value of the remaining stock and also the time taken in serving you. Often delivery is included into the price charged so the more you order the the better the rate you should get per cube.

It must be very difficult being a timber merchant sometimes, It's definitely difficult being a timber buyer!
 
wallace":267gugu4 said:
I went to a local timber supplier and explained that I was planning on makeing a breakfast bar affair for someone which is to be 60" by 36". I asked for a price list of timber and he said 'we dont really do them because the prices change'. He gave me a couple of examples and I toddled off. Thanks for the maths lesson Marcos. Thanks for explaining the price Roger.
Mark

I would be tempted to look at solid worktop, unless you are using it just for lipping. Arnold Laver up your way used to be pretty good- the one I used for soem stuff was in North Newcastle I think. I cant recall the exact location, but there was a branch or two nearer to you.
 
Chrispy":1rw8t0vm said:
the "price" is not always the the "cost" of the wood it's also the service that is provided with it, ie. do you expect to select the perfect piece of wood some times from the bottom of the pile to find the bit with no sap or knots? do you expect to chat for 20min about timber or have a look around asking questions?
A few months ago I spent nearly an hour at Somerscales at Grimsby, they shifted stuff with a fork lift for me so I could look, I was scrambling over timber and generally having a good rummage, Found a very large Elm plank (8' x 15" x 2") and a nice plank of pippy oak (7' x 12" x 1.5") went to pay for it in a cold sweat.............£46. Definitely going back there sometime.

Andy
 
I can concur with that Andy. Somerscales are great for hardwood. I too scramble over timber to chose the best and it is never too much trouble to move piles for you. AWO there for 1" is around £35 per cu ft rough sawn. I even picked up a new customer there too. :D
 
Price from www.TimberCut4u.co.uk

North American White Oak - PAR Width: 150mm, Length: 1.5m, Thickness: 12mm £12.32
Minimum delivery Charge of £13.99
+VAT £5.26
Total £31.57

I find if you order more it does become worthwhile ordering, with it being planed up for you.
 
This may sound silly but does it cost more per cubic foot the thicker the timber that is wanted. Say if I wanted a board 1" thick and a board 3" thick if they were the same volume would the 3" be more expensive because it took longer to dry? I hope that makes sense to someone. :D
Mark
 
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