So I have a dilemma or two. I’m just getting back into woodworking (30) from when I was younger (13-16) and don’t have tons of tools. I’ve been working on the tool thing from Craigslist. One thing I am surprised at is the cost of lumber. Perhaps I just don’t remember it because my dad would purchase some once in a while or give me some scraps to build stuff with. It wasn’t ever super nice stuff but I had fun. Now as an adult paying bills of my own I cringe every time I see the cost of a nice hardwood. So my question is how do you guys buy lumber to build your projects? Is there a trick that I’m unaware of?
On a related note. I settled on pallet wood for a shoe bench. Initially I was thinking of tongue and groove to get the planks to stay together and act more like a solid surface I spoke to a woodworker friend and he thinks they’re a bit thin for that. He suggested rabbiting about 1/3 or so of the board top & bottom and stacking them together. Another idea I was thinking was that I could get the planks to ¼” thickness and lay them crosswise to make a ¾” plywood of sorts.
Thanks for your tips
Daniel