What do you all pay for baltic birch?

[Tim M Tuttle]

Afternoon everyone,

I've been calling around to every place I can find in KC that might carry bb plywood to find the lowest price. Right now the cheapest I have found is $78 for a 4x8 sheet of 3/4 and $51 for a sheet of 5x5 3/4. Someone I know in another part of the country pays $42 for 4x8 sheets. Does anyone know why the huge price fluctuations around the country? Is it just proximity to a mill/manufacturer?

4x8 sheets at my local hardwood dealer are $94!!

What do you all pay in your neck of the woods?

[Mike Kreinhop]

I can't get Baltic Birch plywood here, but I can get furniture grade beech plywood. The metric equivalent of a 4x8 sheet of 3/4 inch (1250x2500x19mm) beech plywood from the Mannheim distributor is currently $112.51 per sheet.

[David Kreuzberg]

$57 and $37, respectively (northwest Ohio) https://www.toledoplywood.com/product-category/categories/hardwoods/baltic-birch/page/2/

[Derek Meyer]

Our store sells 5x5 3/4 Baltic birch for $54.49 a sheet, and 1/2" for $35.99 a sheet. We don't carry 4x8 sheets of Baltic birch, unfortunately. Our 3/4" is actually 18mm, and our 1/2" is 12mm.

[George Bokros]

3/4" 5 x 5 sheets are $54; 1/2" 5 x 5 sheets are $30. My understanding is true baltic birch does not come in 4x8 sheets.

[Mark Bolton]

I think George is onto it a bit in that if you hear much of 4x8 sheets you should be cautious. The only time we ever have 4x8 baltic birch in the shop is as a core mateiral on an odd laminate panel that cant be laid up in any other core. Beyond that your going to be in 5x5. To me I guess the question is why does it have to be "baltic birch". If you have to have that material then cost is really not an issue, you just have to pay. We have literally never had an application that would demand the cost of baltic birch. There are many other materials that do the same job and are very high quality. If there was some sort of visible edge desirability I could see it.

[Dan Rude]

If you can use a smaller piece, Rockler has some good deals now in store. 24" x 30" for 3/4" $13.79. I am using 1/2" for rebuilding my kitchen drawers. Dan

[John TenEyck]

Mark, what alternatives to BB are you using? I haven't been able to find anything else with as many plies, or as consistent and flat.

John

[David Zaret]

i can get true baltic birch in 4x8. i get it routinely from my supplier for $54 (18mm), $37 (13mm), $25 (6mm). 5x5s come in those sizes, and in 3/8" and 1/8".

[Larry Edgerton]

My supplier has it in 4x8 and 5', and it is exactly the same material from the same manufacturer. Much cheaper when you buy a full lift.

[Van Huskey]

My understanding is true baltic birch does not come in 4x8 sheets.

You can get true BB in 4x8 as others have noted but it is rarer especially in some areas. There was a time when 4x8 BB was non-existent but I have started seeing it more often but a some of the 4x8 stuff is still the not true BB Chinese stuff.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Locally 4'x8' sheets of 1/2" BB goes for $45. However, driving 110 miles to Spokane, I bought it for $25. The people in Spokane supply our local lumber yards.

[Cary Falk]

5'x5' Russian Birch - $50 for 3/4", $35 for 1/2", $22 for 1/4"

[Todd Bender]

1/2"×5'×5' - $26.99. Come to deep S. Texas (Brownsville/South Padre Island area) and pick you up a couple!

[John Goodin]

In central Texas I just paid in the mid-40s for a 5X5 of 3/4."

[Tim Bueler]

Locally 4'x8' sheets of 1/2" BB goes for $45. However, driving 110 miles to Spokane, I bought it for $25. The people in Spokane supply our local lumber yards.

Ken, where are you getting that locally and is it BB or Apple ply?

[Tim M Tuttle]

Based on my research it seems that upper midwest and the south are cheapest areas. Well, my search will continue.

[Bill McNiel]

5'x5' Russian Birch - $50 for 3/4", $35 for 1/2", $22 for 1/4"

Cary,
Help me out. Where do you get BB here for $50?
Thanks - Bill

[Art Mann]

I think I can answer the question in red fairly easily. The answer is no. Real Baltic Birch plywood is manufactured in the Eastern European (Baltic) countries. It will have been imported from another continent.


Afternoon everyone,
I've been calling around to every place I can find in KC that might carry bb plywood to find the lowest price. Right now the cheapest I have found is $78 for a 4x8 sheet of 3/4 and $51 for a sheet of 5x5 3/4. Someone I know in another part of the country pays $42 for 4x8 sheets. Does anyone know why the huge price fluctuations around the country? Is it just proximity to a mill/manufacturer?

4x8 sheets at my local hardwood dealer are $94!!

What do you all pay in your neck of the woods?

[Ben Rivel]

Last time I went, here in Sacramento, CA the prices were as follows from two of the local spots, one is much more expensive but it gives an idea. The cheaper place carries all the same sizes, I just didnt get the pricing.

5' x 5' Sheet:
1/8" - $24.95 (expensive store)
1/4" - $12.65
3/8" - $28.95 (expensive store)
1/2" - $25
5/8" - $44.95 (expensive store)
3/4" - $30.65

4' x 8' Sheet:
1/2" - $41.95 (expensive store)
3/4" - $72
1" - $95

[Bob Grier]

I think there are 5 possible grades for the face of baltic birch so there could be quite a few different combinations considering there are two faces. I know the better grades cost more. I have a choice of grade when I order but am limited to just a few choices where I purchase it. Some local outlets only stock one of the lower grades and of course sell for less.

https://www.wood-database.com/baltic-birch/

[John K Jordan]

I think George is onto it a bit in that if you hear much of 4x8 sheets you should be cautious. ...

I've had suppliers tell me they had 4x8 baltic birch and when I got there it had poplar layers and birch veneer on the outside. The only real baltic birch I've found around here is in 5x5 sheets. That is unless you are foolish enough to buy it from Woodcraft where they cut off 12", sell the 4x5 piece for the same price as a 5x5 sheet then sell the 12" wide offcut for an insane amount!

Sorry, I don't know the current price.

JKJ

[Cary Falk]

Cary,
Help me out. Where do you get BB here for $50?
Thanks - Bill

Crosscut Hardwood in Portland. It says Russian birch but I am guessing it is the same. Lots of plys. I started using it a few months ago and am very pleased.

[John Adank]

Just an update on my experience with the Baltic birch from Menards. I special ordered a 3/4” 4 x 8 sheet of Baltic birch online last week from Menards. I placed the order on Sunday and they delivered it to my local Menards store on Wednesday. It was $69.99/sheet + $13.99/shipping & handling + $4.62 tax for a total of $88.60. I cut up the entire sheet last night in various sized pieces for a project. I found the entire sheet to be void free and of good quality. I did have a couple of veneered patches on the sheet but they were on the back side and were about the size of 2 half dollar coins. The plywood was packaged very well too. It was encased with a 4 x 8 sheet of OSB on top and bottom and completely wrapped in moisture barrier paper. Keep in mind that you will have extra packing material to dispose of when you special order a sheet of plywood. I asked to leave the packing material at Menards as I didn’t want to have 2 pieces of OSB to dispose of at home. I also had ordered a 5 x 5 sheet of 1/4” BB from my lumber yard. The only difference I noticed in that sheet is that it didn’t have any patched areas on either side of the sheet. All and all, I thought the sheet was of the same quality as the lumber yard.

[Matthew Bashore]

5x5 Baltic Birch $48 for 3/4, $33 for 1/2 and $21 for 1/4 from Hardwood Inc in Clarksville TN

[Ira Matheny]

Be wary! Some less-than-reputable dealers push Chinese or Russian [& possibly others] knock-offs as BB or..."Just as good as BB". The knock-off products are prone to warp and frequently have unacceptable quantity of voids. [Ask me how I know!] [Hint...It was expensive]

[Michael A. Tyree]

It must be "good stuff"cause we watched Building off the Grid on TV for a few minutes and this guy paid $100,000 for a tent in CO 8ok from Denver-had a laminated baltic birch frame with canvas stretched over it. Personally, I'd have bought a log kit and toted them up the dirt road he built. Far more ecological than the thing he wasted $100k on IMO. Whats wrong with North American birch?

[Mark e Kessler]

Umm, pretty sure "BB" is produced in Russia and Finland, the knockoffs would be from elsewhere...



Be wary! Some less-than-reputable dealers push Chinese or Russian [& possibly others] knock-offs as BB or..."Just as good as BB". The knock-off products are prone to warp and frequently have unacceptable quantity of voids. [Ask me how I know!] [Hint...It was expensive]

[Mark e Kessler]

Vermont Prices

5x5
1/8" =$20
1/4" =$24
3/8" =$35
1/2" =$40
5/8" =$55
3/4" =$60

4x8
1/4" =$60
1/2" =$100
3/4" =$140

Mk

[Mark Blatter]

I buy from several different wholesale companies in Salt Lake. Typically I pay around $37 for 5x5 3/4" BB and around $55 for 4x8 3/4" BB. My understanding is that for years it was only available in 5x5 as that is how the European countries bought it. Then 20 years ago or so, they started making it for the US market tough it was more on a bf basis. I think today 4x8 sheets are about the same price per bf as 5x5 or just a bit more. I was surprised the last time I bought the 4x8 at how cheap the price was compared to in the past.

I love the product and it is cheaper, much cheaper than a 4x8 sheet of alder/cherry etc. I pay over $100 per sheet for those.

[Corey Pelton]

Here in SoCal, 4x8 sheets of Baltic birch are $54 at my local hardwood dealer. Excellent quality too. $8 a sheet cheaper than shop grade, which blows my mind, hah.

[johnny means]

I think George is onto it a bit in that if you hear much of 4x8 sheets you should be cautious. The only time we ever have 4x8 baltic birch in the shop is as a core mateiral on an odd laminate panel that cant be laid up in any other core. Beyond that your going to be in 5x5. To me I guess the question is why does it have to be "baltic birch". If you have to have that material then cost is really not an issue, you just have to pay. We have literally never had an application that would demand the cost of baltic birch. There are many other materials that do the same job and are very high quality. If there was some sort of visible edge desirability I could see it.

I would say that BB ends up being the material of choice when cost is a big issue. Anything cheaper is sheer garbage.

[Leo Graywacz]

The question is.. is it B/BB or BB/BB.

Footballs on one side is B/BB and the other has footballs on both sides. I use it for drawer boxes. I only use B/BB and for the most part I cut around the knots. If I'm forced I'll use a football if I can use it as the front of the drawer box and then it gets covered with the drawer front. The inside of the box is football free.

So you need to state the grade along with the price.

[John Adank]

Hopefully my photo uploaded of the 2 cross section samples of Baltic birch. The lumberyard BB is on the left and Menards is on the right. It almost looks like the Menards BB has fir or poplar plys sandwiched in between the BB plys. Just a guess but it definitely looks different.

[Mark Bolton]

The term "Baltic Birch" is pretty much meaningless anymore. Its shifted and shuttled back and forth endlessly and there will likely soon be the day that the old super nice BB will be no different than the faucets and light fixtures of old that the home centers have persevered to get out of the consumers recollection so they can then feed them whatever it is they can profit best from.

Even many of our wholesale suppliers no longer have easy access to what many here would consider true Baltic Birch.

[johnny means]

[QUOTE=John Adank;2973619]Hopefully my photo uploaded of the 2 cross section samples of Baltic birch. The lumberyard BB is on the left and Menards is on the right. It almost looks like the Menards BB has fir or poplar plys sandwiched in between the BB plys. Just a guess but it definitely looks different.[

the glue lines must make up 10% of the thickness on the Menards product.

[Tony Shea]

In Bar Harbor, Maine area there is absolutely no suppliers of Baltic Birch that I can find anywhere. Regular Birch plywood around here is $60 to $80 for a 4x8 sheet and is typically of very poor quality. I don't mind using it now and then for cabinet work but it takes some serious sorting through the stacks to find passable quality stuff that doesn't have a terrible warp with large voids. I am just so sick of the plywood situation here in Downeast Maine and rarely use plywood at this point. Anytime I do need to use plywood I dread having to source the material. Someone needs to set up shop here in Downeast Maine to sell some high quality plywood at reasonable rates. I don't even mind the $80 price tag if the material was worth it. If I could pay $80 for a sheet of 4x8 BB plywood i would be in absolute heaven.