Wood Purchasing Questions

[Joe Collazo]

I have some questions to ask of the turners in this group.

First, a little background.....
I have a close friend who has just purchased the company he has worked at for the past 29 years. It's a wood import business that in the past has supplied vendors with moulding, wood flooring, and specialty architectural components.

Now that he owns the company, he would like to branch out into selling exotic woods for general/hobbyist woodworking. This is where he wants me to come in.

In one of our discussions I said that I wouldn't mind marketing wood to woodworking and turning groups. This would also include direct sales like the Woodworker's Classifieds (competition's a good thing, right guys?:rolleyes: ).

So, my questions are:
1. Are there any particular sizes of wood that would be most beneficial to you?

2. Are there any particular cuts of wood that would be most beneficial to you?

3. Is there anything in particular you would like to see in purchasing wood?

I will make note of all comments. I feel this is a good (small) opportunity for my friend and a good way to supplement my disability income.

[Stephen Hibbs]

Most any size or shape is usable, but I would suggest square blanks (rectangles end up being wasteful usually). I'm not terribly picky with my wood choices, but cocobolo and bubinga are fairly popular. crotch pieces, and burls are good too, you mostly want figure in there, the shape and other stuff is somewhat secondary. Maple, cherry, and walnut are pretty popular domestics. I would also suggest hanging onto those highly-figured cut-offs since pen blanks sell for roughly $2 for a 1"x1"x7" piece of wood.

[Christopher K. Hartley]

I would have to agree with Stephen and add that for bowl blanks round is helpful. It is especially good for new turners and those with lighter lathes. Also, some of the larger scraps could be cut for Box and Pepper mill blanks. Bowl blanks should probably range in size from about 6" up to about 24". You might also think of offering a "Grab Box". This would be similar to the mailing boxes you see here with a variety of woods, and sizes that members exchange. Have a standard price and let the buyer be surprised. The element of surprise is always fun as long as the value is there. Good luck with the venture.:)