tody Brock
02-02-2009, 3:12 PM
How do you estimate how much lumber you will need for a project? Is there some good free software out there somewhere?
Rod Sheridan
02-02-2009, 3:58 PM
Hi, first thing is to make a cutting list showing the final size of the pieces.
Then you calculate how large of a piece of wood each piece requires.
For example, you want a final size of 40 inches long, 5 inches wide and 3/4 inches thick.
That would require a rough piece 48" X 1" X 6".
That works out to 288 cubic inches, or 2 board feet. (1 BF = 144 cubic inches).
So you need 2 board feet of 4/4 material 6 inches wide.
Note that as wood gets thicker, or wider, it becomes more expensive, so calculate your various thicknesses together to obtain a total for each thickness.
I find that I use 40% to 100% more material than is required for the final project.
Regards, Rod.
Keith Stephens
02-02-2009, 6:17 PM
Try this Project Planner (http://www.woodworkerssource.com/project_planner.php). Hope this helps.
Keith
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.