Prices of Wood vs the Price of Thicknesser Planer

[Chems]

As a complete newcomer to the world Im interested to know, does anyone have a list of what their local timber mill charges per square foot for different woods? Im weighting up the cost of pre-planed timber and the £399 I want to spend on an Axminster AWEPT106 (which is shipping this month with a free dust collector)

Im in need of buying some 2x2 Pine supports at various lengths something Ive bought before and even these arent cheap. But if I bought rough and cut a prepared them would I be saving myself a lot of money in the long run?

 

[skipdiver]

I would have thought that you would soon get your 300 pound investment back.

 

[Tusses]

me too

I allways buy rough sawn - even pine - since I had a planer and a jointer.

I even check through the price list to see which size they stock is the cheapest per Ft Cube.

Keep a stock of rough or waney edge and cut what you need for your project !

 

[Tusses]

plus ... the planed stuff you buy - isn't necessarily square and straight !

 

[Harbo]

Also you can make what ever sizes you need.

The P/T is one of the best things I ever bought - just love to see the planed wood coming out!!

Rod

 

[Chems]

Well thats pretty much settled then. I found a price list for my local place:

All prices for a foot square by 1 inch thick.

Beech: £27
Elm: £36
English Oak: £36
She Oak: £63
Walnut: £45

Just a couple does the price seem right?

In regards Planer Thicknesser, Im looking at that Axminster model but is there any other makes that are better value for money?

 

[JonnyD]

Hi I think the prices will be for a cubic ft which would equate to a plank 12inchs wide by 12 ft long by 1 inch thick. the prices dont seem to bad it depends on whether the timber is waney edged or square edged if they are waney edge prices the prices seem a little steep.

Jon

 

[Tusses]

a bit cheaper than my local supplier for waney edge

I have an axminster 6" Jointer and a Delta 12" planer - very happy with them.

I have never tried a P/T combi tho

 

[Chems]

Jonny, they are wanny edged and that is exact as they have a price calculator you can type the dimensions in on so thats what I typed. But if your saying I should be getting a board 12ft long for that price but instead Im getting 1 foot then somethings amisss......

As I dont want to start another thread, I dont understand why people have a Thicknesser AND a planer, as to buy a Planer from Axminster (Im going with Axminster a)because most people here do, and b) they are relatively cheap) with a width of 150mm is £358 and a Thicknesser be it 330mm is another £328 but you can buy the AWEPT106 (the one without the cast iron fence) for £399 which has a much larger planer but a smaller Thicknesser and your saving yourself a whole load of shop and workbench space plusssss £287 and you get a dust extractor thrown in for the mere cost of about £50!

 

[Digit]

Separate machines are more convenient and quicker to set, if you have the space.

Roy.

 

[Tusses]

my jointer is cast iron - and takes about the same footprint as a jointer thicknesser combo.

but its only 6" which is limiting for thicknessing wide boards

My 12" thicknesser is quite compact and not too heavy, and can be stored out of the way when it's not used.

 

[JonnyD]

something must be amiss as you should get a 12 ft long board for that price not 1 ft. Have you a link to the site?

Jon

 

[Tusses]

agreed with Jon

a cube would be 12' long and about that price

a board foot would be 1' long but then the price is way out

 

[Chems]

If you click here:

http://www.goodtimber.com/good_timber_index.htm

Then click the little link for Work Out Prices. I think I will need to stop in and get a proper price list.

 

[DaveL]

Chems,

I have bought timber from Good Timber and their prices are normally for a cubic foot, the volume of the selected boards is worked out and the cost then calculated.
Its a nice place to go to, you can sort the timber to select which boards you want. I have only bought sawn boards from them.

 

[OPJ]

If you're thinking of going for the AWEPT106, I'd advise you to find some more money and got for the next model up (AW106PT2). You get a heck of a lot more for your money, seriously. I used to own a Perform CCNPT (AWEPT106 looks like an re-badged "upgrade" of it) and while it can do a decent job, it's certainly not without its problems...

There's the dodgy aluminium fence, the drive belts wear quickly and easily, the outfeed table often needs re-setting after switching and the extraction from the thicknesser isn't as good as it could be (although, you can fix that last one by making your own hood).

You'll find plenty of other users who are very happy with the AW106PT. I'd advise you to go for nothing less.

 

[brianhabby]

If you click here:

http://www.goodtimber.com/good_timber_index.htm

Then click the little link for Work Out Prices. I think I will need to stop in and get a proper price list.

I can't see a link for Work Out Prices. There are plenty of links to get a quote but I cannot find a price calculator.

Can you be more specific please

regards

Brian

 

[Wanlock Dod]

Chems,

I'd recommend a planer/thicknesser as being a better bet than buying ready planed timber. Principally because you can allow your timber to aclimatise to the conditions that it will finally reside in before machining it. Personally I would be concerned that planed timber might not still be flat and true when it has come to equilibrium with the inside of a house.

As others have said, sawn timber is cheaper, although you would most likely have a lot less wastage from planed timber, so the true price difference is quite difficult to calculate. My timber supplier sells planed timber for about 1.5 times the cost of sawn timber (per unit volume), but my saving is smaller because I have to machine the sawn timber (a one inch thick board might end up 3/4 inches thick, so 25% of it is wasted.

Cheers,

Dod

 

[Chems]

OPJ: Ohh dont Im trying hard as it is not to! The lower model comes with the dust extractor too. For a very inexperienced woodworker Im sure it will be ok?

Brian, click here:

http://www.goodtimber.com/products/timberp.htm#Panga_panga then look for the work out prices link.

Wanlock, thats very true, but from what Ive seen so far the Price is still hugely cheaper to buy the un-planed timber than to buy it pre planed.

 

[brianhabby]

Thanks for that Chems. They don't have that link on all their timbers, that's why I didn't see it.

For what it's worth, I use a mix of rough sawn and planed depending on the project at hand. I will often buy PAR for simple jobs or if I'm in a hurry, but for furniture projects, especially hardwood ones, I usually buy the wood in the rough and plane it to suit my exact requirements.

regards

Brian