Hearne Hardwoods

[Mark Woodmark]

Has anyone had experience with Hearne Hardwoods? I have inquired about wood from them a couple times in the past and found their prices to be very high. I thought I would give them another try as I needed some dry Pink ivory. I never got my question answered as to how dry a couple pieces they had were. All they told me was that it was not kiln dried. The last email from them conveyed their annoyance with my dryness question. Needless to say my experiences with them have been less than positive

[Brian Libby]

Check with Rory Wood at rarewoodsusa.com

[John Downey]

My impression is that they really wanted to stick with larger volume sales and probably shouldn't even offer single blocks of wood or have the website they have. In short, they did communicate accurately with you - they don't want your business on your terms, so you would do better buying elsewhere. Now if you want a few hundred board feet of PA cherry shipped to you, the level of service would probably change.

This is not intended to disparage the company - just the practice of advertising something that they do not really wish to provide, retail sales of small quantities of wood.

[Jeff Duncan]

In general places don't want to spend a lot of time with someone buying small quantities. Checking the dryness of a block of wood is likely something most paces are not going to want to do, and if they do you can expect to pay a heavy premium for such service. You may want to try searching with google to see if you can find several other suppliers to compare prices with. Not sure how many will check dryness for you, or that it would be accurate if they did….but at least you'd have a good comparison of prices.

good luck,
JeffD

[Mark Woodmark]

Thanks Jim,
I purchase hardwood online a lot and most sellers will tell you up front either the misture percentage, whether it is dry to use or green. The ones that dont have had no problem checking this out for me. I am a repeat customer to those individuals or companies. Unless a person is lathe turning a piece they will be interested in how dry a piece is so they know if they will be able to use it in the very near futue or if the piece has to sit around for a few years to dry.

My experiences with Hearne has been less than positiveto say the least and has provided me with a view of what is important to Hearne

[Mark Woodmark]

Just sent rarewoodsusa an email, thanks

[Jim German]

I've always had great experiances with Hearne, although I've always visited in person. They once spent about half an hour re-arranging stock to get some pear wood out for me since the stuff they had easily accessable was too small and I was only buying one board.

[Bill Clark De]

Hearne's ... the only thing better than their product selection is their customer service.You have only to visit their place once to understand it is the finest selecton in the world.
Oh Yes bring lots of money cause they ain't cheap !!!! They travel the world for wood... i have purchased wood several times for less than $100 ...It defintely is the Wally World of wood...Again customer serviice non better they tolerate me ,my moister meter, my small plane , my free roaming and my some times obtuse attitude all without a blink of the eye. Ok that did it!!! time for a christmas visit to Oxford Pa.and Hearnes

[Jeff Bartley]

Mark,
I have no experience with Hearne but I did speak with Groff & Groff a couple years ago about some lumber and the fellow I spoke with was very helpful. Didn't work out for me as shipping would have exceeded the budget for the project but if I ever get the chance I plan to visit both lumber yards.

[David Weaver]

I've been to hearne three times, but every time I've gone there has been an oddball time and nobody is there except the owner and maybe one other person. They've been friendly, and so have the dogs there. The prices are high, but that's the kind of shop it is.

[Larry Fox]

I shop there all the time and have had nothing but positive experience with them. Are their prices high - maybe a little but nothing I would consider out of scale for the product they offer and in the variety and quantity they offer it in. They let you pick your own boards from the pile and are very accommodating in general. Think about it from their perspective, in the case you mention they are being asked about the moisture content of a single piece of wood. If you have never been to their place, it is VAST with wood stashed in every nook and cranny they have and they seem to be constantly expanding with seemingly a new structure every time I go. There are typically about 4-5 guys roaming the warehouse doing various things and it is one of those guys they have to send out and find that piece of wood and measure the moisture content and get back to you. I am a hobby guy and my orders range from < $50 - $1,000+ and I get the same good treatment every time. Pat - the woman who typically works the desks is always friendly, remembers me, asks about my kids etc. I have no experience with ordering online as they are < 30 minutes from me.

[Chuck Darney]

Count me as another frequent visitor to Hearne. I've gotten great service and the selection is fantastic. I've gotten some very interesting wood from their $1/lb bin of cut offs. I've never had any problem with any wood that was not dry enough for immediate use. I've never seen any green or wet wood available for purchase. I think you would have to ask for that specifically.

[Stephen Cherry]

I'll give Hearne the big thumbs up also. One time when I went there I got the "factory tour"- one of their guys showed us (me and my family) their setup, I guess it took about half an hour- and it would have taken as long as it would have taken. Very nice, very helpful, and lots of lumber to choose from (I mean a LOT).

It could be that on the internet, they have a ton of inquiries that don't result in sales.

One option would be to give them a call, tell them you want to start buying from them regularly, and ask if there is a sales person that you can start to work with. I think that even if you are buying small quantities, they would be happy to work with you, particularly as you establish yourself as a repeat customer.

[Mark Woodmark]

Thanks to all for your responses. Perhaps my experiences with Hearnes have been isolated incidents, but then most of you spoke of visiting them in person whereas I am trying to do business with them online. I purchase a lot of wood online and have had good luck with certain vendors as far as quality and price and their willingness to help. I cant speak for Hearnes quality as I have not ever purchased from them although from what I have read here it appears to be excellent. I can speak for their prices as I have inquired with them in the past and found their prices to be high. Not sure if I will give them a try in the future due to the three experiences I have had with them in the past. Perhaps I am just too small an online customer for them. Thanks again, Mark

[David Weaver]

If you're buying on price and buying routine things, they are never going to be your first choice, and there's really nothing wrong with that. Their online stuff looks sort of like an afterthought compared to the store. I wouldn't use it for much other than a price list, there are less expensive places to get lumber online if you use any quantity of it.

If you decide you want a tree sawn through and through in thick boards, and it's got to be something specific and you have a big budget go there. If you just want some odds and ends or something special, same thing. I just can't imagine as big as it is (esp. when you get outside of the main warehouse) that they can efficiently help small orders on the phone, and the guys there day in and day out probably walk a lot of distance trying to find little things.