thin boards

[Clarke Davis]

I was looking at Rob Cosman's video on building wood hinged boxes, very much the sort of thing I would like to spend some time with. The thickness of his boards are 3/8" and 9/16". Some local (Victoria, British Columbia) hardwood dealers sell rough boards that are mostly slightly over one inch (4/4), and any web sites I've found that sell "thin boards" are in the U.S. and shipping to Canada is ridiculous. So how does one get boards of thicknesses, say, around 3/8" to 3/4"? I don't have a table saw or band saw. Do I take these "one inch" hardwood boards to someplace that can run them on-edge through a band saw or some such thing to produce two or more thinner boards? Or is that just plain stupid economy because of the kerf? How do I get my hands on these thinner boards, please? :confused:

[Phil Mueller]

Not sure where you might source a variety of thin boards, but to start out, you can get 1/2” oak at the big box stores. They may label it craft boards. I think it is sold in 3 or 5 in widths and 2-4’ long. I’ve made a number of boxes using this.

[Jim Koepke]

There are some lumber outlets that sell to the building trades. They will often have thinner cuts for flooring, wall covering or trim.

Some lumber dealers selling to the cabinet making trade will stock thin stock for drawer sides and panels.

A phone directory may be the first place to look.

jtk

[Brian Eaton]

It is a US business but it is northern US (honestly not sure if that makes a difference) but you could try Ocooch Hardwoods. They sell thin stock in a variety of thicknesses and I was happy with the few different species I ordered from them as a bit of a trial.

[Robert Hazelwood]

You can resaw them by hand with a 5.5 tpi or coarser handsaw, or a large Ryoba. It's not too bad for smaller boards, and you will probably improve your sawing skills. If the boards get real wide or long then you will probably start thinking about a bandsaw.

And as Phil said, you can get 1/2" thick boards in poplar, red oak, and pine at the box stores, usually.

[Doug Hepler]

The fact that you live in Canada makes this harder for me to answer because I do not know the details of shipping from the US to Canada. I doubt that thin stock qualifies as rough lumber so maybe it is subject to consumer goods duties. Maybe a Canadian will come along who knows the best answer.

In the US there are a number of suppliers of thin stock. Does Rockler do business in Canada? I buy thin stock from Green Valley Wood Products (https://www.gvwp.net/). There was a similar question on this forum within the last few months. You could search for it. There were many good suggestions.

Doug

[Prashun Patel]

I would try to resaw by hand. The 'cheapest' way to do this is to get a Ryoba saw. It goes surprisingly quick.

Personally, I would only do this on boards < 4" and down to 1/2", and then plane the rest.

Choose stable (if possible, quartersawn) stock. For veneers it's not an issue, but for 1/4" and thicker, warp is not always muscle-outable.

[david charlesworth]

Sawing an inch board in half is dangerous practice and best avoided. Here this is called centre deeping.

Both boards are likely to cup significantly and much thickness will be lost.

A better strategy is to bandsaw thin planks off the edge of a wide 3 inch board.I routinely saw 10 mm slices which finish at 8 to 9 mm thick.

These may be edge joined for wider stuff.

Best wishes,
David

[Phil Mueller]

Thank you David. I have done exactly as you have described, and the result is as cupped as you indicated. The only saving grace in it, is if box making, I’m typically cutting it into 6-12” lengths, which can mitigate the cupping issue. Twist, on the other hand, can turn a good 1” board into firewood.

[bill godber]

check this site. They specialize in stock for musical instruments and sell it in thicknesses of 1/8 in.Their prices are good for the higher end material they sell and they're in Chilliwack so shipping via Canada Post is reasonable.

https://www.woodtoworks.com/

[lowell holmes]

I would suggest a thickness planer.

https://www.google.com/search?q=thickness+planer&rlz=1C1UCRO_enUS813US813&oq=thickn&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j0l5.7119j1j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

I've had one for years and would not be without it.

[Clarke Davis]

Thanks for all these helpful suggestions. And thanks for the warning re: cupping and centre deeping; hadn't thought of that and should have! I've picked up some planed-on-4-sides 3/4" thick oak, maple, and poplar at big box stores, but am interested in experimenting with some more exotic/coloured wood, which I haven't found yet (except in 4/4 and 8/4 thicknesses in specialty hardwood shops). The web shows numerous good on-line wood supply places for thin boards State-side, and maybe something like that will turn up in Canada, without all the shipping/customs/duty issues. Still looking and still thinking! Little boxes seem to be made so commonly as hand-tool woodworking projects that I'd thought access to the material would be easier. Seriously, though, hand-planing or power planing, who's going to plane down a 4/4 board to get a 3/8" thick board?!!?! But there's a world of things about wood that I don't know I don't know :D

[Aaron Rosenthal]

Have you tried Windsor Plywood? My Vancouver store is very good and he has a machine shop.
Otherwise, if you're in Vancouver, I could bandsaw some stock for you. We could ork out details via PM.

[lowell holmes]

With my Dewalt thickness planer I would not hesitate. It will do it in just a few minutes.

[David Silverson]

Have you ever thought of buying a bandsaw. It is for many the most useful tool in the shop. A modestly priced one like the Rincon 10- 305 as sold by Lee Valley is a wonderful investment and likely all you will ever need.

[lowell holmes]

I have a 17" bandsaw as well as a thickness planer.

[Georg Zudoff]

In any cases wrap all pieces in a foil, such a thin film for wrapping food, and before you will be use them fix them to a straight board.

[Brian Holcombe]

I saw and sticker, I use a lot of thin material for box making.