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## Claymore (9 Aug 2014)

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## scrimper (9 Aug 2014)

A man after my own heart! It's a long time since I actually bought any wood. Everything I make is made from recycled or scrounged timber mostly old furniture and scrap, most of my friends and relations know I am a scrimper and often bring their junk to me (lol not just wood) Some time ago we were out on our club cycle ride and we passed a skip outside a transport depot full of plywood offcuts, mostly small bits but good quality birch ply and very useful for fretwork, I shoved as much as I could get in my saddle bag and the following day looked the firm up on the net and emailed them, they said I could help myself as they were going to burn it anyway! So I took my small van and stocked up before they got rid of it all!


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## Ed Bray (9 Aug 2014)

My Father-in-law used to work for the Council (retired now unfortunately) clearing properties when the residents had moved on or passed away, he was under orders to keep any wood that they had to remove and I got quite a few hand tools from him too. I once told him I could do with a vice if he came across one, for the next month I was inundated with them, got a really nice Record 52E though as well as a few others that I kept.

The other thing I still have a lot of are Teak and Mahogany Draining boards that the Council were chucking out when they renovated a load of council houses, FIL just brought them all around to me.

The last lot of wood I got was from work when we were refurbishing some flocculation tanks. 30x 12ft x 8" x 1.75" Iroko Boards that were used as baffles. I had to cut them down to 6ft long to get them in the trailer to take them home. That was 5 years ago, I am still using them today, in fact I am halfway through a project to make a small occasional table with drawer and no one who has seen the wood can believe it is the same stuff as the rough sawn stuff against the back of the house. They have already been used to make frames and doors around the exterior of the house.


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## ChrisR (9 Aug 2014)

And I thought I was doing well buying pallet loads of hard wood off cuts from my local timber merchant at £50.00 a time, which was a real bargain in my eyes. 

But you blokes are showing me that I have a lot to learn, when it comes to securing a bargain, never have been any good at second hand price negotiating, and even worse at selling anything.  

Will have to get my long haired boss to ferret around the charity shops for me, as I have not been to the shops for a few years, so don’t really know what’s out there. The last time I went in a charity shop it was just bric-a-brac, second-hand books and clothes, looks like things have changed. :shock: 

Take care and keep ferreting. :wink: 

Chris R.


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## theartfulbodger (9 Aug 2014)

Good work on the bargain wood!
Freecycle can be worth a look as well.*


*Not been on the forum for a while, and unsure of the new rules; will I be in trouble now for tipping you all off and thus thinning out the supply?


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## scrimper (10 Aug 2014)

theartfulbodger":ymf9tu2d said:


> Good work on the bargain wood!
> Freecycle can be worth a look as well.*
> 
> 
> *Not been on the forum for a while, and unsure of the new rules; will I be in trouble now for tipping you all off and thus thinning out the supply?



I have heard of freecycle, how does it work, (I looked at the web site but you have to be a member) do people have to trade something with someone else or does one pay or what?


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## finneyb (10 Aug 2014)

As I understand freecycle - if you don't want an article just advertise it on their website and if others want it they collect it at no cost.

Brian


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## theartfulbodger (10 Aug 2014)

It works via "yahoo groups" which is a sort of beta version of what we now know to be a forum.

It was set up to reuse old stuff and save it from landfill, which is admirable. 

Members of a local group can post/email the group with Offers and Wanted, each member gets an email and then can reply to the sender to arrange collection.
Stuff is free, beware of anyone asking for cash, and there are occasional scams where people ask for postage..

Create a seperate email address, you'll get a load of emails. 

moneysavingexpertsupermeercat (or someone?) had a guide to it the other week, I'll see if it's in my browser history and post a link

Here you go
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shoppi ... content=19


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## Barnum (10 Aug 2014)

This is a great idea - I'm similarly out in the sticks with no wood suppliers nearby. So far I've had to make do with cutting up economy pine shelving from B&Q.

My only concern would be that as you say, you need a belt sander or plane to make this wood usable and I've only just been able to stretch to a scroll saw and a dremel! I wonder what the cheapest route would be.

Top tip though, thanks!


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## martinka (10 Aug 2014)

I've been using Freecycle for years, and in fact I am just waiting for someone to pick up a couple of external HHD's I have given away, but I've not really had any luck with wood from Freecycle, apart from a set of Ikea pine storage shelves - which I decided to keep as shelves. I've been offered mahogany this and walnut that, but always found out it was veneered chipboard when I got there, so now I seldom bother.


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## Sheepy (17 Aug 2014)

I guess that's the beauty of freecycle, as you can always ask before you go and collect!

I got a really handy fold away barstool for my workshop (so I can sit on my 'arris while I scroll away) out of it, a load of free guttering for my new office down the garden and a collapsible wardrobe thingy that now lives in the attic with my Monkey Suits hung up in it, seeing as I don't use them much of late!

If you see something advertised on "Offer" as wood, just send them a message asking if it's the real deal or just "wood-wannabee"


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## Mr.Sheepdog (24 Aug 2014)

seem to be multiple threads here. 
New to scroll sawing, just getting set up, all came about, as wife wants me to make a placque for our new grandaughter.
So I get a new scroll saw out of it, just used a coping saw for odd bits before.

Cheap wood, did not think about charity shops, will have to have a look.

Prices on ebay, What!! they taking advantage. need to get a sheet of marine ply soon, for my boat, same company says they do birch ply, but online. no details so will ask when in shop. size etc

As for freecycle.
I used to be a mod for them, until, a system glitch. main mod blamed me, So I told them what to do with their site. 
Do not think I will be able to access again.

But two seperate systems running, one nothing to do with other, cannot remember the other one.
mainly, you have a local group, local, so you have to pickup, locally, moderated locally. Some good stuff free. Keeps it out of land fill.

better for the enviroment, better for use , if we can use it.


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## theartfulbodger (24 Aug 2014)

I just got a box of 15mm thick bamboo flooring from one of the facebook selling sites that are springing up.
Think it's about 2m^2 bargain for a fiver 

Not tried cutting it yet, might be rubbish...


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## Claymore (24 Aug 2014)

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## theartfulbodger (24 Aug 2014)

That sounds promising! I'll keep fingers crossedI don't bodge it too badly.


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## Phil Pascoe (25 Aug 2014)

Barnum":2rcuguc7 said:


> This is a great idea - I'm similarly out in the sticks with no wood suppliers nearby. So far I've had to make do with cutting up economy pine shelving from B&Q.
> 
> My only concern would be that as you say, you need a belt sander or plane to make this wood usable and I've only just been able to stretch to a scroll saw and a dremel! I wonder what the cheapest route would be.
> 
> Top tip though, thanks!



You can pick up a decent No.4 or No.5 for a fiver at a car boot.


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## valvoltec (25 Aug 2014)

I travelled to Peterborough for a desk and bookcase from the mayors office,that I bought on EBay advertised as Solid Wood,armed with a saw to cut it so as to fit it in the Jeep,turned out to be veneered chipboard,and not much good for my boatbuilding project!


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## Claymore (26 Aug 2014)

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## Phil Pascoe (26 Aug 2014)

Claymore - you are lucky. At our "recycling centres" we're not allowed to ...recycle. Everything (furniture wise) goes by lorry to landfill about 50 miles away. How stupid is that?


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## Claymore (27 Aug 2014)

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## theartfulbodger (27 Aug 2014)

I know what you mean re the recycling places. Whenever I visit one I see perfectly useable junk just crying out to be repurposed.

One man's trash and all that :|


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## ardenwoodcraft (28 Aug 2014)

The recycling centres round here used to be good places to pick up half way decent stuff, but since the immigrants who moved here to work in the warehouses got wind of them as cheap ways to furnish their houses, they have been stripped bare and there's nothing worth having any more.


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## Claymore (27 Sep 2014)

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## Walney Col (27 Sep 2014)

What a great idea claymore. I just might see if my local charity shop will help me out as a source of cheap wood and reward them in kind too.


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