Good source for long 1" diameter cherry dowels?

[Andrew Nemeth]

I am building a crib for my soon to be arriving daughter and need to find a source for two 1" diameter cherry dowels that are each at least 52" long. Does anyone have a good source for larger diameter long hardwood dowels?

Thanks,
Andrew

[Matt Meiser]

Bayer Wood Products (http://www.bayerwood.com/catalog/WoodDowels.php?cPath=152&sort=2a&page=3) in Toledo has them but only 36". You might see if they could get them longer.

[Jamie Buxton]

Chicago Dowel can make what you need. They don't list 54"-long dowels on the web site, so call them. http://www.chicagodowel.com/rods.html

Or you can make them yourself. Use the tablesaw to make a rod of octagonal or hexagonal cross section. Smooth the pointy bits off with a handplane. It goes quite quickly.

[Anthony Whitesell]

Would doweling two together and cutting to length work? I know there would be a seam, but would it work well?

[Mike Cruz]

It wouldn't be very strong, and you would definitely see the joint...no hiding that. So my opinion is that if it is for a part that needs strength, don't glue end to end, if it is for looks, um, don't do it either...so, I guess, MHO is no, don't do it....

The make it yourself method described above is really easy. I do it all the time.

[Ed Hazel]

Atlas Dowel Has them

http://www.atlasdowel.com/largerDomesticDowels.html

[Anthony Whitesell]

I wasn't thinking a simple weak butt joint but an end grain-to-end grain dowel pin joint.

[Mike Cruz]

First thing, the joint will be at best, as strong as the dowel pin, but still, personally, (admittedly having tried it :o), I don't reccommend it.

Secondly, the efforts that it will take to allign the two dowels perfectly, or well enough not to be noticed, would be about the same as making your own...with the pride of knowing that you MADE the dowels, they are STRAIGHT (unlike most bought ones) and you didn't take the "used what I had" way out.

Just my opinion, partly because I've tried it and wasn't happy with the results...asthetically, or performacewise.

[Myk Rian]

I've made my own on the router table.
Cut some 1" square stock, put a 1/2" roundover bit in, and run the stock on the table. Cheapest, and fastest way to get what you want.
Don't have 1" stock? Glue up what you have, trim it to 1".

[Steve Clardy]

Used to buy from Midwest Dowel.
Haven't bought from them in a long time.

[Prashun Patel]

Rockler has them too.

It's the freight that kills you. That's why the companies cut them to 36".

I'm sure you could get them to send you a 52" dowel, but you just might pay a little extra...

If price were an issue, I'd say make yr own. But if you only need 2, it's probably most efficient for you to buy them from Rockler.

IF you had to connect two end-to-end, then I'd - um - use a dowel to connect them. If you went that route, it'd simpler to just make your own 52" one.