Complete Newbie Help: Understanding & Buying Timber

[Ulnaternative]

Sorry for the incredibly basic question!

Just getting into woodworking and have some basic tools to start to work on my joinery. I'm about to pick up some timber from B&Q to start off with.

However I've been looking at some projects for down the line (such at this one: Farmhouse Coffee Table [Beginner/Under $40] | Ana White). However, the sizes of the planed Timber aren't anywhere close to the size B&Q sells, or in fact any of the timber yards near me.

Is there a difference in the availability of timber sizes between the UK & US? Am I just looking in the wrong places? I have read a few different books/resources on buying timber but for some reason this information seems slightly different to the things I'm seeing in the shops.

Sorry for such a basic question - hope someone can help! Will hopefully repay the favour one day when I'm a bit more experienced and answer silly questions from newbies!

 

[Droogs]

you normally buy wood larger than you need and bring it down to the dimensions you want. Part of the learning curve is learning how to do this with different tools and how to do so without it turning into a banana

 

[Doug71]

It looks standard sized stuff that you should get from any timber yard or even builders merchants if you don't mind it being a bit rustic.

Metric equivalent PSE something like 6x2 = 145x45, 4x2 = 95x45 , 2x2 = 45x45

 

[Ulnaternative]

Thank you very much guys! I'll have a closer look into both options. I don't mind it being rustic at all! As I'm just starting out I'm really just looking to get some cheap timber to practice on for now. Just trying to think ahead and making sure I don't waste money buying the incorrect sizes

 

[Ulnaternative]

It looks standard sized stuff that you should get from any timber yard or even builders merchants if you don't mind it being a bit rustic.

Metric equivalent PSE something like 6x2 = 145x45, 4x2 = 95x45 , 2x2 = 45x45

Am I correct in thinking the sizes are usually listed slightly bigger than that (eg 150x50) as some of the material is planed away and the final measurement ends up being something like 145 x 45?

 

[Doug71]

Am I correct in thinking the sizes are usually listed slightly bigger than that (eg 150x50) as some of the material is planed away and the final measurement ends up being something like 145 x 45?

Different places list it in different ways but yes it starts at 150x50 and finishes around 145x45 when planed.

 

[Etaf]

i believe , as i had an issue with a toughbuilt saw horse and the quoted material size for the side openings - speaking at a FFX show before covid to the company rep, they said it was because all US sizes are Imperial

you do need to be a bit careful with the finished size and quoted size, with various places and also the quality of the finish, if you are a DIYer, i now use a cordless planer , which helped a lot - but before would all be handplan - so i always sorted the material in store for quality, finish and minimum amount of knots ...

As a DIYer , I dont get the trade deals - and so to some extent used the big sheds, although using timberyards more recently for DIY projects where I need a lot of timber , and sheets delivered


I know wickes often quote the finished size , whereas most timber yards do not , and maybe around 4mm or more smaller , so always look at that info... maybe worth taking a tape measure with you - I do , when going into B&Q and Wickes
Wickes used to be very good for timber quality and price , i purchased a lot , and wickes was my prefered store , as price was very good purchased quite a few pack deals - for DIY projects over the years , But since covid , they seem to have gone really downhill
finding straight pieces was a problem recently we went through ALL the stock and nothing was straight .... so ended up going to my local timber yard - which was more expensive - but better quality
There was a lot of press that wickes was being sold and separated from Travis perkins , a few years ago - maybe thats part of the timber quality issue -