Timber Merchants - ARGHHHHH

[kmcleod]

OK - first couple of points to note;

- I am not a professional woodworker
- I live in Essex, nr Stansted,,,,

So I am in the process of planning to build a bunch of furniture for the house, which is fine, I know what I want and how to make it, and what I'd like to make it from, in this case, Southern Yellow Pine, nice, easy to work with and wife likes how it looks when finished with a plain wax finish.... - all good.

Now for the problem - Timber Merchants,,,,,
Just spent the last hour calling various in my area and boy what a pain to deal with....
my normal merchant was very good in telling me they no longer sell it - cant fault them....
- Ridgeons, who despite showing it as a stock material tell me that it's only availble in stair tread widths and thicknesses.....not a lot of good
- EO Burton - and getting the information was like drawing teeth - these guys do not want to deal with the public - get the feeling that they want trade only,,,,couldn't give me a clear answer on material cost.....
- Thorogoods - spoke to one of the sales guys, no they didn't stock it but can quote me on the cost, so waiting for a response - really helpful.

OK - so thats the three closet timber merchants on the list, (thanks whoever put that together), now looking at maybe having to go much further afield...or change the material, and that'll be fun,,,,

Anyone got any advice, help, recommendations of a 'good' merchant in this area....

Otherwise I may end up making the entire kit and caboodle out of plywood and face it.....

For reference I'm making 3 cupboards with shelves on top for the study,,,,

OK, thanks for listening and here's hoping someone can help......

 

[Newbie_Neil]

Hi

You could try Atkins & Cripps. I know they're in Ely, but I think the prices are so good that you can order more than you require, to cover waste, and still end up in pocket.

IIRC, they deliver free if you spend over 250.

HTH.

Cheers,
Neil

 

[ByronBlack]

EO Burton in Brentwood is the place I usually get all my hardwood from, despite their inflexibility in letting me select my own boards, they are quite helpful. The way it works for me is to Fax my cutting list to Adrian (he's usually very helpful to me - just tell them outright you are a hobbyist and they tend to be more helpful) I then follow up the fax later in the day to confirm that have received the fax, they usually have a price for me the next day and have the boards ready for me to pick up either the same day or the next.

Ok - I've just got off the phone with EO Burton. I've spoken to a chap called Hugh, he has given me a price of £17.71 a cubic foot for southern yellow pine in a 1.5" x 12" sawn board. If you fax over your cutting list and make it for the attention of Hugh, they'll work out a final price for you and call you back, they can also quote for machining and sawing if you need that aswell.

 

[Roy Clarke]

Try http://woodgen.com/timber.htm

 

[kmcleod]

Thanks Guys

I will try Atkins and Cripps their web site looks good.

Not going back to EO Burton, after two bad experiences not happy to give them my money,,,,,

thanks for the fast response....

 

[ByronBlack]

Thanks Guys

I will try Atkins and Cripps their web site looks good.

Not going back to EO Burton, after two bad experiences not happy to give them my money,,,,,

thanks for the fast response....

sorry, was just trying to do you a favour.

 

[kmcleod]

and guess what - Atkins and Cripps have the material but cant machine it for me...

and there's no way I'm going to get away with buying a planner thicknesser as well....

not my day is it.....

 

[kmcleod]

Bryon,

No need for apologies, I appreciate the help....

 

[DomValente]

Don't you just love irony

Dom

 

[JFC]

Alsford timber have just started stocking southern yellow pine . Not sure if they have a yard near you but the Twickenham branch can machine to size .

 

[Kane]

Thanks Guys

I will try Atkins and Cripps their web site looks good.

Not going back to EO Burton, after two bad experiences not happy to give them my money,,,,,

thanks for the fast response....

sorry, was just trying to do you a favour.

Very kind ByronB but that's what happens when you annoy a potential customer.

 

[NeilO]

Kmcleod wrote "and guess what - Atkins and Cripps have the material but cant machine it for me... "

What better excuse do you need to give SWMBO, in order to buy a new toy,,,,,, tool!

 

[kmcleod]

hmmm - beginning to think thay a planner thicknesser may be my only result, then buy 'raw' material and machine it myself,,,,,

but, I have part time use of the garage, so anything I buy has got to fit in a very limited space - another can of worms,,,,

any easy recommendations ???

 

[davy_owen_88]

but, I have part time use of the garage, so anything I buy has got to fit in a very limited space - another can of worms,,,,

any easy recommendations ???

Build a new workshop? No need to share then 8)

 

[ByronBlack]

a smallish 'lunchbox' thicknesser would probably be a good purchase. With the right jig you can use this as a jointer. You'll only then need to edge-joint the boards by hand if they are wider than the height of the thicknesser, but this is relatively easy to learn using a hand plane. Failing that you could purchase a benchtop jointer for about £150. Both of these items could then be stored away when not in use thus not taking up too much space.

Btw, in my experience, even if you have the wood machined, it still won't be in a condition to work with, often it'll be slightly warped or in wind, and if the company hasn't maintained there machine that often you can get snipe and tear-out which will have to be corrected by which time you can have easily done it yourself.

For me personally, a planer/thicknesser was/is probably my most valuable tool in the workshop, to be able to get a square edge and flat surface that quickly really helps get your project starting off correctly.

 

[kmcleod]

Byron et all

Looks like your right, so now looking into options for a planner / thicknesser,,,,

if I'm going to spend in the £600 bracket I want something thats going to last,,,,so the $64000 question,

- what would you guys recommend ???

 

[Another Dave]

OK - so thats the three closet timber merchants on the list, .

Now........ Is that typo Freudian?

Kind of sums up some of the timber merchants I know!

:lol:

 

[ByronBlack]

With that kind of budget, a good combination machine would be a good choice (if you have the space). I would recommend the axminster machine:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-Axmi ... -21361.htm

I have a version of this, and after a few troubles I had with the actualy supplier, the machine itself is great and really gives a good finish. The only downside to any comination machine is going from jointer mode to thicknesser mode, more often than not, these types of machine have beds that fold out of the way and a thicknesser bed that moves up and down on a piston/column. Which means you have to spend a little time going from one mode to the other, BUT if you plan your milling correctly this is not a problem at all.

If you go for seperates, then axminster again do a nice 6" floor standing jointer, and their stand alone thicknesser is also highly rated (as well as the DeWalt one - amongst others).

Other options of the top of my head are the Metabo or Scheppach machines, although these have ally tables as opposed to cast iron like the axminster.

Hope that helps a bit. I'm sure others can give you more details on different models. Either way, your budget could easily get you a decent milling setup.

 

[kmcleod]

Well, after comparing prices of finished and unfinished timber and looking at all the things I want to make in the future, I've decided to bite the bullet and have ordered a planer and a thicknesser from Axminster.

Planer is the Axminster own brand, (looks the same as the perform one shown in the reviews), the thicknesser is the Dewalt 733.

So, may thanks to everyone for their advice and help...and now of to put credit card in a bucket of water to cool it down,,,,,

Cheers.....

 

[ByronBlack]

Hope you enjoy your new toys!