Saving $$

[Bill Hartman]

The Mrs. has given me yet another project!

She would like a 4' x 6' dinning room table with a butcher block top. She would like the top out of 3 different hard woods with different colors. The problem is if I build this table the wood for the top alone would be well over $400. plus tax! The woods that she likes are cherry,mahogany and popular.

Is there a way to do this and not spent so much $. I would like to stay away from veneer's!

[Tyler Howell]

No! Write the check!!!:rolleyes:

[Jay Kilpatrick]

The problem is if I build this table the wood for the top alone would be well over $400. plus tax! The woods that she likes are cherry,mahogany and popular.



Well, you could either deviate from the LOYL's specs., or start doing some serious study of faux finishing. You could also explain the cost versus your budget to her as defense of using lesser materials and 'settling' for those lesser desired materials. You could look for a cheaper source of your originally required materials? But I'll just assume that those have been identified. If its a want and you ain't got the means, then put it on the backburner. Or you could just write the check as Tyler mentioned, build the piece, and be satisfied that the true cost of that one of a kind piece is well below the market value of your monetary investment in consumables.

Good luck! Really, I mean it!

[Bill Hartman]

I guess she will have to wait! This is the slow time of year for my line of work!:(

Thanks for the help!

[Steve Cox]

I'm not sure. If I figure a top thickness of 2" (1.75" net) you are only using about 50bf. That works out to a cost of $8 a board foot. I could make it out of solid mahoghany for that price. Poplar should be $3 a bf or less and cherry runs $4.80 here (I just bought some). I know Mahoghany is more but if you use African instead of Honduras that would be cheaper. It seems your lumber costs are excessive so I'd say look for different suppliers. If you are thinking of something thicker than 2" I'd say make it thicker on the edges and thin it down in the middle.

[Mark Rios]

How thick were you thinking of making it? A 1' thick table top would be 24 board feet. 24 x $8 per board foot (averaged?) is $196.

But here's a crazy notion......this just popped into my amateur head but what if you made the final thickness of the top 1/2" (or so) and had it "float" on top of a substrate of some kind (you real WWer's can provide a material) and inside a border/edge. There was a chess table that I saw the plans/directions for (Wood Mag?) and they had the glued up chess board float in a border of a different type of wood. A couple of stringers across the 4' direction of the table to support the substrate material? I am thinking to float it and not glue it down because of wood movement, isn't that correct? Just a thought.

[Bill Hartman]

Each piece for the top would be 3/4 x1 1/2 x48. They will be glued together to make the top.

[Steve Cox]

Where are you buying lumber from? You are looking at 50bf and $400 for the woods you list is too much.

[Chris Barton]

I would consider ash, white oak or birch in place of the poplar. Poplar is great for drawer sides and painted pieces but, doesn't do well on high wear surfaces.

[Bill Hartman]

The only place that I have found localy is a place called Hogdon's. There are several wholesalers in the area, but I do not need 800 feet. LOL

[Maurice Ungaro]

Bill, you've stated that your wife specified a "butcher block" top, but are we talking end grain, or long grain?

[Tom Jones III]

How about virola instead of cherry and african mahogany instead of honduran. They also would not have to be in equal amounts. You could slighty favor the cheaper woods and if done properly nobody would notice.

[scott spencer]

Have you checked around for cheaper sources of lumber? Salvaged, roughsawn, lower cost supplier....

[Eric Murphy]

I just did a quick search on woodfinder.com for the 10 closest places to zip code 75050 that stock cherry.

I came up with Woodcraft and Rockler (likely not your cheapest sources), Austin Hardwoods (in Dallas), Sitco Lumber Company, Hardwood Lumber Company of Dallas, The Wood Gallery, Wood World - Hardwoods in Dallas, Curly Woods, Sweeney Hardwoods.

I don't know anything about any of these places. I do read good things about Curly Woods on other forums. I just meant to show you that there are other places in the Dallas area, you just have to find them.

I'm sure that my list is not all inclusive but woodfinder is generally a good place to start.

[Bill Hartman]

It will be long grain. The wood is all 4/4 in the rough. I have rechecked my math, and found an oops. the top with tax will be $ 210.11.


thanks
Bill

[Richard Neel]

This response may not help your financial decision but I just made a recent purchase from Curly Woods. I ordered some 12/4 cherry that I needed for table legs and received some wonderful, nicely matching stock. To my surprise, I received a call at home from Mike at Curly Woods asking if I had received the order and how I liked it. Just great service IMO.

I'm not affiliated with Curly Woods in any way - just a pleased customer.