Ledbury auction

[RogerS]

Guess what clashes with Yandles ! Anyone going to Ledbury..looks like a huge amount of wood for sale...well over 300 lots.

 

[tim]

I might well do - hope its better quality than last time.

Cheers

Tim

 

[radicalwood]

Hi Tim,

See you there on Sat. should arrive about 9.

 

[tim]

Actually, I may now not be going - too much to do before Easter and LOML wants to go walking on Sunday - not sure I can take two days off.

Cheers

Tim

 

[Gill]

So where was the UKW contigency? It was good to meet Roger again, but I take it that everyone else was busy studying form for the Grand National. The general attendance was down on previous auctions I've attended, probably because the timber has recently been achieving high prices despite being of dubious quality.

This auction was different. The sun shone, the wood was all of a decent standard and some was indeed rather fine. Admittedly, some needed to be seasoned. The prices were ridiculously low for everything (except walnut and the tools) and I came away with a stash of oak for less than £35. I reckon it would have cost in excess of £150 elsewhere. Roger did very nicely too, and if there's a national shortage of ash we'll know who to blame :wink: .

I'd like to mention the unknown woodworker from Bristol who saw me and Roger struggling to carry my oak boards (yes - they were that substantial 8) ) and gave us a hand. I don't know if you browse this forum, but thank you. And the deftness with which he wielded his chainsaw on my behalf was also much appreciated. Thanks also to Roger for his assistance.

Gill

 

[RogerS]

Roger did very nicely too, and if there's a national shortage of ash we'll know who to blame :wink: .

Gill

Oooh.. :shock: if you value your wallet do NOT go to an auction with Gill 'That's a nice piece of ash' she says. Muggins here goes and buys it..and then some more...and a bit more.

It was good to see Gill again..spent a very pleasant day..

Roger

 

[Anonymous]

So it was Roger who was buying all the ash. I didn't stand a chance.

Unfortunately I did come away with a little too much other timber. I had to leave a few times just to stop myself from bidding. I came away with a load of oak and sycamore (don't know anything about sycamore but it was going for pennies). I actually had to make two trips back home because I bought too much. I got a lot more for my money this time due to the lack of bidders (and I thought I got a good deal last time).

I didn't stay for the tools as I thought they were going for too much last time. I also couldn't be bothered with hanging round for another few hours just for the couple of lots that did interest me. Did anybody see how much the norris plane went for?

I'll try and make more of an effort to find people next time. Gill, I think I recognised you from the rogues gallery but I'm not sure.

Dave

 

[Gill]

The Norris plane certainly made £300. I believe the final price may have been £330, but I wan't really paying attention.

Gill

 

[RogerS]

I seem to remember the Norris plane going for £380 but could be wrong. The results should appear soon on Pugh's website.

Actually the whole thing had worked out rather well. I took LOML down to the viewing as she'd never been before. Having seen the boxes of firewood (erm..sorry..turning blanks ) she commented that if I'd told her these were for sale she'd never have believed me! Now she realises why I hoard every little bit of wood . She fell in love with a lot of the ash and later that evening over a pint she talked about her 'commissions'....result especially as it means more :tool: :tool:

So that explained my little buying spree...only with all the excitement of cornering the ash market I totally forgot that the really urgent commission needed oak, and that seasoned oak was fetching silly low prices and i didn't buy any Ermm..Gill.. you know those oak boards we loaded in your car boot? Maybe ??

One highlight was when loading up a guy came up to me and said 'that bit of ash is over two years old' and when I asked him how he knew, he said that he'd cut it down and put it into the auction. Turns out to be a local sawmill in Worcester that I wasn't aware of.

There was one beautiful large slab of seasoned elm...1.92 ft x 27" x 3"...and I thought it had been sold for £90. Turns out that there was a £200 reserve allegedly...bit pricey even for elm ? What would a fair price be?

The chap who brought my wood back had a lot in the auction and was spitting feathers at the low prices. He blamed Pugh's for now holding three wood auctions a year rather than two in the past. Who knows?

 

[tim]

C'mon Roger, spill the beans:

How much for how much?

:wink: :roll:

 

[RogerS]

C'mon Roger, spill the beans:

How much for how much?

:wink: :roll:

Wot? As in cubic feet ? Will a piccie do?

 

[tim]

Suppose so - as long as you say how much you paid for it

 

[RogerS]

OK, Tim -- this is what I bought..prices include buyers premium (bloody cheek...like Sainsbury's charging you for buying their groceries!)

Dimensions in inches
Ash

1 77x16x4 £11.18
1 37x20x3 £22.35
5 90x5x2 £20.12
5 90x5x2 £20.12
4 106x8x2 £44.7
4 100x6x3 £31.29
6 98x10x1.25 £22.35
8 100x5x1.5 £11.18
3 52x13x3 £26.82
5 132x18x1 £100.58
5 132x15x2 £55.88
5 132x15x1 £55.88

last three were a bit painful but they're such lovely looking boards

Oak

3 100x20x1 £42.46

 

[mudman]

Some nice prices (if the buyer) there. Shame I couldn't make this one but I couldn't get a day pass for the sale.

Is the wood seasoned/part seasoned/just cut yesterday from the local farmer's field?

 

[Chris Knight]

Roger,

I think ash is going out of style - just too common for words (or it sooon will be :lol: )

 

[RogerS]

A couple of pieces were seasoned...most of it is pretty well seasoned and very little green as far as I can make out. I did think that a lot of it was still pretty green but that appears now to just have been surface damp from overnight dew.

I've got a simple moisture meter (green/yellow/red) with two prongs for the sensor. Sticking it onto some really dry wood I get a very low reading in the green. Some of the wood I bought is in the mid-green and some in the red but I don;t know whether that is surface or not. Not very scientific, I;m afraid.

 

[radicalwood]

Hi Guys,

Roger looks like a good haul. Also came away with far too much wood had to saw some in half to get it in the estate to save two trips.

Oak 300 x 75 x 2100 and 300 x 63 x 2100 both for £18
Sycamore 180 x 50 x 1600 6 off for £20
Pear 150 x 50 x 2000 4 off for £6
Larch 150 x 32 x 2000 21 off for £8

Various turning blanks for about £8

Good day really.

All the best Neil

 

[RogerS]

We do need a way to recognise each other at these events, don't we :lol:

 

[radicalwood]

Think we could do with baseball caps with UK Workshop on them. I know some of the US site do this, I have one from Saw Mill Creek. Not sure if it can be done over here in small batches or not.

 

[RogerS]

Sorry but I don't do baseball caps! Now a nice woollen scarf.... :wink: