Hardwoods and Plywood in the Chicago Area

[Randall Clark]

I have recently moved back to the Southwestern Suburbs of Chicago and am looking for a good source for reasonably priced hardwoods and hardwood plywood. Any recommendations?

[Larry Frank]

Owl Hardwood is my favorite.

[Jaromir Svoboda]

They have 3 locations, one is in Oak Lawn not far from you.

[Neil Gaskin]

It’s been several years so I cannot comment on. but I’ll 2nd or 3rd Owl in Oak Lawn.

[Mike Circo]

Although Owl is nice, it is massively expensive. If you wish to travel a bit, you can save a lot.

Not too bad a trip from Palos is "The Hardwood Connection" out in Sycamore. (1810 W. State St. Sycamore, IL. 60178 ) They have an extensive selection of ply too.

Much farther from the south suburbs is Kettle Moraine Hardwoods outside Milwaukee. Their prices are about HALF of what you will pay at Owl. I make an annual trip up there and stock up. (KM Hardwoods South
195 S. 27th Street Caledonia, WI 53108)

Similar to KM, is Badger Hardwoods of Wisconsin. On Route 14 up in Walworth Wisconsin. A simple setup with a series of outside sheds filled with local hardwoods (therefore, plan on visiting in good weather). Again, priced about half of what Owl does.

As I live far north west, I frequent these three. Your willingness to travel may differ.

[Jon Nuckles]

I often buy at the Owl Hardwoods in Des Plaines, and love everything but the prices. Great selection of domestic and imported hardwoods and no problem with picking through the stacks to choose the boards that are right for your project.

For purchases of larger quantities, you might try Rayner & Rinn-Scott (https://www.rrswood.com/) in Bedford Park, not far from Midway Airport. I cannot recall if they are "to the trade" only; the purchases I have made have been through others who had an account with them. Prices are much better than Owl, but you won't be picking through the stacks to find the perfect board. My experience has been that they pull the stock and deliver or make it available for pick up.

I am on the north side and have been meaning to make the trip to Kettle Moraine for years, but haven't gotten around to it. For the OP, it might be worth checking out Indiana or Southwest Michigan. I know there are cheaper sources there, but don't have any personal experience with them.

[Bill Carey]

If you are willing to take a trip...... Lafayette IN area

Cassens Lumber (my go to) http://www.cassenslumber.com/
Cole Lumber http://colehardwood.com/
(http://colehardwood.com/)don't forget to check the woodmizer site for sawyers Woodmizer https://woodmizer.com/us/Services/Find-a-Local-Sawyer

[Earl McLain]

In Indiana--Johnson's Workbench in South Bend is good. Coolest place I've been to is Hickory and Oak in Decatur MI--a small family mill for local hardwoods. Great people and very good prices on SW Michigan wood.
earl

[Larry Frank]

Hickory and Oak is a great place. Good prices, good material and very friendly folks there. I have bought from them a number of times.

My wife likes to go as it is not far from a number of wineries.

[Earl McLain]

Hickory and Oak is a great place. Good prices, good material and very friendly folks there. I have bought from them a number of times.

My wife likes to go as it is not far from a number of wineries.

For us it's close to 2 grandkids in Lawton--we're due for a trip to both Hickory and Oak and to see the kids!!
earl

[Mike Goetzke]

Great info - I'm couple miles from the OP'er.

What ever happened to the lumber runs to the Chicago area?

[Dan Schocke]

You should also check out Bull Valley Hardwoods in Woodstock. It's quite a ways from Palos Hills, but their selection is amazing and prices are fair.

I'll also second the Kettle-Moraine and Badger Hardwoods suggestions. K-M has great prices, but I suggest that you call them to see if they have what you need in stock before making the drive. They are very accommodating if you give them advance notice of what you need. Badger prices are higher, but his stock is usually what I would call top-shelf material -- you don't have to spend a lot of time picking through the stack (i.e., he calls it "select & better" but I rarely get anything from there that I wouldn't consider at the top end of FAS)

--Dan